If a book is based on personal experience it has an edge to it. So when I write my thrillers, even though they contain ample doses of make-believe, I try to anchor them to something which has happened to me. When I stook as a parliamentary candidate for the Conservatives in the 2015 UK General Election, a young supporter took his own life because of excessive bullying from within the party itself. This inspired me to write my first political thriller. It's important to me as a writer to make my stories as believable as possible.
I wrote...
The Missing Activist: A Gripping British Political Thriller (P I Karen Andersen series)
By
Louise Burfitt-Dons
What is my book about?
Vivid, clever, utterly compelling, The Missing Activist is the story of an outsider’s attempt to uncover a deadly conspiracy at the heart of a UK political party.
Post-Referendum Britain and a country on high alert for terrorist attacks…When a young political activist disappears in London, an off-the-wall Private Investigator Karen Andersen is put on the case. She uncovers secrets of a party system that prizes loyalty above truth, a serial killer and a female Jihadi plotting deadly revenge on the British Government.But Party secrets must be kept at all costs. A totally gripping contemporary thriller that will have you hooked from the very first page to the final, dramatic twist.
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The Books I Picked & Why
House of Cards
By
Michael Dobbs
Why this book?
I enjoyed this book and loved the movie even more. It convinced me that people were fascinated by the inside story of politics. By his own account, most of the content on this book was drawn from what he saw working as an advisor to Margaret Thatcher when she was Leader of the Opposition. He claimed in an interview writing the book was a holiday distraction after he left office. But the title of the book is now one of the most used terms in conversation to sum up manipulative behaviour. Very “House of Cards!”
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The House
By
Tom Watson,
Imogen Robertson
Why this book?
Check out Tom Watson’s insider account of similar behaviour within the Labour Party as in House of Cards. Once Deputy Leader, he quit his position because of the “brutality and hostility” within the ranks. It is a good depiction of the sacrifices and betrayals required and shows no party system has the moral high ground when it comes to bullying and duplicitous behaviour.
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Casino Royale
By
Ian Fleming
Why this book?
The first of Ian Fleming’s books has James Bond on an assignment to bankrupt terrorist financier Le Chiffre in a high-stakes poker game at the Casino Royale in Montenegro. Far fetched perhaps, but in fact, inspired by a trip to The Estoril Casino with his superior when Ian Fleming was working for Naval Intelligence. It’s my favourite Bond book.
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A Perfect Spy
By
John Le Carré
Why this book?
This twisty tale of a British spy and double agent Magnus Pym is also a thinly disguised portrayal of his early life. Before turning to writing, John Le Carre worked as an intelligence officer for both MI5 and MI6. Unlike Fleming's glamorous portrayal of spies, his heroes were often depicted as lonely, tragic figures. The fact he knew the inside of the system gives his books extra gravitas.
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The Prince
By
Niccolò Machiavelli,
Tim Parks
Why this book?
Once read, never forgotten. To explain the "Machiavellian" behaviour which makes up the majority of spy and political thrillers, you should start with this. It's even recommended as a leadership manual. The Prince is a political treatise written in the 16th century by Italian diplomat and political theorist Niccolò Machiavelli as an instruction guide for new princes and royals. It outlines strategies that a ruler must follow to govern. The message behind it is a warning. "Just because you behave decently doesn't mean others will."
