"In this dystopian vision of London, public safety is in private hands, and nobody is beyond the reach of the law. The constant threat of terrorism has left London under round-the-clock surveillance and in the tightening grip of privatised security firms. A journalist believes one such organisation is financing widespread violence it purports to fight."
An undercover journalist. A murder victim bearing her DNA. A cop working in a criminal justice system where loyalties and ethics are questionable and transitory. Individuals against the might of the corporate world. There can only be one winner, surely?
Writing a crime thriller set in a near-futuristic dystopian world presents author David Beckley with both opportunity and difficulty. Although not governed by authentic (as far as is reasonable) investigative procedures and technique; in a world where he can set the rules, the challenge of creating a believable alternate reality is a very real one, and not for the faint-hearted. He does it very, very well. A Long Shadow is a fast, thrilling ride through a world we can almost, but not quite, recognise.
I finished the book satisfied at reading an enjoyable story but worried that Beckley may just be predicting a future breakdown in UK society that may not be as dystopian or as far away as we think.
In this dystopian vision of London, public safety is in private hands?and nobody is beyond the reach of the ‘law’.
The constant threat of terrorism has left London under round-the-clock surveillance and in the tightening grip of privatised security firms. Journalist Antonia Conti suspects one such organisation?GRM?not only of being behind several women’s disappearances, but of financing the widespread violence it claims to fight.
When a gang of hitmen use rampant state surveillance to track Antonia down, she narrowly escapes with her life. But then one of them turns up dead?covered in her DNA?and Antonia finds herself the prime suspect in his murder.
DS Russell Chapman needs to bring her in. But evidence that Antonia has been framed quickly stacks up and when a personal grudge between her and GRM’s shadowy head of security is revealed, he begins an uncomfortable partnership with her.
Together, the pair delve beneath the surface of the corporate machine and soon find themselves embroiled in a dark and violent underworld even they had barely dared imagine. Will they find the evidence to bring GRM down? And can they keep Antonia’s name off the list of missing women?
