London Rules by Mick Herron

John Murray | 2018 (1 February) | 345p | Bought copy | Buy the book

London Rules is the fifth book in Mick Herron’s Slough House series of spy novels. This is, though, only the first I’ve read, which definitely puts me at a disadvantage when trying to review it and so, as it is a bought book and not a review copy, I’m just going to attempt a shortish review about why I’ve now gone and bought up the entire backlist.

Slough House in London is a place where spies go when they’re in disgrace and nothing more is expected from them, except for the forlorn hope that they won’t cause any more trouble for Queen and Country. These men and women are the Slow Horses of the secret service and they’re led by the extraordinary Jackson Lamb, a man who is held together by bad habits. The rest are a mix of alcoholics, drug addicts, deranged techies, with even the odd psychopath thrown in. Unfortunately one of them has become involved in the biggest crisis facing M15 and M16 today. A gang of terrorists is working to a plan to throw the country into chaos, beginning with a mass shooting in a small village in Derbyshire. Matters aren’t helped by the uneasy and volatile relationship between the teetering Prime Minister, the rogue MP who launched Brexit and a popular Muslim mayor candidate. The whole situation is about to explode and, unfortunately, Slough House is on the case.

The story is brilliant! I loved the way multiple threads are followed at the same time, some coming together, others not, but the huge appeal of this book, and I presume the others, is its characters. Not just the Slow Horses themselves but everyone who passes through the pages. Some might only pop by but they’re still painted with full colour and personality. The Slow Horses themselves, though, are priceless. The IT expert Roddy’s innate belief and confidence in himself as a man beloved by women is laugh outloud funny. He’s the sort of man who doesn’t even realise when he’s being tortured – he just thinks he’s helping people with their enquiries and is pleased to be so useful. The other Slow Horses are also a joy but with some there is also a touch of pathos. One or two are traumatised. There’s another one who’s just discovered that there’s only one situation in which he feels truly alive – and that isn’t a situation that’s good for anyone.

London Rules is a very funny book. Mick Herron’s writing is truly fantastic and he has such a gift of observation. Even though I’m new to these characters, I immediately felt like I knew them. This book reveals things that have happened in the past. It doesn’t spoil them; it just makes me want to find out what happened – what is it that made some of these people like this? Especially Shirley. I loved Shirley. Mick Herron is so good at combining tragedy and comedy, showing how closely the two can be linked and how this pulls emotions from us. I now have the first four books and I can’t wait for the time to read them. I love spy novels and so it’s great to find a new series, which definitely gives the genre an original twist, to enjoy and follow.

I went to a book event at Waterstones in Oxford last week in which Andrew Taylor (another favourite author of mine) was interviewed by Mick Herron. It was a wonderful event and it was such a pleasure to meet Mick (on the right below) and tell him how hard I’d fallen for his brilliant books and characters.