'A heady mix of thrills and heartbreak . . . I enjoyed it so so much' GRAHAM NORTON 'What
[Macmanus has] managed to do with London and what London means to different generations of
Irish people is terrific and deeply moving' RODDY DOYLE I'm a Londoner now. I'm a voice in
the noise. I'm ready. It's the turn of the millennium and landing in London with nothing but
her CD collection and demo tape Orla Quinn moves into a squalid Kilburn house with her best
mate and a band called Shiva. Orla wants to make music but juggling two jobs and partying
every night isn't helping. Back in Ireland her parents' marriage has crumbled she's not
speaking to her father and her mother and sister are drinking too much. While Orla's own
dreams seem to be going nowhere Shiva are on the brink of something big. But as the hype
around the band intensifies so does the hedonism and relationships in the house are growing
strained. This is the story of a young woman thrashing through life trying to find home in a
strange new place. It's also a story about music: how it can break you down and build you back
up again and how to find your rhythm when all you hear is noise. Praise for The Mess We're In:
'Bracingly lyrical' OBSERVER 'A dizzyingly good read' iPAPER 'The bygone heyday of indie rock
pulses with authenticity' IRISH INDEPENDENT 'Such a gorgeous book . . . I absolutely ate up
every word' AISLING BEA 'I'm so sad it's over. I could have read another sixty chapters . . . A
fantastic read' JOANNE MCNALLY 'Beautifully painted well set up and realistic' SARA COX Praise
for Mother Mother:'A writer whose understanding and capturing of human nature comes as easily
to her as breathing' CANDICE CARTY-WILLIAMS 'Writes with flair and confidence rarely seen in a
debut' SINÉAD GLEESON 'Tender surprising occasionally bleak moving and delicate' IRISH TIMES
'A study of grief addiction and what it means to be a mother' STYLIST 'Melancholy beautifully
unadorned prose' MAIL ON SUNDAY
