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Islands Ever After

and other stories
Brief Description
'We are like islands in the sea, separate on the surface but connected in the deep.' The separating seas in these fourteen beautiful and thought-provoking stories are variously wide, wild and deadly. They segregate islands that are both physical and metaphorical, and isolate the disparate characters... Read More
Format: Paperback / softback
$2999
Elsewhere:
$3750
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Islands Ever After is a collection of short stories, spanning the 18th century to the modern day. Primarily set on isles across Ireland, Scotland and New Zealand, they explore the experiences of outsiders, immigrants, eccentrics and outcasts in search of connection, understanding and, above all, belonging.

All media promotion by Karen McKenzie of Lighthouse PR Auckland.

Confirmed media:

Magazines:

  • NZ Listener, review
  • 1964 Magazine, review
  • Landfall, review
  • Verve Magazine, review

Newspapers:

  • NZ Herald, review
  • NZME regional papers (Hawkes Bay Today, Northern Advocate, Bay of Plenty Times, Wanganui Chronicle, Wairarapa Times-Ages Age and Rotorua Daily Mail), review
  • Otago Daily Times, possible review
  • Waiheke Weekender, review
  • Beacon, Opotiki News, Eastern Bay Life, promotion

Radio:

  • Radio NZ, Nine to Noon, submit for possible review in June
  • Plains FM, interview with Morrin Rout
  • Coast Access Radio, interview
  • Kick Arts, review
  • MORE FM Book Club, review

Online/Other:

  • NZ Booklovers, Q&A
  • NZ Booklovers review
  • Kiwireviews, review
  • Grownups, promotion
  • NZ Society of Authors, New Books promotion
  • Pitched to all main writers' festivals
  • WORD Festival has requested a copy
  • Nelson Writers Festival has requested a copy

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

'We are like islands in the sea, separate on the surface but connected in the deep.'

The separating seas in these fourteen beautiful and thought-provoking stories are variously wide, wild and deadly. They segregate islands that are both physical and metaphorical, and isolate the disparate characters that inhabit them. And yet, beneath the surface of each uniquely individual tale lies a connecting undercurrent of shared human experience.

Among others: a student in Dublin hoping for love while finding himself isolated by language; a WW1 officer losing his sight on a quarantine island; an executioner who is reviled by everyone, including herself; a woman separated from her husband during Covid-19 lockdown; and a recent arrival who fights for survival during one of New Zealand's great maritime tragedies. And throughout, historical figures and their ghosts stalk the pages.

Islands Ever After is a collection of short stories, spanning the 18th century to the modern day. Primarily set on isles across Ireland, Scotland and New Zealand, they explore the experiences of outsiders, immigrants, eccentrics and outcasts in search of connection, understanding and, above all, belonging.

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781991103987

Publisher: Quentin Wilson Publishing

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 18 May 2026

Country: New Zealand

Imprint: Quentin Wilson Publishing

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 12.0mm

Width: 152.0mm

Height: 229.0mm

Weight: 0g

Pages: 160

About the Author

Majella Cullinane writes essays, fiction and poetry. Originally from Ireland, she has lived in Aotearoa New Zealand since 2008 and Otepoti Dunedin since 2014. She has published three poetry collections with Salmon Poetry Ireland and Otago University Press. Her debut novel, The Life of De'Ath, Steele Roberts (2018) was shortlisted for the Dundee International Book Prize, a finalist in the 2018 NZ Heritage Book Award, and longlisted for the 2019 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards Fiction Prize 2. Her short stories have won, been shortlisted or highly commended in national and international competitions, and published in Greece, Ireland, New Zealand, the UK, and the US. She has been awarded residencies and fellowships in Ireland, New Zealand and Scotland. In 2020 she graduated with a PhD in Creative Practice from the University of Otago. She lives with her family in Koputai, Port Chalmers.

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