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Irish author Roiani O’Donnell tackles the complex issues women face escaping their abusive husbands in the searing must-read, “Nesting: A Novel.” Though this is a fictional account, the wrenching fear and dread Ciara faces when trying to break free from her husband Ryan is realistic, a situation too frequently seen on the nightly news, often with tragic results.
It's 2018, and the family has had a miserable trip to the beach—an outing Ciara hoped would be fun but which ends dismally when Ryan insists their daughter, Sophie, age 4, swim in the Irish Sea with him, despite the brisk wind and frigid water. Ciara watches from the shore holding their youngest, Ella, age 2, growing more frantic at her husband’s insistence, Sophie’s pleas to get out of the water falling on deaf ears. Ryan finally relents, then punishes Ciara by pouting on the ride home, as she tries to make conversation, her stomach in knots.
Scenes like this are common in their 5-year-marriage. Ciara left Ryan once, but has been back with him for 2 years, the tension between them worsening. If Ciara protests or questions Ryan’s actions, he accuses her of controlling him. Nighttime is a nightmare for Ciara because of Ryan’s demands, often made while she’s sleeping. She often wakes with him on top of her. If she refuses his advances, he belittles her, name calls. Her English mother has come to visit, but she can’t stay with Ciara because Ryan hates her. Little by little, Ciara hides money, adds to her “get-away fund,” fearing if she doesn’t leave he might kill her.
When a pregnancy test comes back positive, it’s the final straw. Ciara recalls Ryan’s apathetic reaction to her other two pregnancies. How he told her she’s crazy when she’s expecting. In a panic, Ciara grabs what she can, a few things for the girls and flees into the night. But where can she go? Frantic, Ciara searches for lodging, finally securing a B&B. The next day she calls Ryan to tell him she’s taking the girls to her mother’s in England. He agrees they’ve been having a hard time of it, that it might be a good idea for a few days, but when Ciara gets ready to board the plane with her daughters she’s stopped. Ryan has botched her plan by contacting the airline.
So begins a struggle for Ciara to care for her children and her pregnant self against mounting odds, all the while struggling with a conniving spouse determined to ensnare her and dealing with overwhelming feelings of guilt at putting the girls in the position she has. Ciara fights the urge to return to Ryan, knowing if she does her daughters will once again have a home, not be forced to live in a shelter.
Ciara is an admirable, sympathetic mother with grit who readers will admire and cheer on. Her passionate, undying love for her children is nothing less than extraordinary. At every turn, life is a struggle for her as she tries and fails and tries again to stand firm against a spouse who continually invades her boundaries.
“Nesting” is an easy read that’s not easy to read, tension building as the pages turn, readers fearful that Ciara might cave and once again be imprisoned. This is an important, honest book about abuse and homelessness certain to stir hearts.
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