After this review I will be taking a break for a couple of weeks, although some scheduled posts will go up. I'm sorry I have been so ridiculously slow sharing my Bloody Scotland McIlvanney Prize longlist reviews, I'm afraid life has been lifeing hard but I did share one just at the weekend there which you might have missed, The Diary of Lies. The Bloody Scotland festival is this weekend but it is still my intention to share the rest of the longlist reviews at some point as they're all great books.
Anyway, back to today. I'm delighted to be taking part in the blog tour for Fall from Grace, the first in a new series featuring Bobby Fatokun, by Leye Adenle. Many thanks to Anne Cater at Random Things Tours for inviting me and to the publisher for my paperback review copy.
The Blurb
The first novel in a sharp, timely and darkly funny new private investigator series from a vivid and unforgettable voice in the genre.
Bobby Fatokun is no stranger to conspiracies. A former police officer turned ‘Bad Coach’, he now reforms corrupt officers within the Met. But when a client requests an urgent meet and then turns up dead, Bobby suspects there's more to the story than an accidental death.
Bobby's investigation leads him to a church where the victim had been working undercover, but he isn't the only one asking questions …
The church's wealthy pastor has a powerful enemy at the heart of the British Establishment - one who will stop at nothing to neutralise a threat. As the pieces of their dangerous gambit fall into place, Bobby will have to tread lightly, or his search for the truth will turn deadly.
My Review
Prior to reading this novel, my first by Leye Adenle, I read Cell One, a novella by the same author, also featuring Bobby Fatokun, which was published earlier in the year as part of the Reading Agency's Short Reads initiative designed to encourage reluctant readers and those returning to reading. In that, Bobby is a young man, in his very early days with the Nigerian police force. Now, in Fall from Grace, he's back in London, has left the police and now has his own business helping unscrupulous cops within the Metropolitan Police Force - the ones who've been caught, anyway - see the errors of their ways through coaching, not too dissimilar to counselling.
After a former client turns up dead after arranging to meet with Bobby, he sets out to investigate. The death appears to be a suicide but that doesn't sit right with Bobby. But all he really knew about the man was that prior to coming to see Bobby, Roger had been working undercover at a church in London. Meanwhile, we meet Francis, a sprightly 72 year old ex spy, now working as the king's private secretary - as one observer wryly points out, basically his PA - who is contacted by a charismatic pastor, who is also a qualified lawyer, who has somewhat of a delicate matter to discuss with Francis...
The novel moves at speed, with plenty going on. Poor old Bobby sees the end of much of it. But there are brief quieter moments, more emotional ones. Bobby is a really interesting character. Passionate about his job and careful to protect his clients, he tends to hyperfixate on things - during this investigation he barely seems to sleep, for example. And whilst this hyperfocus is useful in his work as a coach studying people's behaviours, it's less useful day-to-day as it can make him paranoid, spinning elaborate stories and scenarios that may or may not be true, or may or may not come to pass. Which makes him a slightly unreliable narrator, and that's always good fun as a reader.
The characters are all colourful and well written. The pastor is a stand out and I also liked Naomi Long-Fuller, a journalist who approaches Bobby looking for a story. The storyline is great and we follow it from Bobby's point of view but we also see what Francis is up to, and it's not just acting as the king's secretary. The denouement is great and I hadn't seen it coming. Fall from Grace is a cracking thriller that I really enjoyed.
The Author
Leye Adenle is a Nigerian-born crime thriller author, known for his gripping and suspenseful stories that explore the darker side of human nature. His debut novel, Easy Motion Tourist, won the prestigious Prix Marianne in France in 2016.
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