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SHORTLISTED FOR THE WATERSTONES DEBUT FICTION PRIZE 2025

‘A remarkable debut. A complex and compulsive read that unravels the intricate twists and revelations among three generations of women with elegance and urgency’ Miranda Cowley Heller, bestselling author of THE PAPER PALACE

‘A saga: its serious pleasures are its expansiveness and range, and Airey’s rare, particular instinct… a cool, bold image of female pain and liberation’ Guardian

It is late September in 2001 and the walls of New York are papered over with photos of the missing. Cora Brady’s father is there, the poster she made taped to columns and bridges. Her mother died long ago and now, orphaned on the cusp of adulthood, Cora is adrift and alone. Soon, a letter will arrive with the offer of a new life: far out on the ragged edge of Ireland, in the town where her parents were young, an estranged aunt can provide a home and fulfil a long-forgotten promise. There the story of Cora’s family is hidden, and in her presence will begin to unspool…

An essential, immersive debut from an astonishing new voice, Confessions traces the arc of three generations of women as they experience in their own time the irresistible gravity of the past: its love and tragedy, its mystery and redemption, and, in all things intended and accidental, the beauty and terrible shade of the things we do.

‘A beating heart of a novel, intricate both in its weaving and its unspooling. An irresistible read’ Yael van der Wouden, Booker-shortlisted author of THE SAFEKEEP

‘Propulsive and utterly captivating … Airey has shades of the American novelists Donna Tartt and Jeffrey Eugenides in her style’ Irish Times

Publisher Review

‘An intricately woven epic, Confessions is both intimate and expansive, a novel that teems with raw, hungry life.’ Colin Walsh, author of KALA — Colin Walsh, author of KALA An absolute triumph * Bookseller * One of 2025’s most exciting literary debuts * Service 95 * I was mesmerized from the very first pages of Catherine Airey’s startling debut, Confessions. The story of Maire and Roisin, two Irish sisters living an ocean apart, proceeds with an almost hypnotic power and grace – it has the certainty of fable and the true originality of a powerful new voice in fiction. — Tara Conklin, New York Times bestselling author of THE LAST ROMANTICS Catherine Airey’s CONFESSIONS is a wonderfully moreish feast of family drama, flowing prose, and psychologically compelling characters. I devoured this remarkable debut that charts the lives of three generations of women and their intense, interior lives. Gracefully plotted with sentences that glide along, it’s a book that rollercoasters with secrets and revelations, exploring love and desire; longing and belonging. Airey’s novel has the complex yet deeply human undertones and poetry of Anne Enright combined with the effortless flow and vim of Louise Kennedy. I absolutely adored this novel and will be reading all future books by this immensely talented author. — Rupert Dastur CONFESSIONS is a beating heart of a novel, intricate both in its weaving and its unspooling. An irresistible read — Yael van der Wouden, author of THE SAFEKEEP [A] bold and intricate debut. . . Airey crafts a sharp psychological sketch of each woman as they contend with their parallel crises, adding nuance and depth without shying away from making a strong statement for reproductive rights. Readers will be eager to see what Airey does next * Publishers Weekly * Confessions is a remarkable debut. A complex and compulsive read that unravels the intricate twists and revelations among three generations of women with elegance and urgency. — Miranda Cowley Heller, author of THE PAPER PALACE Brilliantly conceived and magnificently executed, I truly could not put it down. I haven’t come across as honest, truthful, compelling, and gripping a writer for decades. The work of a debut novelist that feels like the work of a seasoned and highly accomplished author. — Anna Fitzgerald, author of GIRL IN THE MAKING Confessions is a tender and bitingly original work that effortlessly weaves the parochial weight of Irish family history with the mendacious allure of Manhattan’s seedy streets… a chronicler of the pain and peril of self-determination. — Darragh McKeon, award-winning author of REMEMBRANCE SUNDAY Confessions is a remarkable debut. With fearless ambition and phenomenal poise, Catherine Airey weaves an intricate and far-reaching tale that is both compelling and heart-breaking — Ben Hinshaw, author of EXACTLY WHAT YOU MEAN Exciting, expansive and transporting storytelling. It’s hard to believe CONFESSIONS is a debut novel — Roxy Dunn, author of AS YOUNG IS THIS