Red Menace

An Irish Times best book of 2024 so far

"A very early candidate for the crime novel of the year" IRISH TIMES

Live Aid, July 1985. The great and the good of the music scene converge to save the world. But the TV glitz cannot disguise ugly truths about Thatcher's Britain.

Jon Davies and Suzi Scialfa have moved on since the inquest into the death of Colin Roach, but they're about to be drawn back into the struggle - Jon by his restless curiosity and Suzi by the reappearance of DC Patrick Noble.

Noble's other asset, the salaried spycop Parker, is a pawn in a game he only dimly comprehends. First, he's ordered to infiltrate the Broadwater Farm Estate in Tottenham; next will come Wapping, ground zero of a plot to smash the print unions. But who is Noble working for, and how far can he be trusted?

The Iron Lady is reforging the nation, and London with it. Right to Buy may secure her votes, but who really stands to benefit? Corruption is endemic and the gap between rich and poor grows wider by the day. Insurrection seems imminent - all that's needed is a spark.

REVIEWS FOR WHITE RIOT, A SUNDAY TIMES BOOK OF THE YEAR

'Rpresents everything that is good and important about the crime fiction genre' Irish Times

'Enthralling' Sunday Times

'Gripping' The Times

'Propulsive' Guardian