Here are 37 books that The Shadow Network fans have personally recommended if you like
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I have been writing for many years, and my main preference is political thrillers with criminal overtones. I first became interested in politics when I worked at several political conferences in the 60’s and 70’s. I have been involved in several criminal cases, including my own, and within my family, I have a nephew in the police force. For many years I have had the opportunity to mix with the upper tiers of society as well as the criminal classes and this has given me great insight into creating my characters and plots.
I love reading a thriller with a complex plot that has me trying to figure out who did what, where and when, and what or who may be connected in the main or subplot.
This was one of those books I had to read twice, not because I didn’t “get it” but because I admired the way Chandler weaved his characters around, like the actors in a Whitehall farce play. This is a book I kept turning back a few pages to keep up with the who, where, and when. Fantastic read.
Raymond Chandler's first three novels, published here in one volume, established his reputation as an unsurpassed master of hard-boiled detective fiction.
The Big Sleep, Chandler's first novel, introduces Philip Marlowe, a private detective inhabiting the seamy side of Los Angeles in the 1930s, as he takes on a case involving a paralysed California millionaire, two psychotic daughters, blackmail and murder.
In Farewell, My Lovely, Marlowe deals with the gambling circuit, a murder he stumbles upon, and three very beautiful but potentially deadly women.
In The High Window, Marlowe searches the California underworld for a priceless gold coin and finds himself…
I have been writing for many years, and my main preference is political thrillers with criminal overtones. I first became interested in politics when I worked at several political conferences in the 60’s and 70’s. I have been involved in several criminal cases, including my own, and within my family, I have a nephew in the police force. For many years I have had the opportunity to mix with the upper tiers of society as well as the criminal classes and this has given me great insight into creating my characters and plots.
This is one book I really could not leave alone. An experienced political journalist loses his sister in a road accident, but the journalist thinks her death has something to do with some government secrets she knew about.
I was drawn into this story from the start. Peston’s style is first person central and it holds the readers attention. He turns what could be a simple plot into a complicated plot with the main protagonist digging out secrets while risking his own life. I loved this one. There are a lot of very realistic passages from a writer well-schooled in the political world.
THE HUNT FOR A KILLER LEADS ALL THE WAY TO THE TOP...
'Brilliant' - THE TIMES 'Cracking' - DAILY MAIL 'Winning' - SUNDAY TIMES 'A hell of a read' - OBSERVER 'Enthralling' - FINANCIAL TIMES 'Enjoyable, intelligent' - GUARDIAN 'A romping thriller' - INDEPENDENT 'A rollicking read' - EVENING STANDARD 'A gripping thriller' - DAILY EXPRESS 'Fascinating' - DAILY MIRROR 'Gripping' - RADIO TIMES 'Compelling' - THE SUN
THE BIGGEST THRILLER OF THE YEAR FROM BRITAIN'S TOP POLITICAL JOURNALIST, ROBERT PESTON. ________________________
1997. A desperate government clings to power; a hungry opposition will do anything to win. And journalist Gil…
I have been writing for many years, and my main preference is political thrillers with criminal overtones. I first became interested in politics when I worked at several political conferences in the 60’s and 70’s. I have been involved in several criminal cases, including my own, and within my family, I have a nephew in the police force. For many years I have had the opportunity to mix with the upper tiers of society as well as the criminal classes and this has given me great insight into creating my characters and plots.
I nearly put this book back on the shelf, but glad I didn’t. This is a brilliant plot about a missing spy and two operatives sent to find a captured colleague in MI6 amidst Chinese and Taiwan tension that might turn to war at any time.
I found it interesting that the author is a BBC Correspondent with bags of experience about eastern politics. His attention to detail is really good, and there is plenty of tension, action, and atmosphere. A good read for those who like plenty of informed detail in a good plot.
THE NEW LUKE CARLTON THRILLER.BBC Security Correspondent FRANK GARDNER'S thrillers are . . . 'Fast, taut, tense, accurate.' FREDERICK FORSYTH
'Utterly authentic.' DAILY MAIL
'Enthralling, intelligent.' FINANCIAL TIMES
'Nerve-shredding.' TONY PARSONS
'Heart-in-mouth.' i-NEWSPAPER
'Compulsively readable.' RADIO TIMES __________________________________________
The world is on high alert.
Across the Strait from Taiwan, China's armed forces appear to be readying for war. Could the People's Republic be preparing to invade its island neighbour?
Britain's Secret Intelligence Service has a mole deep within the Chinese Communist Party leadership - an individual in possession of intel that could defuse this fast-escalating situation. A 'collector' is sent…
I have been writing for many years, and my main preference is political thrillers with criminal overtones. I first became interested in politics when I worked at several political conferences in the 60’s and 70’s. I have been involved in several criminal cases, including my own, and within my family, I have a nephew in the police force. For many years I have had the opportunity to mix with the upper tiers of society as well as the criminal classes and this has given me great insight into creating my characters and plots.
I love an all-action plot that does not rely on the action to sell the story. This is about artificial intelligence creation and a race to unlock its secret about a murder. There is lots of tech detail and the plot is well thought out.
I loved the fast pace of the story and the main character who is not so much a hero but an ex bad guy who O’Reilly creates beautifully. I do rate this very interesting story about Ai.
'Starts off like a fired bullet and never lets up. A sheer delight' David Baldacci.
At a global tech gala hosted at the British Museum, scientist Tobias Hawke is due to unveil an astonishing breakthrough. His AI system appears to have reached consciousness, making Hawke the leading light in his field.
But when terrorists storm the building, they don't just leave chaos in their wake. They seize Hawke's masterwork, sparking a chain reaction of explosive events which could end the world as we know it.
Michael North, ex-assassin and spy-for-hire, must find the killers and recover the AI. But he…
I have beena lawyer for more than 50 years and I love what I do. I also want to share my enthusiasm for what I regard as the world’s most exciting profession, where every day is a little different. I am also a legal writer. But I don’t just write for other lawyers. I want to make the law accessible to everyone.That includes anyone who may be thinking seriously about a legal career but has yet to make the leap.
This anonymously written and entertaining book will tell you what your barrister is really thinking, behind the polite smile and measured language, when they are defending you against a criminal charge.An insider’s view of the UK criminal justice system and its failings. Ever wondered why there are so many miscarriages of justice? Not just those which make the headlines. The writer contrasts the professionalism of the crown court trial,with its judge and jury, with the wild westof the magistrates’ court, in whichmore than 91% of UK criminal prosecutions begin and end.
An anonymous barrister's darkly comic and moving first-hand account of life in the legal system, and how it's failing us all.
The Sunday Times number one bestseller. Winner of the Books are My Bag Non-Fiction Award. Shortlisted for Waterstones Book of the Year. Shortlisted for Specsavers Non-Fiction Book of the Year.
'Eye-opening, funny and horrifying' - Observer
You may not wish to think about it, but one day you or someone you love will almost certainly appear in a criminal courtroom. You might be a juror, a victim, a witness or - perhaps through no fault of your own -…
Having spent my youth watching dramasCrown Court andL.A. Lawon TV and reading Rumpole of the Bailey, it’s not surprising I became a lawyer and then went on to write legal thrillers myself. The courtroom is an inherently theatrical place, where emotions and tensions run high. It’s a place where egos collide, theories are propounded and punctured and the liberty (and sometimes the life) of the accused is at stake. It follows, then, that lawyers operate in a totally even-handed system, where they’ll always achieve a fair and just result and uncover the truth. All the books I’ve recommended challenge this notion in different (but equally brilliant) ways.
When Armani-loving lawyer, Leanne Mitchell, is asked to defend millionaire Clive Omartian on fraud charges, she believes her career is on an upward trajectory. But her success puts her at odds with the head of her Chambers, who is desperate to be awarded ‘Silk’ and with her instructing solicitor and old friend, as she begins to suspect he knows more about their client than he is letting on. Before she realises, she’s being dragged into dangerous waters.
Oozing authenticity, twisty and turny, the reader shares Lee’s pain, not just the wounds she suffers from courtroom barbs, but in her everyday experience as a young, black, working-class woman barrister in a mainly white, male, privileged world. Despite huge challenges she remains feisty and principled. A real hero for our times.
'Impressive and unique. As relevant today as it was over two decades go' Bernardine Evaristo, from the Introduction
A gripping, propulsive courtroom thriller following barrister Lee Mitchell as she uncovers the dark secrets of London's obscenely rich
Lee Mitchell is a thirty-year-old barrister from a working-class Caribbean background: in the cut-throat environment of the courtroom, everything is stacked against her.
After she takes on the high-profile case of notorious millionaire playboy Clive Omartian - arrested along with his father and stepbrother for eye-wateringly exorbitant fraud - the line between her personal and professional life becomes dangerously blurred. Spiralling further into…
When I started writing mysteries, beginning with St. Martin’s Malice Award-winning Southern Fried,I wanted to get the medical, investigative, and courtroom details right. What better resource than good first-hand accounts from professionals who do those things every day? I love traditional, play-fair mysteries and the puzzles they present. But I also love writers who get the technical details right while also writing engaging novels I can get lost in. Nothing better than curling up with a good mystery.
I first met Rumpole, the Old Bailey Hack, as he called himself, on the PBS Masterpiece series. John Mortimer’s books about the curmudgeonly old barrister are even more delightful. As a former trial attorney, I love how the collections of short stories in his books give me a peek inside the British legal system—and how they present plenty of puzzles to solve, filled with irascible good wit.
A collection of stories featuring Rumpole of the Bailey, including "Rumpole and the Younger Generation", "Rumpole and the Alternative Society", "Rumpole and the Honourable Member", "Rumpole and the Married Lady, "Rumpole and the Learned Friends" and "Rumpole and the Heavy Brigade".
Having spent my youth watching dramasCrown Court andL.A. Lawon TV and reading Rumpole of the Bailey, it’s not surprising I became a lawyer and then went on to write legal thrillers myself. The courtroom is an inherently theatrical place, where emotions and tensions run high. It’s a place where egos collide, theories are propounded and punctured and the liberty (and sometimes the life) of the accused is at stake. It follows, then, that lawyers operate in a totally even-handed system, where they’ll always achieve a fair and just result and uncover the truth. All the books I’ve recommended challenge this notion in different (but equally brilliant) ways.
"The serial killer isn’t on trial he’s on the jury."
Actor Bobby Solomon is accused of murdering his wife and bodyguard in a frenzied attack. Eddie Flynn, former conman turned lawyer, is brought in to assist the defence team. Eddie’s the full package—resourceful, quick-witted, a masterful cross-examiner, and he can handle himself in a fight. He also believes in Bobby’s innocence. But he’s up against an ingenious, ruthless killer who will stop at nothing to achieve his cause.
If the central premise—that of a killer infiltrating the jury and undermining the entire justice system—isn’t sufficiently terrifying, then the array of corrupt police officers and self-serving lawyers (on both sides) should tip you over the edge. Happily, Eddie stands head and shoulders above them all.
'THIRTEEN is my favourite read of the year.' Sarah Pinborough
'Outstanding.' Lee Child
'Smart and original. This is a belter of a book.' Clare Mackintosh
****************
They were Hollywood's hottest power couple. They had the world at their feet. Now one of them is dead and Hollywood star Robert Solomon is charged with the brutal murder of his beautiful wife.
This is the celebrity murder trial of the century and the defence want one man on their team: con artist turned lawyer Eddie Flynn.
I was a cop for fourteen years and a barrister in the UK for another fourteen years appearing in criminal trials. I've seen and heard enough real cops, lawyers, and criminals to last me a lifetime and more. It left an indelible mark on my own writing and reading preferences. I love true crime but also good crime fiction with realistic characters, settings, and plausible storylines. There's a thread that connects me to most of the authors whose books I have recommended. They're either former lawyers with investigative experience or experienced journalists with experience of a crime beat. Chandler is the exception, but I must say he would've probably fitted right into the police forces.
Not only did this novel remind me of Lewis Carroll's works, but it also reminded me of the Beatles' Magical Mystery Tour and other works of theirs in their hallucinogenic-inspired songs and albums. Rippington himself is aware of that in his writing as he references both Alice in Wonderland and the phrase 'magical mystery tour.'
So far, I may have misled you because this book is a real thriller. It travels along at the speed of sound and though the things happening to Emerson Rabette are fantastic, they are so believable at the same time. That's difficult to do as a writer but Mr. Rippington manages it with ease and much panache.
What the readers are saying... ★★★★★ The perfect escapist read for our times ‘★★★★★ The sort of book you ‘watch’ while reading... utterly brilliant ★★★★★ If possible, I would have awarded this 10 stars. This book is much more than amazing. ★★★★★ The author, Nick Rippington, himself describes it as "Alice in Wonderland... with guns." Well, he's right and it's not hype.
Graphic designer Emerson Rabette is forced to use the London Underground to get to a meeting with his employers. There's a problem, as he's terrified of the tube. He is no ordinary commuter and this is no ordinary…
I was a cop for fourteen years and a barrister in the UK for another fourteen years appearing in criminal trials. I've seen and heard enough real cops, lawyers, and criminals to last me a lifetime and more. It left an indelible mark on my own writing and reading preferences. I love true crime but also good crime fiction with realistic characters, settings, and plausible storylines. There's a thread that connects me to most of the authors whose books I have recommended. They're either former lawyers with investigative experience or experienced journalists with experience of a crime beat. Chandler is the exception, but I must say he would've probably fitted right into the police forces.
I am a fan of this style of writing. Some may call it pulp fiction. Perhaps, hard-boiled? I suppose it is like comparing bare-knuckle fighting and boxing under the Marquis of Queensbury rules. Chandler's style, and those like him, is down and dirty, and supposed to be realistic. Indeed, in his essay, he writes: "Fiction in any form has always intended to be realistic." He was writing in the context of denigrating the old-fashioned British-style mystery. I do believe he has a point. Anyone who is familiar with his work and style can understand my penchant for liking crime fiction that is realistic. The remainder of my picks reflect this.
This is a collection of early short stories and an essay which gave the book its name. The latter is fairly short and its main idea is an argument for the virtues of a noir mystery as opposed to a traditional British one. Considering the fact that this comes from a guy who became a classic of the former even before his death and that he picked up some below the average examples of the latter, I agree.
The stories themselves left me out cold for the most part. I can actually describe the plot in practically all of them…
