So It Is - Softcover

'By turns lyrical and brutal, Liam Murray Bell's novel is a gripping and unforgettable literary debut. Interweaving an acutely-observed coming-of-age story with a chilling account of one woman's involvement in Republican paramilitary activity, So It Is unflinchingly examines the devastating impact of violence on individual lives. This is a first novel of astonishing maturity from a talent to watch.' - Paul Vlitos

Spanning the decades that saw Northern Ireland move from brutal conflict to uncertain peace in the 1990s, this powerful new take on the literature of the Troubles is both a political coming-of-age novel and a fast-paced literary thriller. Aoife, a young girl growing up in 1980s Belfast, finds herself the last line of defence between the violence and her family. While her mother sinks deeper into a medicated stupor, and her father leaves the family for the comforts of the local bars, Aoife cares for her brother Damien, trying to keep him out of harm's way, while all around her friends and neighbours are swept up in the conflict. Meanwhile Cassie, a Republican paramilitary and honeytrap, lures and seduces her victims, inflicting lasting damage. But her infamous tactics have their repercussions, and it isn't long before her past catches up with her. So It Is is an unflinching and suspenseful debut that reflects the factions and fractures of the Troubles period from a new perspective, culminating in a breathless sequence in which the choice between violence and personal morality becomes shockingly necessary.