Land
novel · First published 2026
Author guide
Maggie O'Farrell Books in Order
Maggie O'Farrell is an Irish-British writer born in Northern Ireland in 1972 and based in Edinburgh. Her work includes literary and historical novels, the memoir I Am, I Am, I Am: Seventeen Brushes with Death, and books for children. She has won the Costa Novel Award, the Somerset Maugham Award, and the Women's Prize for Fiction.
literary fictionhistorical fictionmemoirchildren's literature
Catalog record updated .
Maggie O'Farrell's Newest Book
Not sure where to begin?
Start with one of these
After You'd Gone
Debut novel and natural chronological starting point.
Hamnet
Award-winning historical novel and an accessible entry point to her work.
Outside the series
Bibliography by category
Novels (10)
- After You'd Gone
novel · 2000
Alice Raikes takes a train from London to Scotland to visit her family, but when she gets there she witnesses something so shocking that she insists on returning to London immediately. A few hours later, Alice is lying in a coma after an…
- My Lover's Lover
novel · 2002
A compulsive tale of betrayal and its impact upon a group of flatmates and lovers, Maggie O'Farrell's second novel does not disappoint. With the sensuality, passion and emotional acuteness which characterised her debut, she has written a…
- The Distance Between Us
novel · 2004
Gripping, insightful and deft, Maggie O'Farrell's third novel is a haunting story of the way our families shape our lives. It won the Somerset Maugham Award. On a cold February afternoon, Stella catches sight of a man she hasn't seen for…
- The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox
novel · 2006
In Edinburgh in the 1930s, the Lennox family is having trouble with its youngest daughter. Esme is outspoken, unconventional and repeatedly embarrasses them in polite society. Something will have to be done. Years later, a young woman…
- The Hand That First Held Mine
novel · 2010
Fresh out of university and in disgrace, Lexie Sinclair is waiting for life to begin. When the bohemian, sophisticated Innes Kent turns up by chance on her doorstep in rural Devon, she realises that she can wait no longer, and leaves for…
- Instructions for a Heatwave
novel · 2013
When a recently retired family patriarch clears out his bank account and disappears during a sweltering summer in 1976, his three children converge on their mother's home for the first time in years and track clues to an ancestral village…
- This Must Be the Place
novel · 2016
An irresistible love story, an unforgettable family. The New York Times bestselling author of Hamnet captures an extraordinary marriage with insight and laugh-out-loud humor in what Richard Russo calls “her breakout book.” Daniel Sullivan…
- Hamnet
novel · 2020
Agnes is a wild creature who walks her family’s land with a falcon on her glove and is known throughout the countryside for her unusual gifts as a healer, understanding plants and potions better than she does people. Once she settles with…
- The Marriage Portrait
novel · 2022
Florence, the 1550s. Lucrezia, third daughter of the grand duke, is comfortable with her obscure place in the palazzo: free to wonder at its treasures, observe its clandestine workings, and devote herself to her own artistic pursuits. But…
- Land
novel · 2026
Nonfiction (1)
- I Am, I Am, I Am: Seventeen Brushes with Death
memoir · 2017
In this astonishing memoir, Maggie O'Farrell shares the seventeen near-death experiences that have punctuated and defined her life. The childhood illness that left her bedridden for a year, which she was not expected to survive. A teenage…
Children's books (3)
- Where Snow Angels Go
children's book · 2020
- The Boy Who Lost His Spark
children's book · 2022
When Jem moves to the countryside with his family, he doesn't like his new home one bit. Nothing feels right and, worst of all, strange things are beginning to happen. There is a folk tale told in the village about a little creature…
- When the Stammer Came to Stay
children's book · 2024
The author of Hamnet explores sisterly affection and what it means to rediscover your voice--and yourself--in this illustrated storybook. This is the tale of two sisters . . . who had no idea that everything was about to change. Quiet Bea…
Frequently asked questions about Maggie O'Farrell
Is Maggie O'Farrell Irish or British?
O'Farrell was born in Coleraine, Northern Ireland, to Irish parents, and grew up in Wales and Scotland. She has described herself as connected to all of these identities, while considering Scotland home.
Sources: the-independent.com (opens in a new tab)maggieofarrell.com (opens in a new tab)
What did Maggie O'Farrell do before becoming a novelist?
After studying English literature at Cambridge, she taught English in Hong Kong and worked as a journalist in London. She spent five years at The Independent on Sunday, eventually becoming deputy to the literary editor.
What experiences influenced Maggie O'Farrell's writing?
A serious childhood illness kept O'Farrell out of school for two years, and she has said reading became an escape during that period. She also credits the Irish mythology her father read to her with shaping her storytelling.
Sources: theguardian.com (opens in a new tab)freshairarchive.org (opens in a new tab)
Which major awards has Maggie O'Farrell won?
Her honors include the Somerset Maugham Award for The Distance Between Us, the 2010 Costa Novel Award for The Hand That First Held Mine, and the 2020 Women's Prize for Fiction for Hamnet.
Sources: maggieofarrell.com (opens in a new tab)womensprize.com (opens in a new tab)
Why is Hamnet important to Maggie O'Farrell's legacy?
Hamnet is central to O'Farrell's reputation because it transforms the sparsely documented life and death of Shakespeare's son into an intimate historical novel. It won the 2020 Women's Prize for Fiction and helped bring her work to wider audiences through later adaptations.
Sources: womensprize.com (opens in a new tab)maggieofarrell.com (opens in a new tab)