Pandora - Dora - Condron wakes one morning to discover her 17-year old daughter Ellie, has not come home after a party.
The day Ellie disappears, Dora is alone as her husband Eamon has already left for the day in his job as a long-distance lorry driver. So Dora does the usual things: rings around Ellie's friends... but no one knows where she is. Her panic growing, Dora tries the local hospitals and art college where Ellie is a student - but then the police arrive on her doorstep with the news her daughter's handbag has been discovered dumped in a layby.
So begins Dora's ordeal of waiting and not knowing what has become of her girl. Eamon's lack of empathy and concern, Dora realises, is indicative of the state of their marriage, and left on her own, Dora begins to reassess everything she thought she knew about her family and her life. Increasingly isolated and disillusioned with the police investigation, Dora feels her grip on reality slipping as she takes it upon herself to find her daughter - even if it means tearing apart everything and everybody she had ever loved, and taking justice into her own hands.
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I read The Empty Room in one huge gulp during a five hour plane journey and it enriched my journey so much. It's a crime novel with a simple premise, about ordinary people, and is done so very well. The slow burn feel is excellently presented, as our lead character Dora discovers more about herself and her family.
It's a regular day. Dora's husband Eamon has just left on one of his long-distance journeys. he's a lorry driver, delivering goods all over Europe. Dora has one daughter, Ellie. She and Ellie are the best of friends and whilst Eamon is not Ellie's natural father, he's been around a long time. They are a pretty average family.
Ellie is not in the house. It seems that she didn't return home after leaving the previous evening to go to a party with her best friend Amy. Dora is puzzled and a little alarmed, this is not usual behaviour for Ellie. She rings around her friends with no joy. At first, the police don't seem that concerned; it's usual behaviour for teenage girls, in their view. However, it's Eamon's reaction that really unsettles Dora. He doesn't seem to be concerned at all, brushing off her concerns with platitudes.
Frustrated by the lack of action from the police, Dora begins to delve deeper into Ellie's recent activities and what she discovers shocks her. Secrets kept and new friendships hidden from her mother, Ellie's recent behaviours just don't match up to the girl that Dora thought she knew. Eventually Eamon does return home and when the police begin to get their act together and take some action, Dora's world crumbles around her.
The discovery of events that have been kept from her shatter her. She begins to question all that she is and has been and a multitude of emotions flood her head. Guilt, anger, frustration and grief all mingle together, but also spur her on to find answers to the increasing number of questions that she has.
Brian McGilloway lays bear the grief of the parent. Dora's feelings are raw and this author is so talented when relaying those to the reader. The utter anguish felt by Dora as the story progresses increases page by page.
This is a story of pain, grief and revenge and it's utterly compelling. The tiny details are all there, the slow deterioration of Dora's life and her mind are incredibly well handled. It's a page turner that is totally convincing and masterfully written. Highly recommended.
Brian McGilloway was born in Derry, Northern Ireland in 1974. After studying English at Queen's University, Belfast, he taught in St Columb's College in Derry, where he was Head of English before taking up a post in Holy Cross College in Strabane.
His first novel, Borderlands, published by Macmillan New Writing, was shortlisted for the CWA New Blood Dagger 2007 and was hailed by The Times as 'one of (2007's) most impressive debuts.' The second novel in the series, Gallows Lane, was shortlisted for the 2009 Irish Book Awards/Ireland AM Crime Novel of the Year. The third Devlin, Bleed a River Deep, was selected by Publishers Weekly as one of their Best Books of 2010. The first DS Lucy Black novel, Little Girl Lost, became an Amazon Kindle No 1 Bestseller in 2013 and was a New York Times and USA Today bestseller in 2014. Two further novels featuring Lucy Black were published; Hurt in 2013 and Preserve the Dead in 2015. The fourth Lucy Black novel, Bad Blood, will be released in May 2017.
Brian's screenplay, Little Emperors, won the BBC Tony Doyle Award in 2013 and is currently in development with BBC Northern Ireland.
Brian lives near the Irish borderlands with his wife and their four children.
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