Synopsis
‘A treat . . . Takes on the biggest questions of life and death’ - 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 Guardian
‘Sally Rooney meets The Secret History’ - The Sunday Times
THE HEART IS A LOCKED ROOM
Abigail’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.
Details
02 April 2026
9781035036158Reviews
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
As soon as I finished this fiendishly elegant jigsaw puzzle of a book, I dashed back and scoured its pages trying to find if Hegarty had planted a glinting, hidden clue somewhere to unlock the mystery
A brilliant dissection of the murder mystery format . . . Both funny and moving, it’s a really impressive debut
Dazzling, formally subversive, brimming with compassion, Fair Play explodes the conventions of a mystery in order to confront us with the genuinely mysterious. An emotional ambush of a novel, this book will delight readers – then it will haunt them
