This book was compelling until it took a strong left turn during the last third. I gave it 3 stars for the strength of its beginning. I admit to skimming when I realized it no longer made sense. This is a talented author who disappointed my expectations when the suspension of logic and disbelief was the conclusion. ( )

I'm glad I didn't see any reviews of this book before reading it as I agree with many of those who found it to be patchy and tedious in sections.

Jim Finnegan is a thirteen year old boy growing up in Dublin in the 1980s, the youngest child with four older sisters. The initial story tells of his exploits with his school friends and his boisterous family mealtimes and how the Mams all get together for coffee and gossip each morning and try to outdo each other with terrible stories about their neighbours. Jim is a typical teenager, rampaging around town on his bike with his best friend Gary and experimenting with drinking and girls with his darker troubled friend Mozzo. This part of the book about childhood innocence and the attraction of rebellious friends is humorous and warm and this is where the writer seems most at ease.

The tone of the book begins to change when Jim is invited by an older girl to his first party without his family. It's here at the party that Jim comes to the attention of the local priest who subsequently plays a big part in making his life wretched. Jim's life goes from been carefree and full of mad exploits to a more sombre, serious one where he must deal with some very adult issues. Even so there are some lighter moments in this part of the book as Jim explores the joys of being a teenager in love and devises a way to deal with the priest.

In the third section of the book Jim, now aged 15, and his older girlfriend Saidhbh, 19 are in London and it's here that the novel seems to loose the plot and become less believable and didn't ring true for me. Jim and Saidhbh are living with Jim's Aunty Grace but I found it difficult to accept that these two teenagers would be left to deal with their serious issues on their own without some family intervention. Instead of going back to Ireland and school Jim gets a job and becomes interested in Astral healing. I found Jim's character as a confident, carefree Irish boy came through quite strongly at the start of the book and even through the middle where he struggles to cope with difficult issues but here we seem to lose his force of personality and he seems suddenly passive and mature beyond his years.

Although I enjoyed the first two thirds of the book (and would have given at least 4 stars at that stage) I really disliked the last third (and not just for the subject matter) and really did not like the ending at all - it was just so unbelievable and unnecessary. ( )

This heartfelt debut novel by Irish writer Kevin Maher, will leave you wanting more. Maher has a nice light touch and does an excellent job of capturing the humour and the pain of the family dynamic. Issues of teen pregnancy and childhood sexual abuse are also explored as well as spiritual healing. For fans of Peter Sheridan, Pauline McLynn and Frank McCourt.Recommended.

First, note that none of the book's dialogue is placed inside of quotes. Surprisingly, it didn’t bother me. I enjoyed seeing the world through the young protagonist, and most of the time his voice was authentic and humorous, but at other times he seemed too cynical for his age. Throughout the book, he displays very little sympathy for his ailing father, and doesn’t really seem to care about him until the absurd ending. When I requested this book, somehow I missed the priest pedophile thing. I braced myself for a full out attack on the Catholic church, and expected to find an “all priests are bad” theme, but that wasn’t the case. The book remained balanced that way, contrasting an evil priest, with a relatively good one. The book does a good job of portraying how a young teen is propelled all-too-quickly into adulthood by daring to “play” the part of a man without really being one. When his girlfriend gets pregnant, neither of them are prepared to deal with the consequences. I was debating on whether to give the book four or five stars until close to the ending. When the protagonist gets introduced to chakras and Reiki it’s all downhill from there. Perhaps, if earlier in the book there had been a hint that the book was going in that direction, it would have been easier to digest at the end. The book started out as one genre and ended as another. Some novels can pull the old switcheroo without a hitch, but not this one. The ending of The Fields had me rolling my eyes in irritation. I hope the author continues to write. He has a great voice. If he works on his conclusions, I think he could be the next big name. ( )