Going Back

Scobie Donoghue was once the king of the weekend. His twenties were spent working hard and playing harder. A lovable rogue, the lads wanted to be him and the girls wanted to be with him. But now, about to turn forty and returning to his small midlands hometown, Scobie is back in his childhood bed, single, burnt out and depressed. The life he thought he had left behind has moved on - but has he? Going Back, Eugene O'Brien's heartwarming debut novel, continues the story of hit TV series Pure Mule, capturing the whole world in one Irish town: the highs and the lows, from addiction and mental-health issues to love and redemption. It will take some time and a lot of soul-searching, but maybe Scobie Donoghue is finally ready to grow up. 'I was delighted to get reacquainted with Scobie Donoghue. This is a timely book, engaging and entertaining. It lifts the lid on and exposes the underbelly of the disenfranchised in a community that has been pulled apart since the heady days of the Celtic Tiger.' Liz Nugent

Eugene O'Brien has written for the stage, screen and radio. His work includes the critically acclaimed TV drama Pure Mule, winner of five IFTA Awards, and which, according to the Irish Times, 'spectacularly raised the bar for Irish TV drama'. The show was inspired by his play Eden, which debuted at the Abbey and has since played the West End and Off Broadway; it won the Rooney Prize for Irish Literature in 2003. The film adaptation won Best Actress for Eileen Walsh at the Tribeca Film Festival. A new play, Heaven, set in the same fictional midland town debuts at the 2022 Dublin Theatre Festival. Eugene is a regular columnist for the Sunday Independent. This is his first novel.