London, Burning

This was an immensely enjoyable, tightly woven story that connects and converges four main protagonists stories together in 1970s London. Freddie Selves, the theatre director of NMH, Vicky Tress, a policewoman embroiled in corruption in the CID, Hannah Strode, an ambitious young reporter trying to get the latest scoop on IRA activities and Callum Conlan, an Irish academic who finds himself an accessory to a crime through no fault of his own.

I loved how competently the author weaved all of these four narratives together and seamlessly connected the characters together in a way that didn't hinge on coincidence or implausibility. Each character was very multi faceted and layered well and I invested in each of their individual storylines. I enjoyed the evolution of Freddie from a panto villian to a more functioning human being. Vicky and Hannah were strong female characters who I found very endearing and Callum's story was the most rich in the exploration of Irish hostility in London in the wake of IRA bombings in London. I loved the descriptions of the 1970s and the commentary on Thatcher, union strikes, IRA bombings and corrupt police officers. This book was a pleasing novel and I would read anything else this author writes. If you enjoy novels set in the 1970s or are getting withdrawal symptoms from the finale of Line of Duty. I would strongly suggest this book and this author. You are in safe hands!

Thanks to Little, Brown, the author Anthony Quinn and Secret Readers for a review copy in exchange for an honest review.