During Bernard Phelan’s first night in an Iranian interrogation center, he was awakened by the sound of screams. In the corridor outside his cell, a man was being beaten with a club.

As the beatings continued, Phelan could hear the deep-voiced guard calling out as the prisoner’s screams gave way to desperate grunts.

The Irishman pressed his hands to his ears to block the assault, but the sounds filled his head.

You will die in prison is Phelan’s gripping, unvarnished account of his 222 days as a government hostage in Iran.

Originally from Tipperary, he was visiting the north-eastern Iranian city of Mashhad in October 2022 when he was arrested and charged with passing information to an enemy state.

The author’s visit to the country coincided with nationwide protests calling for the overthrow of the government.

These were sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini in police custody, three days after the 22-year-old was arrested by the morality police for “inappropriately” wearing her hijab.

Phelan lives in Paris and works as a tourist consultant.

The 64-year-old gained French citizenship in 2004 when he entered into a civil union with his partner Roland.

After Phelan’s interrogation, he was sent to a section of Mashhad prison for prisoners sentenced to death. It is known as Satan’s block.

You will die in prison is a bruise to the insidious indignities of Phelan’s prison. He was allowed to leave his cold cell for only two and a half hours out of every 24, his only refuge was sleep.

The Irish-French national – who has HIV and a heart condition – spent most days in bed, fully clothed, often turning to the wall to cry.

Since hot water bottles were considered potential weapons, Phelan filled Coca-Cola and Sprite bottles with hot water to help keep him warm.

His hardest day was November 24, his father’s 97th birthday. He became extremely worried about ever seeing his father alive again.

In January 2023, Phelan was blindfolded, handcuffed and shackled to his feet before being transported, escorted by guards with machine guns, to court.

He was accused of espionage and ordered to sign a document written only in Farsi.

When he refused, Phelan was led from the courtroom and the judge shouted after him: “You will die in prison.” He was later sentenced to six and a half years in prison.

The writer protested his imprisonment and began a hunger strike.

He quit two weeks later only because his father, communicating through a diplomat, pleaded with him to end it.

Phelan’s claim that he was a pawn in a “horrible human chess game” was ultimately confirmed.

The Iranian authorities used photos Phelan had taken on his phone of police officers and a recording of a street demonstration as the basis for their false accusations against him.

But when he was released on May 11, 2023, it was in exchange for an Iranian prisoner in a Belgian prison.

Phelan has since been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and experiences suicidal thoughts.

It’s no criticism of the book to admit that it doesn’t emulate Brian Keenan’s artistry An evil cradleThe Belfast man’s account of his captivity in Beirut.

Presented in diary format (using dictated notes of his experiences) and written in the present tense, this memoir evokes Phelan’s sense of despair and confusion as a political hostage to one of the world’s most repressive regimes, thousands of miles from home and never knowing when his ordeal would take final.

Laced with flashes of gallows humour, You will die in prison is a tight chronicle of vulnerability, despite and above all a fierce resilience.