Martin Boylan

The Jealous God Martin Boylan

Northern Ireland in the 1950s, a decade before the troubles. When Rosaleen Johnson, aged 15, is victimised by the nuns at her school, she quits and goes to work at a factory in a Protestant part of Belfast. Bible studies with her colleagues lead her to meet the charismatic Reverend Doctor Lesley Prichard - who delivers anti-Catholic oratory at his packed church gatherings. Her sister Marie worries - especially when she strikes up a relationship with Daniel, one of the Reverend Prichard's proteges. Things come to a head when her hot-tempered father opens a letter from Daniel to Rosaleen. The confrontation spills over into violence and she runs away and goes into hiding under the Reverend's protection. Her disappearance unleashes forces in the wider community. Under the gaze of the media, the church leaders and politicians align themselves around the Johnson family. Who will prevail? Rosaleen, no longer a minor on her next birthday? The priests who want to protect their sphere of influence? The confused parents, torn between anger, love and fear of losing their daughter? No one emerges unscathed from this moving story of youthful self-discovery - and self-deception.