The Mess We're In: A vivid story of friendship, hedonism and finding your own rhythm

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I feel like this book is aimed at a very particular person - in theory, I was in a similar position to Orla around the same time, having moved away from home for the first time in 2001. There's where the similarities ended - all the characters seemed to do was take drugs while living in squalor. Their flat sounded disgusting, and they were all struggling to make ends meet yet were out every night getting absolutely mangled. They just all really irritated me (except maybe Neema, who was the only one taking anything seriously) - Orla was in no position to judge her mother or sister for drinking when she was off her head daily. Ditto her father's relationship - she was horrible to his new partner and came off like a bratty teenager instead of a supposed independent woman trying to have a career in music. Active Hope shows us how to strengthen our capacity to face this crisis so that we can respond with unexpected resilience and creative power. Drawing on decades of teaching an empowerment approach know as the Work that Reconnects, the authors guide us through a transformational process informed by mythic journeys, modern psychology, spirituality, and holistic science. This process equips us with tools to face the mess we’re in and play our role in the collective transition, or Great Turning, to a life-sustaining society. It’s the turn of the millennium and, landing in London with nothing but her CD collection and demo tape, Orla Quinn moves into a squalid Kilburn house with her best mate and a band called Shiva. This is another book that is set SO close to an area I use to live which made me enjoy the story just a little extra haha. Set in Kilburn, The Mess We’re In is the story of a young Irish woman, Orla Quinn, as she embarks on her London odyssey with hope and expectation. Orla moves into a room in a house-share with her friend Neema and Neema’s brother, who is part of a band called Shiva. All the other band-mates live in the house also. Neema is a law student with a clear career path ahead of her, with Orla’s sights set on the music industry. Orla writes music, plays guitar and has studied music production. She understands the music but she has no direct experience of the music industry. Living with a band has possibilities for Orla but she needs to bide her time and put in some hard and dirty work.

While Orla’s own dreams seem to be going nowhere, Shiva are on the brink of something big. But as the hype around the band intensifies, so does the hedonism, and relationships in the house are growing strained. Macmanus does a good job of giving us the little details so familiar to Irish people living at home and abroad: the chats with the other ex-pats in the local Irish pub; the maudlin ramblings after drink of how difficult life is/was; the phone calls home where guilt is laid on, however inadvertently. Orla gets caught up in a merry-go-round of being glad to be away from home so she can flourish in a way she believes she couldn’t in Ireland, but then not being able to get away from home in a spiritual sense—the elderly gentlemen in the pub reminding her of what it has to move abroad, her family issues haunting her despite the miles and Irish sea between them, and the nagging feeling that her new life isn’t all that different to what it might have been had she stayed at home – she hasn’t had the expected metamorphosis into a young, hip Londoner quite yet.Gerry blinks, looking at his pint, and says, - we don’t all get the luxury of belonging where we’re born. I just finished listening to this. Firstly, I loved the fact that Annie Mac read this. She has such a nice voice and clearly had a vision for how she wanted the story to get across.

Terrified about the current volatile state of the western world? Anxiety levels high? Concerned about what is happening (or, for that matter, not happening) to our politics, society, culture? Then perhaps this book is ideal for you… The Mess We’re In by Annie Macmanus is published with Wildfire and is described by Sara Cox as ‘beautifully painted, well set up and realistic’.

I’m so sad it’s over. I could have read another sixty chapters . . . A fantastic read’ JOANNE MCNALLY I'm a voice in the noise. I'm ready. It's the turn of the millennium and, landing in London with nothing but her CD collection and demo tape, Orla Quinn moves into a squalid Kilburn house with her best mate and a band called Shiva. Orla wants to make music, but juggling two jobs and partying every night isn't helping. The much-anticipated second novel from author Annie Macmanus, The Mess We’re In is a vibrant, unforgettable tale of a chaotic young woman finding her feet and her sound at such a memorable point in London’s cultural and musical history. Orla wants to make music, but juggling two jobs and partying every night isn’t helping. And while Orla’s own dreams seem to be going nowhere, Shiva are on the brink of something big. Yet as the hype around the band intensifies, so does the hedonism, and relationships in the house are growing strained. Twenty something Orla is keen to leave Ireland and her student days in Cheltenham behind and really begin her life in London.