The therapy house - Julie Parsons

Garda Inspector Michael McLoughlin is trying to enjoy his retirement - doing a bit of PI work on the side, meeting up with former colleagues, fixing up a grand old house in a genteel Dublin suburb near the sea. Then he discovers the body of his neighbour, a retired judge - brutally murdered, shot through the back of the neck, his face mutilated beyond recognition. McLoughlin finds himself drawn into the murky past of the murdered judge, which leads him back to his own father's killing, decades earlier, by the IRA. In seeking the truth behind both crimes, a web of deceit, blackmail and fragile reputations comes to light, as McLoughlin's investigation reveals the explosive circumstances linking both crimes - and dark secrets are discovered which would destroy the judge's legendary family name.

Julie Parsons was born in New Zealand but has lived most of her life in Ireland. Formerly a radio and television producer with RT, she has been writing full time since her first novel,Mary, Mary, was published in 1998. A commercial and critical success, it has been translated into seventeen languages. Her novel,The Guilty Heart, spent six weeks in the Irish bestsellers. She is married and lives outside Dublin.