Book Review - The Brief

My detective work indicates The Brief is being republished after its debut in 2015. As it is set in 1960s London this is immaterial and a book still being in print is a sign it is worth reading. I started reading it at home, continued in the business lounge in Gatwick and finished it in Seville as I waited for my plane.

The author Simon Michael is described as “the British John Grisham”, which means he was a barrister who became an author. You will be pleased to know that he writes like an author, not a lawyer. He is in that fortunate position of knowing about criminal law, police investigations, legal practice and the East End of London when the Krays were knocking around.

Lawyers, police officers and doctors have an advantage when writing thriller fiction as they know what they are writing about and it seems authentic, rather than ripping off what they see on TV and their perception of how gangsters, cops and surgeons talk and operate. The main character is a lapsed Jew Charles Horowitz who was once a “Face” in the underworld before he reinvented himself as Charles Holborne, a wartime pilot and Barrister navigating the class system of law and discrimination.

While making the main character a tough guy and former boxer is rather conventional, there is jeopardy, fear, pain and setbacks as Charles battles to clear his name after his wife is murdered. He wanted a divorce, she was unfaithful, he wanted her money even though her family would make sure he never sees a penny. I had to flick back and read some reviews to fully understand the twists and turns of the story, such as why his wife was killed. However, that may have been the exhaustion and dehydration after struggling to complete the Seville Marathon.

The characters are the strongest selling point of the book. Ronnie and Reggie Kray are well-drawn minor characters. The gangland culture is part of the story world, not a sideshow to prop up the story. I hope his love-interest Rachel is a recurring character in the series and the police officers were worthy opponents especially Detective Constable Sloane. The two real baddies from the upper echelons of society are determined to beat Charles and they’re not scared of his golden gloves. I can imagine the book being an episodic story in a 70s cop show.

I expect I am one of thousands of aspiring authors believing their stories are good enough to be published. After flicking through some self-published books I realised that being a writer worth reading is incredibly difficult. But that’s just my opinion and I am clearly in the talented cohort. Right? Right?

If I can write as well as Simon Michael, I will be happy and may even sell some books.