In the Forest

Edna O'Brien's novel In the Forest tells the dark story of a beautiful young woman and her little son who live in a cottage on the edge of a forest in rural Ireland and are murdered by a deranged killer who has become obsessed with her.
The book is based on the true story of Imelda Riney and her son Liam who were murdered by Bredan O'Donnell in Co Clare in 1994. The crazed O'Donnell went on to kill local priest Fr Joe Walshe. When the book was first published in 2002 it caused some controversy an O'Brien was accused of exploiting the grief of the families involved. But if the novel makes use of a real life event, it does so for a valid reason.
The book is a brilliant exploration of exactly how such a horror-and other horrors that have happened since then-can come to pass. It takes us deep into the minds of the killer and makes us feel the unspeakable terror of the victims. It is told in a calm and factual way, but in language of such intensity that the reader feels part of what is happening.
The young man in the story, like O'Donnell in real life, has been deeply affected by the death of his mother. He gets into trouble as a teenager and ends up in jail. By the time he returns to his home area he is pathological and extremely dangerous, a petty criminal who lives rough and hears voices. And then he becomes fascinated by the young woman who lives in a cottage at the edge of the forest with her young son...