Sam Blake and Tadhg Coakley in conversation with Michelle Dunne discuss their recent books and the rise of crime writing in Ireland.

Vanessa Fox O’Loughlin writes crime as Sam Blake the multiple No 1 bestseller shortlisted for Irish Crime Novel of the Year three times.  Her 7th bestseller, The Mystery of Four, is in shops now and her YA debut Something Terrible Happened Last Night is due May 4th 2023. Find out more at www.samblakebooks.com. Vanessa is the founder of Europe’s biggest writing resources website, the award winning writing.ie, the Writers Ink online writing group and Murder One, Ireland’s International Crime Writing Festival. Vanessa is a board member of the Society of Authors, and a fellow of the RSA. Having developed a range of initiatives in the writing world, she is a champion for emerging writers, working with agents and publishers, both in the UK and Ireland, spotting new talent. Vanessa joined the Board of the Crime Writers Association in 2021 and takes a dynamic lead in organising National Crime Reading Month.

Tadhg Coakley, originally from Mallow, living in Cork city. He’s the author of The First Sunday in September (Mercier Press, 2018) a novel in stories shortlisted for the Mercier Press fiction prize; Whatever It Takes (Mercier Press, 2020) a crime novel set in Cork city, which is the 2020 Cork One City, One Book choice; and the autobiography of Denis Coughlan, called Everything (Hero Books, 2020) co-written. His fourth book The Game: A Journey into the Heart of Sport (2023) was shortlisted as Sports Book of The Year. His new book Before He Kills Again, a follow up of Whatever It Takes, will be published in February 2023. He also wrote many short-stories, articles and essays for The Stinging Fly, The Winter Papers, the Irish Examiner, The Irish Times, The Honest Ulsterman, Quarryman, Silver Apples and elsewhere.

Michelle Dunne, born and raised in the harbour town of Cobh, Co Cork, joined the Irish army at the age of 18, where she went from recruit, to infantry soldier, to Peacekeeper with the UN, to instructor back home in Ireland. Taking a less than conventional route to writing has stood her in good stead when portraying the darker side of life as a crime writer. Dunne’s latest book, The Invisible, follows on from her first crime novel, While Nobody is Watching, which both feature former soldier Lindsey Ryan.