Louise Hegarty

'Louise Hegarty can do anything. She's fearless. And I loved these playful, clever, perfect stories' - MARIANA ENRIQUEZ'Phenomenally talented' - THE SUNDAY TIMES'Borges for the CMAT generation' - THE IRISH TIMESAre you ready to pla? ave you ever found yourself doom-scrolling, worrying about that weird pain in your leg, only to have your plans for the day completely trashed by the appearance of a literal axe-wielding trol? hat about that time you came across a perfect double of yourself in the stree? r the gorilla suit you put on one day only for it to fuse with your ski? hen those children went missing from your village, did you know for sure it was the electricity that took the? nd down in the basement of your ancestral family home, what is it that’s making that THUMP . . . THUMP . . . THUMP . . . Bold, funny, and wild, Louise Hegarty’s debut collection will turn you upside down and inside out, if it doesn’t take you apart completely. * * * * *PRAISE FOR FAIR PLAY‘A treat . . . Takes on the biggest questions of life and death’ - Paul Murray‘Dazzling' - Colin Walsh‘Brilliant’ - The Times‘Ingenious’ - The Telegraph‘Terrific’ - The New York Times‘Heartbreaking’ - The Guardian‘Sally Rooney meets The Secret History’ - The Sunday Times

A Book of the Year in THE TIMES, THE GUARDIAN, and ELLE 'Louise Hegarty’s genre-splicing debut is a treat – clever, confident, and always surprising, a mystery story that ingeniously escapes the locked room of the genre to take on the biggest questions of life and death' Paul Murray, author of THE BEE STINGTHE HEART IS A LOCKED ROOMAbigail’s brother Benjamin is dead, and her world has literally been split in two. In one reality Abigail finds herself back at work, navigating the frustrations of well-wishers and busybodies, desperately wondering why her brother has gone. In the other an eminent detective arrives determined to find Benjamin’s killer among his circle of close friends. Is this a murder mystery or something more? What secrets do Benjamin’s friends hold? And can Abigail, immersed in her grief, find out the truth of her beloved brother’s life?‘Dazzling' - Colin Walsh, author of Kala‘Brilliant’ - The Times‘Ingenious’ - The Telegraph‘Terrific’ - The New York Times‘Heartbreaking’ - The Guardian

A Book of the Year in THE TIMES, THE GUARDIAN, ELLE and THE IRISH EXAMINER‘A treat' - Paul Murray, author of The Bee Sting‘Dazzling' - Colin Walsh, author of Kala‘Brilliant’ - The Times‘Ingenious’ - The Telegraph‘Terrific’ - The New York Times‘Heartbreaking’ - The GuardianTHE HEART IS A LOCKED ROOMAbigail’s brother Benjamin is dead, and her world has literally been split in two. In one reality Abigail finds herself back at work, navigating the frustrations of well-wishers and busybodies, desperately wondering why her brother has gone. In the other an eminent detective arrives determined to find Benjamin’s killer among his circle of close friends. Is this a murder mystery or something more? What secrets do Benjamin’s friends hold? And can Abigail, immersed in her grief, find out the truth of her beloved brother’s life?