Bad Actors

Slough House, Book 8

By: Mick Herron

Narrated by: Gerard Doyle

Length: 10 hrs and 51 mins

Publisher's summary

Mick Herron, “the le Carré of the future” (BBC), expands his world of bad spies with an even shadier cast of characters: the politicians, lobbyists, and misinformation agents pulling the levers of government policy.

“Confirms Mick Herron as the best spy novelist now working.” (NPR’s Fresh Air)

Soon to be an Apple TV+ series starring Gary Oldman and Kristin Scott Thomas.

In London’s MI5 headquarters, a scandal is brewing that could disgrace the entire intelligence community. The Downing Street superforecaster - a specialist who advises the Prime Minister’s office on how policy is likely to be received by the electorate - has disappeared without a trace. Claude Whelan, who was once head of MI5, has been tasked with tracking her down. But the trail leads him straight back to Regent’s Park itself, with First Desk Diana Taverner as chief suspect. Has Taverner overplayed her hand at last? Meanwhile, her Russian counterpart, Moscow intelligence’s First Desk, has cheekily showed up in London and shaken off his escort. Are the two unfortunate events connected? Over at Slough House, where Jackson Lamb presides over some of MI5’s most embittered demoted agents, the slow horses are doing what they do best, and adding a little bit of chaos to an already unstable situation….

There are bad actors everywhere, and they usually get their comeuppance before the credits roll. But politics is a dirty business, and in a world where lying, cheating and backstabbing are the norm, sometimes the good guys can find themselves outgunned.

©2022 Mick Herron (P)2022 Recorded Books

excellent

I don't know if there's another one coming (or more) in the series, but their eas could/should be. I thought the River mystery was brilliant suspense and excellent writing.

Fun continuation of the Slough House story

A good entertainment of spy and political intrigue, and a suitable companion for the treadmill or long walks. Suggest “reading” the series in order, or seeing the movie first before reading this next in the series.

Ensemble characters and narrator in peak form

The character development is spot on- and the humor of the interactions can be laugh out loud funny. Am sorry to have caught up to the author and am now waiting for more- but this one and the fantastic Gerard Doyle narrating does not disappoint.

I continue the be amazed

I have been hoarding this last one. Finally indulged. The tv series is great, but the best things about these books are the impeccable language, ever present wit and this narrator. Slough House is a stage for a hilarious take down. While I await the next book in this series, I will start at the beginning and listen to every book. The texture of the writing is so intricate, I know I will find more joy.

i love all these books

all slow horses books are very clever and enjoyable. four stars. looking forward to next one.

Great series!!

I thoroughly loved this series. Tremendous character development of several very unique characters. And the heroes of the book are the underdogs - always fun to root for the underdogs!

My only criticism is the narration. On the one hand, I love his English accent and delivery. But he seldom changes voices for different characters, and it was often difficult to keep track of who was talking. And very often the scene and characters would change, but I didn’t realize it for awhile. I’ve never “jumped back 30 seconds” more often just to figure out who was talking. You have to pay close attention!

But definitely a great series, and I sure hope a book 9 is in the future!

All round excellence

Like all of Mick Herron, the story is excellent. The narrator is excellent the two together make for unbeatable

Dark, smart, humor

I love this series! The mysteries are great. The "jaded" view of Jackson Lamb to the spook world he inhabited and his strange morality and loyalty to "his" misfits and "f"ups is somehow endearing. Love the relationships and the not so cool but real spy antics is hilarious.

Fabulous!

Mick Harron is the best! Once I started this book I couldn’t stop. I missed River but it didn’t reduce the excitement of the story. I’m eagerly awaiting book 9.

A great book in a strong series

You really can’t go wrong with Mick Herron. The books are a bit formulaic, but it’s a good formula. It works because the characters are realistic, flawed and there are lots of office politics. The plot is a bit contrived (and the main antagonist not entirely believable) but Herron drips out pieces of the plot at a pace that pulls you in. There are compelling characters especially Jackson Lamb, Shirley Dander, Roddy Ho etc. Ho has become much more interesting and quite funny. Highly recommended.