Twenty-two years ago, Frank’s teenage sweetheart, Rosie Daly, vanished the night they planned to run away to London together—leaving only a suitcase in an abandoned house on Faithful Place. When Rosie’s suitcase is finally discovered, Frank, now a hardened cop, is dragged back into the toxic dynamics of his alcoholic family and the unresolved suspicions surrounding her disappearance. French masterfully unravels layers of family secrets, class resentment, and buried violence as Frank navigates between his professional instincts and personal demons.
With its razor-sharp dialogue, atmospheric portrayal of Dublin’s cramped row houses, and heartbreaking exploration of how childhood scars shape adulthood, Faithful Place is often hailed as French’s most emotionally potent work.
For similar reads, try The Secret Place (2014) for another Murder Squad deep dive into adolescence and betrayal, or The Witch Elm (2018) for a standalone exploration of family guilt.
