Showing posts with label London. Show all posts
Showing posts with label London. Show all posts

Saturday 25 November 2017

Turning The Tables: A gripping thriller about the ultimate heist by Julia Underwood

I picked this book up as it was free at the time and it starts in St Tropez, which is not far from where I live. The action swiftly moves to London and I was gripped by this well written and tense thriller. Loves the 70's London setting and rated this 5 stars.



This is a very British crime caper. A group of ordinary Londoners take on the shady world of the casinos and try to siphon off some cash they all so desperately need. I enjoyed reading about their meticulous planning, done in a suburban house in Fulham whilst enjoying a cheap bottle of wine and some sandwiches. Julia Underwood has set this story in 1976 and she describes that year in vivid detail, the fashion, the difficult economic times due to high oil prices and interest rates and that incredible hot summer. (Yes I’m old enough to remember that!) I was on tender hooks when Chris; the guy that is going to play blackjack sits down at the table of the inside man Pete. There is almost from the start a feeling of impending doom. They know that the casino is run by people who would use violence if they ever discover their scam, but are they smart enough to stay under the radar? Well you’ll just have to read the book. I would recommend this if you love a crime thriller that involves the murky world of gambling or a good old fashioned British crime caper.

Monday 24 April 2017

Mr Apocalypse (Future of London Book 2) by Mark Gillespie

This is the follow up to a book I reviewed a few weeks back; L-2011. It received 5 stars from me and is one of my favourite books of 2017. That is until I read the follow up; Mr Apocalypse which I liked even more. I do like that the writer has set the book 9 years after the first book ended and Mack Walker's world has completely changed. However, outside of London things are pretty much as cynical as before. I give this 5 stars.
Mr Apocalypse (Future of London Book2) on Amazon.co.uk

It’s not often I enjoy a book that much that I immediately buy the follow up. L-2011 (Future of London Book 1) was one such book, so Mr Apocalypse had a lot to live up to. Book 1 was set in an alternative past this book is set nine years on in 2020. It is a future which will probably not happen, and that is not the point. This is a sharply written satire mocking the present. Social media and our insatiable lust for reality TV are all mocked. But at the core is a really well written story and a very likeable character in Mack Walker; our Scottish (anti)hero from the first book. Did Mr Apocalypse live up to the first book? I think it certainly does. Darker and at time quite gruesome, this is as good a dystopian adventure as it is a satire. I even liked it better than the first. (Mind you, put a cat in a story and you’re half way on the road to getting my vote!) Recommended.