Dolphin Song, an Irish novel written by American Tom Richards, recalls your fondest memories of Ireland while delivering a message of hope.
The newly released romantic fantasy story has caught the attention of readers around the globe and managed to reach the #1 spot for new releases on Amazon US for 30 consecutive days.
Author Tom Richard, originally from Chicago, Illinois, moved to Ireland in 1982 and was inspired by his surroundings on the Beara Peninsula to write Dolphin Song.
The novel is a sweeping tale that follows the journey of an Irish-American family caught up in a storm of tragedy.
Bostonian Dawn McCarthy’s life is shattered following a profound double tragedy. Michael, her Irish husband, drowns in a fiery boating accident off the southwest coast of Ireland.
Dolphin Song has reached readers all over the globe including Orlando, England and Minneapolis
While their only child, Jason, who has witnessed his father’s death, is diagnosed with traumatic mutism and retreats into a silent world of his own. Following a series of failed therapies, Dawn believes her son will never talk again.
Rejecting the doctor’s advice, Dawn returns with Jason to the remote Irish fishing village of Kilcastle where her husband had lived and died. There, along the wild Irish coast, she hopes to find a cure for her son. But it is not an easy return for Dawn. She faces daily reminders of what might have been.
The sudden appearance of a wild dolphin delivers newfound hope. In the days that follow, Dawn witnesses a powerful bond grow between Jason and the dolphin as the boy takes his first small steps toward healing. It is only then that she suspects the enigmatic mammal is much more than she had at first supposed.
A story of Ireland, the novel is set in Boston and the isolated, stunning world of Beara Peninsula in the very Southwest of Ireland. Castletownbere (called Kilcastle in the book) is a central location that includes a picturesque pier, fishing fleets, McCarthy’s Bar, then all the way out to sea incorporating the Skellig Islands. Skellig Michael has been renamed Solas Mór (Irish for ‘The Place of the Sun’) and has been transformed into a mystical seat of Irish legend.
Tom credits his close friend Liam O'Neill, a well-established Irish-American filmmaker, for encouraging him to put pen to paper and share the world of Dolphin Song.
Liam sadly passed away from Covid-19 in May 2020 and Dolphin Song has become a cherished novel that reminds Tom of the friendship and memories he had with Liam.
"Many people have lost their faith due to Covid-19 which has left a trail of human tragedy. In the book, Dolphin Song says: all you have to do is jump and someone bigger will catch you.
We’re all looking for someone bigger to catch us: to dry our tears and mend our hearts. I guess that’s what the novel is helping people to do. Mend their hearts while helping them to cope with profound loss.”
Richards is astonished by the book’s success. "Every year over two million book titles are published globally. Dolphin Song is only one of these – it is a book, after all, a mere book. Yet, it seems to be more than that. I have been staggered by the reception it has received worldwide.
"If nothing else, I guess it lights a candle in a world of darkness, hoping that we may all be saved by a little bit of God’s good grace," explains Tom.
A stunning tale of romance, Irish legend and magic, Dolphin Song will take readers on an unforgettable voyage where those we have loved and lost are not gone forever. Instead, it only takes a leap of faith to find them again.
Tom Richards has been approached by a well-regarded film production company seeking an option to the film rights. Renowned German director, Katja von Garnier, is being sought to helm the project.
Dolphin Song is available in Kindle eBook and Paperback Print formats at www.tomrichards.ie
