My stop today on the wonderful THE MEAL OF FORTUNE blog tour, kindly put together by Anne at Random Things . Read on for more information about this fabulous read that recently had me chuckling as I turned each page!
The Meal of Fortune by Phil Brady
- Paperback: 384 pages
- Publisher: Unbound Digital (14 Nov. 2017)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1911586408
- ISBN-13: 978-1911586401
THE BLURB: The world of arms dealing, espionage and TV cookery collide in this fast moving comedy caper. Failing celebrity agent Dermot Jack thinks his luck might have turned when a mysterious Russian oligarch hires him to represent his pop star daughter. Disaffected MI5 officer Anna Preston is just as happy to be handed the chance to resurrect her own career. Little do they know that their paths are about to cross again after seventeen years as they’re thrown together in a desperate attempt to lure a notorious arms dealer into a highly unusual trap. Hard enough without having to deal with the lecherous celebrity chef trying to save his daytime TV career or the diminutive mafia enforcer who definitely has his own agenda. Then there’s the very impatient loan shark who ‘just wants his money back’. And Anna’s bosses are hardly playing it straight either. But one thing’s for sure. There’ll be winners and losers when the Meal of Fortune finally stops spinning. Oh, and another thing, Anna and Dermot are absolutely not about to fall in love again. That’s never going to happen, OK?
AUTHOR BIO: I was first inspired to write when I read Lord of The Rings as a child. Back then the ambition was to create a whole fantasy world with dragons and sword fights. Sadly George RR Martin seems to have cornered that market, so I now try to comedy thrillers set in the (almost) real world instead. These feature spies, gangsters, vicious (if feckless) criminals, washed-up private detectives and daytime TV presenters. The Meal of Fortune is my first published novel. It is the first in a planned trilogy of comedy thrillers parodying society’s obsession with celebrity.
The follow-up, Tinker Tailor Solider Chef, sees the characters reunited in an attempt to foil a plot by the world’s most secretive intelligence agency (The Belgians) to bring the UK economy to its knees. The final book, centres on a referendum in Wales to decide whether the country should sell itself to an international technology giant for use as a conveniently located tax haven. It will be loosely based on the hilarious 80s film Local Hero.
My main rule in life is to never let tomato ketchup touch any food that is green. I am yet to work out any deep meaning behind this and suspect it is not the soundest of principles by which to live your life. But it’s better than quite a few I’ve come across down the years. Best not to get started on that one though.
I live in London with my fantastic wife and two remarkable children and didn’t vote for brexit.
Twitter @philbradyuk
MY REVIEW
I found this to be a highly original, funny, thrilling read and it has left me wanting more – great news to hear that a follow up book featuring Anna and Dermot is on the cards!
It is difficult to pigeon hole this book under one genre as it has a little bit of everything! It has a spy, thriller theme, alongside digs at reality tv, set amidst the eurovision song contest, contract killers, disputes with exes – the kind of script you’d see Guy Ritchie turning into a blockbuster film! Now that I would like to see!
I loved the variety of characters within this book. It does take a little while to find your feet with some of them but the main characters of Dermot – the celebrity agent looking to rekindle his power – and Anna who works for M15 just like her father did and her struggles with not towing the line – are extremely likeable and funny! Their exploits had me chuckling on numerous occasions and it didn’t surprise me that their pasts were linked too!
The pace of the book was well judged – it never felt rushed, or too slow and the variety of threads within the story kept it all feeling fresh and had me wondering what was going to happen next which often was very different from how I thought things would turn out!
A really exciting and enjoyable read and I will be looking out for more from this author in the future!
Books and Me! 