River Cartwright Apple River was there ostensibly because he messed up a training exercise at Stansted Airport that killed 149 hypothetical people. (LogOut/ Lamb meets with Taverner and discusses Katinsky's story, and convinces her to fund a fake ID and cover package for River, who he then meets and instructs to investigate the airfield, and its owner Duncan Tropper, further. I'm totally invested in the world of the slow horses of Slough House since starting the series in 2017. The significance of her connection to Black wasn't obvious to him, of course, because he didn't know Black from any other random thug, but she knew that the connection was something she needed to bury. All Rights Reserved. Min wasnt killed by her car, and she was not driving. Herron builds his characters and reveals more about them perhaps as the series unfolds. Wannabe super spy/espionage royalty/screwup. EXCERPT: The study remained like a showroom in a vacant property - books, chairs, curtains; the shelf with its odd collection of trophies: a glass globe, a hunk of concrete, a lump of metal that had been a Luger; the desk with its sheet of blotting paper, like something out of Dickens, and the letter opener, which was an actual stiletto, and had once belonged to Beria - and if David Cartwright had left secrets in his wake they'd be somewhere in that room, on those shelves, among a billion other words. "The Dogs" arrive, but the group prevent them from killing the detained Curly. Joe Country was particularly bloody for some of them. Slough House isnt the strongest novel of the series that remains Joe Country, a high-watermark which may never be matched but it is most definitely worth your time and money. Roderick, a self-anointed master of online information with a blind spot big enough to encompass all human interactions, spends his days wondering just what he did wrong to end up in Slough House. He tried to leverage his former acquaintance with Judd into calling off the kidnapping because Judd, it turns out, has a secret, extremist past and connections to the Sons of Albion's financial backer. Lucas had seen something he shouldnt have whilst working a holiday job and his attempt at exploiting the situation is having profound consequences. Slow Horses, based on the first of Mick Herron's Slough House novels, follows the fortunes of a bunch of Security Service exiles under Gary Oldman's grotesquely seedy, unsupportive leader Jackson Lamb, as they attempt to untangle an ongoing act of domestic terrorism. But Bad Actors, eighth in the series, has no connection to performance, despite the title that might immediately pop a stage into the back of an American readers mind. Your email address will not be published. Things get pretty close, and Curly is stopped right in the nick of time before he murders the young student. There is a sense of pieces being moved ready for further developments, most notably in the change in dynamic between Judd and Lady Di, and its not clear what the return of Sid will mean long term but the devastating ending and the question it leaves means I am very keen to read the next book. In fact, listening to this has made me even more curious to see the tv series. All Rights Reserved. We soon discover that Lamb is playing a deception game and that River has instead brought the O.B. Forming a protective ring around him, they stopped chief dog Nick Duffy from shooting him from a helicopter. He is due to be accompanied by Nick Duffy, leader of 'The Dogs', for added security, but demands Taverner join him instead. When River Cartwright was relegated to Slough House, he was too young to have developed the legendary skill set of which Jackson Lamb can boast. His description of the man Popov was speaking to, Andrei Chernitsky, matches Boughs killer. So he gave Partner the gun to protect himself. It is revealed that Moe (real name Alan Black) was Taverner's mole, but was found out and murdered by Curly, who then fled with Zeppo, Larry and Hassan. Not crucial questions but worth thinking about . The story begins back at old St. Leonard's, the Spooks' Chapel, where River Cartwright's grandfather was laid to rest at the start of Joe Country. Books with River Cartwright She offers him a way out that will result in him being fired but not charged, but also threatens Standish and tells him Sid has died in hospital. Spook Street is one of the darker novels and what little comic relief there is, is provided by Roddy Ho getting a girlfriend, a plot thread which is pulled in the follow up novel, London Rules. As we know, however, Freddie Fox's "Spider" Webb had fed him false information, and River is, in fact, a highly competent, if over-eager agent. Cartwright, having copied the contents of Hobden's USB drive before delivering it to Regent's Park, realises it contains no information and manipulates a rival, James 'Spider' Webb, into confirming the same. Here, Herron introduces a new slow horse, Ashley Khan, and further develops his subplot of Russian interference in the British establishment.Buy now on Amazon. With Bad Actors just a few short days away, Im ponder what we might see. So much of the story is the thoughts of the characters and I wonder how that will be conveyed. Someone more like Warren Clarke or Sidney Greenstreet is more in keeping with how he is portrayed. A befuddled Roddy Hos thoughts on The Parks plumbing is worth the price of admission alone. Standish begins having flashbacks to the death of a former colleague of hers and Lamb's, Charles Partner. Such events, on home turf, require a response and Taverner is keen enough to make that happen to allow Judds involvement. I know you dont want spoilers so I wont name the character but I feel Herron has made a big mistake re their demise as the character had really become the moral center of the series, much more than Jackson Lamb. But it was Hassan who turned the goons against each other reducing their numbers to one and Hassan who finally knocked his captor out with a well-thrown rock. This, like Real Tigers, is one of the more action-packed adventures in the series, and one where several earlier plot lines are resolved to move the bigger story forwards. Initially the series was to consist of two seasons, but two additional seasons have since been ordered. Is River really dead? River was there ostensibly because he messed up a training exercise at Stansted Airport that killed 149 hypothetical people. BTW I suspect Mack who left the first comment on 12th February last year was more than happy with Garry Oldmans portrayal of Jackson Lamb. He was a connection to the O. The team, acting on the orders of Taverner, shoots the man dead even though he was unarmed and surrendering, to prevent any . [11] It was originally intended to film earlier in 2020 but was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. And yet the Slow Horses somehow get involved investigating schemes endangering Britain. I'm *beyond excited* to have received an ARC from those lovely people at John Murray (thank you!) Because I already know that lurking inside is an intricate plot wrapped around plenty of wit & humour. . This novel is a series highlight for me, and went on to win the CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger Award as well as being shortlisted for the CWA Gold Dagger Award, The British Book Awards and The Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Award.Buy now on Amazon, A North Korean hit squad is conducting a terror operation on British soil, and one particular fly in the ointment is that the plan they are working to is one of the Parks own. River cartwright is contacted by the kidnappers and sent into The Park to retrieve secret documents in exchange for her release. Every spy assigned theredust binned might be a good term to addknows theyve made a mess somewhere in their recent past, and they wont be allowed back into the Park, the office of really performing agents, ever again. Well, that would be another book spoiler that could affect future seasons, so LOOK AWAY NOW. Perpetually rueful Min left a top-secret dossier on the train. Taverner is dealing with intelligence and now Home Secretary Peter Judd MP regarding a large upcoming anti-capitalist protest in London. Meanwhile, River comes closer to answering his most burning question: who engineered his transfer to Slough House?Buy now on Amazon, Without Lambs knowledge, Louisa Guy and Min Harper are seconded by The Park on a baby sitting job. But they have they actually been targeted? Also see Mick Herrons standalone novels, Nobody Walks and This Is What Happened? Katinsky reveals that outside of his part in the Glasshouse plot, he also intended to kill Lamb in retribution for Charles Partner, his own "Joe" who acted as his informant while he was First Desk at MI5. Warning - Spoilers ahead for all books in the series! Lamb blackmails Nick Duffy to get him into the records department at Regents Park. While she obsesses on punishing Lamb, the team is actually in crisis mode. The only downside is that I'm at the end of available books in the series (again). River Cartwright who took centre stage in Slow Horses drops out of the limelight in this one, and no one really fills that centre stage position. However, they cant afford to ignore the assassination, on UK soil, of a Russian defector. However, during a scouting mission, when the two are stalking a right-wing journalist called Robert Hobden, Sid is shot by an unseen intruder. What the Slow Horses did manage to do was foil Di Taverner's plan to mop up her mess by executing the remaining kidnapper. Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. Haunted office manager Catherine is seen attending AA meetings and is regularly taunted by Lamb about alcohol. Except as noted, each character has appeared in all seasons so far shown. However, when Mins son went missing and she took on the role of detective, old feelings resurfaced. What would be the point?. In this case, it's learning the truth to a story Dornan has found in her precious archives. More interesting is the introduction of Desmond Flint and his Yellow Vest movement and the way that Judd is latching onto them. Only the intervention of his MI5-legend. Slough House is his reward for taking care of Charles Partner for MI5. . Hes also ruthlessly effective. Like the previous novels, it was shortlisted for a number of prestigious wards.Buy now on Amazon, A private funding deal, worked out in secret between Diana Taverner and Peter Judd, gives the Park the resources to strike back at Putin, sending a hit team into Russia to rub out the Novichok poisoners. Her sometimes ally or enemy depending on which way the wind is blowing is Peter Judd, Tory politician and grandee. For me the perfect Jackson Lamb would be Timothy Spall. Cartwright, David - Known as the power behind the throne in his time at MI5 in the 70's and 80's. Now known as the "OB", Old Bastard. Curly and River engage in a brief shootout, before he is knocked out by Hassan with a rock. Top 9 Burning Questions going in to Slough House, The Oxford Series and other Mick Herron novels, Barbican Station A Slough House Podcast. Set in 1950s Finland, during the Cold War, the books tell the story of a young police woman and budding detective who cuts against the grain when, John Fullertons powerful 1996 debut The Monkey House was set in war-torn Sarajevo and was right in the moment. The 7th in Mick Herrons SLOUGH HOUSE SERIES is another fast-paced, action packed spy thriller that adds biting satire to the temperature of the nation. Probably all that really need be said about Slough House is that its well up to the standard of the rest of this brilliant series. As the slow horses try to work out whats going on, they find themselves caught up in events outside their control and in the cross hairs of a ruthless enemy who doesnt care about collateral damage . The story, in the early days of, This week sees the release of Trouble, the third book in the Hella Mauzer series by Katja Ivar. Wannabe free spirit. Taverner confronts Judd at his home, revealing that calls he made to his far-right contacts after Hobden visited resulted in the mission being compromised and Black's death. He rules his group with invective, coarseness and vituperation yet is protective as a mother hen when they are threatened. For there has been foreign agents spreading havoc, not least poisoning civilians, in a way that actually happened. It also lays the ground for the events of Joe Country, and at the same time introduces a series villain, ex-CIA operative Frank Harkness. Herron makes all his slow horses vivid, from egomaniacal tech whiz Roddy Ho who everyone hates to idealistic River Cartwright, whose granddad was a legendary spook, to proper Catherine . Baker seemed the most competent of the gang because she was: she eventually revealed to River that Taverner had posted her to Slough House to keep an eye on him. [3] It has received critical acclaim. David Walmsley as Larry, a member of the Sons of Albion. Lamb executed him to protect MI5, and was given Slough House as a reward. And true, Min and Louisa managed to follow that van Until they ran out of petrol because Min was hungry and thinking about sex instead of filling up the tank. Lamb and Taverner will have to work together to maintain MI5s independence, but can they put their history of betrayal and revenge behind them? They never got any credit because all they did was unearth Di Taverner's plot, something that her boss, Ingrid Tierney, wanted brushed under the carpet. Blue shirt. He deduces Katinsky is the spymaster behind the Cicada program (passing himself off as a junior bureaucrat when defecting to avoid suspicion) and was the handler of a traitor in the service. She persists with extracting a promise from first Di Taverner then Jackson Lamb that they will tell her what really happened. Herron does his usual, clever job of merging these strands into one and theres a lot of fun to be had in seeing how it ties in with the continuing battle between Lamb and Lady Di over control of Slough House and its resources. There are hysterical episodes, ridiculous circumstances hard to accept and poignant moments for good measure. I have waited patiently for this seventh book in the series to be released and, yes, I did zip right through it because I didn't dare put it down. Diana Taverner finds herself making some bad decisions in this novel; not the least her involvement with Peter Judd, who bears more than a little resemblance to our current Prime Minister. It turns out that the British term bad actor means a person whos done things that are harmful, illegal, or immoral. (LogOut/ Louisa Guy, perhaps, has most focus but this novel felt much more like a genuine ensemble cast - and benefited from that, too. The group have links to a disgraced journalist that Slough House have been investigating. All in all and nitpicks aside, I thought this was a great read in a series where theres been no let up in quality and I genuinely cannot wait to see what Herron does next with these characters. Ah yes, and that I am doing, but unfortunately not enough e-copies at the library, so have ended up in the most recent book (Bad Actors). Your email address will not be published. His deft and sympathetic characterisation affords the reader a connection with the slow horses (the Parks nickname for their castoffs) which grows with every triumph, every obstacle overcome, and their losses are felt keenly. B. You probably do need to have read the earlier books to understand the character dynamics, and previous events are referenced throughout - we listened to the audiobook and The Cats Father, who hasnt read the previous books, was able to follow but missed a lot of the jokes & plot points. So they all get to stay put at Slough House, no prizes, no pats on the back, just a dismal career under Jackson Lamb's nicotine-stained thumb. Can't praise enough the writing and the way Mr Herron has with words. She was in comms at The Park before she laid out a co-worker, and also has addiction issues. But Lady Di is slowly learning that the patriotism doesnt mean they dont have demands and YouTube billionaire-turned-new-channel owner Damien Cantor in particular would like Lady Di to come on his show and do an interview. This might explain his loyalty to his team when they are in peril, and makes his otherwise rude and bullying behaviour towards them forgivable. Outside of Slough House there is Diana Taverner Lady Di behind her back the ultra-ambitious Second Desk in charge of Ops. "[16] On the review aggregator Metacritic, the season has a weighted average score of 78 out of 100 based on 22 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Tamsin Topolski as Kelly Tropper, a pub barmaid in Upshott and the daughter of Alex and Duncan. After spiraling following the death of Min, Louisa seemed to recover and gain her footing. She was announced as having died, but Roddy Ho inferred from her sudden online invisibility that she had been 'disappeared'. Roddy Ho is the computer whiz, uber-geek and the butt of everyones jokes, not just Lambs. Frank Harkness, renegade ex-CIA spook, has been brought in to clean up, triggering a confrontation with River at David Cartwrights funeral. Leaving her house the two are apprehended by James Webb and head of security Nick Duffy, who force them into a car after searching Lamb. One of the first things to appreciate is that each novel is an underdog story a group of individuals, under-qualified and under-resourced, who have to beat their better-off cousins at The Park to save the day. Partner had been selling secrets to the Russians. We left her severely injured and MIA until a shocking phone call at the end of Spook . These are such fun books that I have to drop everything and read them as soon as each one comes out. Mick Herron was born in Newcastle and has a degree in English from Balliol College, Oxford. However, Larry frees Ahmed and attacks Curly with an axe, but flees which enables an injured Curly to recapture Hassan. Leeds Uni student and aspiring stand-up comic Hassan Ahmed was kidnapped by far-right group Sons of Albion, who threatened to decapitate him live on the internet. Standish beats Krymov in a game of chess, and he reveals it was Katinsky, not Pashkin he met with to set up the Webb meeting. Judd booted Hobden to the curb and Taverner's chief dog Nick Duffy literally pushed him over it into the path of oncoming traffic. figure, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II - Xbox cross-gen bundle (EU & UK), Anker PowerCore Essential 20,000 PD Power Bank, Nope explained: Jean Jacket, Gordy's Home and more. Ho notifies River that Chernitsky's destination is Tunbridge Wells, where his grandfather lives. Your email address will not be published. Herron won the prestigious CWA Gold Dagger for this novel, though for my money his debut is a better book.Buy now on Amazon, Catherine Standish is abducted by a disgraced soldier with service connections in his past. Believing he was targeted also, Lamb investigates Rebecca, the driver, and discovers she has connections to Russia and previously lived in Vladivostok. . Desperate Measures reaches nailbiting conclusion. THE SITE FOR DIE HARD CRIME & THRILLER FANS. But is the victim who he first appears to be? 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