SLOUGH HOUSE 5: LONDON RULES – MICK HERRON

*Pre-order Clown Town, the ninth novel in Mick Herron s Slough House series, now* *Now an award-winning Apple TV+ series starring Gary Oldman, Kristin Scott Thomas and Jack Lowden* Mick Herron is the John le Carre of our generation Val McDermid The best thriller writer in Britain today Sunday Express **** At Regent s Park, the Intelligence Service HQ, new First Desk Claude Whelan is learning the job the hard way. Tasked with protecting a beleaguered Prime Minister, he s facing attack from all directions: from the showboating MP who orchestrated the Brexit vote, and now has his sights set on Number Ten; from the showboat s wife, a tabloid columnist, who s crucifying Whelan in print; and especially from his own deputy, Lady Di Taverner, who s alert for Claude s every stumble. Meanwhile, the country s being rocked by an apparently random string of terror attacks. Over at Slough House, the last stop for washed up spies, the crew are struggling with personal problems: repressed grief, various addictions, retail paralysis, and the nagging suspicion that their newest colleague is a psychopath. But collectively, they re about to rediscover their greatest strength – making a bad situation much, much worse. Dazzlingly inventive Sunday Times