Description

When James meets Luke, everything changes – an exhilarating tale of hidden desire and sudden freedom in the wild countryside.

THE INSTANT TOP 10 IRISH BESTSELLER
DYLAN THOMAS PRIZE LONGLIST 2026

‘An achingly beautiful story of first love’ GUARDIAN
‘Superb… Transcendent’ SARAH PERRY
‘Beautifully written, deeply felt’ MICHAEL MAGEE
‘Heart-rending… Propulsive’ FINANCIAL TIMES

James dreams of another life far away from his small village. Almost an adult, his newfound desires threaten to unravel his shy exterior. Then he meets Luke. Unkempt and handsome, charismatic and impulsive, he has been sent to stay with his aunt and uncle on a nearby farm.

With the passing seasons, a bond emerges between them that transforms their lives. Yet James is never sure of Luke’s true feelings and as the end of summer nears, he has a choice to make: will he risk everything for the possibility of love?

*A Book of the Year for the Guardian, Observer, Irish Times and BBC*

READERS LOVE OPEN, HEAVEN
‘My favourite book of the year’
‘Gorgeous. I was completely transported’
‘The intoxicating rush of first love. Five stars!’
‘Breathtakingly beautiful. A story that stays with you’
‘Heart-breaking but also triumphant. A must-read’
‘The most truthful novel about love
that I have read in a long time’

‘It made my heart hurt in the best ways’ HELEN MACDONALD

‘Hewitt writes with such tenderness and grace’ ANNE ENRIGHT

‘Desire, yearning, fear… Intensely vivid’ IRISH TIMES

‘Gorgeous… Piercing, intimate and euphoric’ COLIN WALSH

‘Sean Hewitt is the real deal’ BENJAMIN MYERS

Open, Heaven was an Irish top ten bestseller w/c 28 April 2025

Publisher Review

An achingly beautiful story of first love in the English countryside . . . Lyrical, atmospheric and transporting * Guardian, *Summer Reads of 2025* * Hewitt is superb in his loving and acute descriptions of the natural world -- SARAH PERRY A gorgeous debut novel about an all-encompassing first love... I promise it's amazing! -- Jack Edwards @jack_edwards Heart-rending . . . sensuous and decadent * Financial Times * A beautiful, lyrical and tender novel of youthful passion and the longing for connection -- FERDIA LENNON, author of Glorious Exploits A beautiful novel about how a first love can shape a whole life -- HELEN MACDONALD, author of H is for Hawk A mature and complete debut novel . . . The central relationship occurs by light, sensitive touch, and reaches arresting emotional depths * New Statesman * Blisses with the bright verdure of youth . . . It's a novel about us -- KAVEH AKBAR, author of Martyr! A gorgeous debut . . . a novel that thrums with hidden love and concealed truths -- ANDREW McMILLAN, author of Pity and Physical A luminous portrayal of two teenagers bonding with each other over one heady, transformative year * Waterstones *