If you’re magnetised by the macabre and want to give your heart a workout, He Loves Me Not by Mullingar’s Lorraine Murphy is the perfect book to get you through the day and keep you up at night.
This is Lorraine’s third book and follows 2023’s Be Careful What You Wish For and 2022’s Into the Woods. All have been published by digital-first publisher, Inkubator books. Her first two books achieved Amazon number one badges and He Loves Me Not looks set to follow suit. Lorraine is a well-known writer in Mullingar and Topic is very proud to claim her as part of the news team. She is also the founder of the Our New Ears charity and swims with local dipping group Dips Don’t Lie.
He Loves Me Not is a psychological thriller set in Mullingar. It tells the story of Ruth O’Donnell as she moves on from a marriage that abruptly ended three years earlier. Ruth is looking forward to the next phase in her life along with her young daughter, Beth. And when she decides to date a man that excites her, things seem to be on the up and up.
But as Ruth is moving on, her past is catching up with her. She is the former member of a sinister cult called The Messengers where medical procedures are banned with devastating consequences. As the future beckons, Ruth is still tangled in her past and a series of unsettling incidents suggest that further horrors lie in wait.
Has Ruth found Mr Right? Or is he pursuing his own secret agenda? And have The Messengers let her go, or will they ensnare her forever?
ORGANIC
“Myself and my husband Brendan were out for a drink one night — where all great ideas start from — we were talking about people who have done really heinous things. Brutal murders and really evil things,” Lorraine told Topic.
“It went through five or six iterations and we asked ‘what if you were part of a group that didn’t allow blood transfusions and your child needed it?’”
This is where Ruth’s story begins. As a member of The Messengers, she subscribed to the belief that accepting other people’s blood corrupts you and makes you evil. Ruth is then forced to choose between her beliefs, and her child’s welfare.
The dark subject matter Lorraine explores doesn’t reflect her bright and cheery personality. Lorraine is a bit of a thrill seeker and is drawn into the fast-paced genre for its ability to get you up off your seat and check behind the curtains.
“I think it’s just deadly. If you look at the big hits on Netflix it’s always the ones that make your heart pump a bit faster. It’s so exciting and so thrilling. To be able to set your own one is like playing with Lego,” said Lorraine.
The author took the learnings of her first two books and applied them to He Loves Me Not to produce her best work yet. When writing Into the Woods and Be Careful What You Wish For, Lorraine pressured herself to reach the finish line. She took a more relaxed approach this time around which allowed her to deliver a more intricate story.
“With the others I was very much looking to the end goal and thinking ‘I’ll never get to the end’. This time I thought I’d really take my time. Really think about it and let it settle. Let the story come a lot more organically than the other two. I was in such a rush to finish the other two.”
SUBTLE
Foreshadowing and symbols are intertwined with the story in a way that captivates the reader and leaves them wanting more. One thing that makes Lorraine’s writing unique is the way she weaves an homage to a classic fairy tale in each of her stories.
“I love dark fairy tales like the Brothers Grimm so I always have some level of a fairy tale arch in my books. In this one I used the Little Match Girl. In Be Careful What You Wish For it’s Rapunzel.”
“This is by far my favourite book. I was able to sprinkle little things that I wouldn’t have had in my previous two books. I don’t actually care if people don’t like it because I’m really proud of this book,” she said.
Names carry weight beyond their lettering in Lorraine’s books and Ruth O’Donnell is tied to a biblical story about a woman who decides to remain with her husband’s mother after she is widowed. Her initials also have special significance but we’ll let you read the book to figure that one out.
“I really intentionally pick my names so all the names have a meaning in my books. Ruth is like a ‘root’. She’s rooted in place. and Ruth is such a biblical name.”
BEGINNINGS
Lorraine’s career as an author began when entered a writing competition with a “cosy thriller” called Hangry about murder in a slimming club. She was invited to take part in a writers room with Inkubator books where she met the owner of the publishing company.
“We just hit it off and he liked my ideas. We went through three or four ideas and we ended up doing Into The Woods. They have writers from all over the world. I was only one of two Irish writers when they took me on.”
The Mullingar-based woman said she is a big believer in accessible books. She wants the subject matter of her books to correspond with her reader’s maturity levels and the language she uses to match their reading ability.
“I’m really passionate about books for everybody. I was reading before I went to school. My mother was freaky into reading. I went to school on my fourth birthday and was already reading so I got a really good start in life. But lots of people haven’t had that chance. I specifically write my books with more accessible language,” she said.
“The reviews that make me by far the happiest are the ones that say ‘I don’t normally read’ or ‘I haven’t made it through a book in a very long time’.”
EXCITING
In more exciting news for the author, the audiobook for Be Careful What You Wish For is currently being recorded. Renowned narrator Aoife McMahon will lend her voice to the book. Her previous work includes Sally Rooney’s Normal People, Marian Keyes’ The Break and Patricia Gibney’s Final Betrayal. These are exciting times for Lorraine who has advice for budding writers too afraid to put their ideas to paper.
“If you want to write, just write. Don’t wait for permission. People often think only certain people do this. Everybody can do it,” she said.
“Don’t surround yourself with people who say you can’t. Surround yourself with decent people.”
He Loves Me Not is now available for Kindle users to download and paperback copies will be available in the coming weeks. Mullingar author Patricia Gibney will officially launch the book in Mullingar library on Thursday, 3 October. It’s one of the must reads for those who find themselves fascinated with dark deeds.
“You’ll only need a day but give it a day because you won’t be able to put it down,” said Lorraine.
