{"product_id":"slough-house-isbn-9781641293099","title":"Slough House","description":"\u003cb\u003eTHE SEVENTH BOOK IN THE \u003ci\u003eNEW YORK TIMES\u003c\/i\u003e BESTSELLING SERIES BEHIND \u003ci\u003eSLOW HORSES\u003c\/i\u003e, AN APPLE ORIGINAL SERIES NOW STREAMING ON APPLE TV+\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eIn his best and most ambitious novel yet, Mick Herron, “the le Carré of the future” (BBC), offers an unsparing look at the corrupt web of media, global finance, spycraft, and politics that power our modern world. \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e“This is a darker, scarier Herron. The gags are still there but the satire's more biting. The privatization of a secret service op and the manipulation of news is relevant and horribly credible.”—Ann Cleeves, author of the Vera Stanhope series\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAt Slough House—MI5’s London depository for demoted spies—Brexit has taken a toll. The “slow horses” have been pushed further into the cold, Slough House has been erased from official records, and its members are dying in unusual circumstances, at an unusual clip. No wonder Jackson Lamb's crew is feeling paranoid. But are they actually targets?  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWith a new populist movement taking hold of London's streets and the old order ensuring that everything's for sale to the highest bidder, the world's a dangerous place for those deemed surplus. Jackson Lamb and the slow horses are in a fight for their lives as they navigate dizzying layers of lies, power, and death.\u003cb\u003e\u003cb\u003eA Theakston's Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eReader's Digest\u003c\/i\u003e 50 Best Fiction Books of of the Year\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Times\u003c\/i\u003e Best Thrillers of the Year\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Irish Times\u003c\/i\u003e Best Mysteries of the Year\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eMinneapolis Star-Tribune\u003c\/i\u003e Best Books of the Year\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Sydney Morning Herald\u003c\/i\u003e Best Books of the Year \u003cbr\u003eCrimeReads Most Anticipated Crime Fiction of the Year\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cu\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ePraise for \u003ci\u003eSlough House\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/u\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“I'll tell you what, to have been lucky enough to play Smiley in one's career; and now go and play Jackson Lamb in Mick Herron's novels—the heir, in a way, to le Carré—is a terrific thing.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Gary Oldman\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Herron’s excellent series featuring a motley crew of sidelined MI5 agents united under the fearless leadership of the unforgettable Jackson Lamb, has grown ever-more reflective — if not downright prescient — of contemporary political machinations, and is all the richer for it.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003e—The Boston Globe\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \"The best in a generation, by some estimations, and irrefutably the funniest.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cb\u003e–Jill Lepore, \u003ci\u003eThe New Yorker\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Confirms Mick Herron as the best spy novelist now working.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—John Powers, NPR's \u003ci\u003eFresh Air\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Out of a wickedly imagined version of MI5, [Herron] has spun works of diabolical plotting and high-spirited cynicism, their pages filled with sardonic wit, their characters approaching the surreal . . . Mr. Herron goes about this with bouncing black humor and a set of characters whose appearance and manner would be over the top in any other era. Happily for Mr. Herron—if alas for us—events continue to produce rich material for his special gifts, and we hope he is scribbling away making good use of it all.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Katherine A. Powers, \u003ci\u003eThe Wall Street Journal\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“[Herron's] cleverly plotted page-turners are driven by dialogue that bristles with one-liners. Much of the humor comes from Herron’s sharp eye for the way bureaucracies, whether corporate or clandestine, function and malfunction. The world of Slough House is closer to \u003ci\u003eThe Office\u003c\/i\u003e than to 007.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—\u003ci\u003eThe Associated Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“This is a darker, scarier Herron. The gags are still there but the satire's more biting. The privatization of a secret service op and the manipulation of news is relevant and horribly credible.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Ann Cleeves, author of the Vera Stanhope series\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“A gripping thriller but wickedly funny too. I laughed long and hard.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Ian Rankin, author of the Inspector Rebus Novels\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Richly imagined and ridiculously entertaining espionage novels.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—\u003ci\u003eThe Seattle Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Brilliant.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e—Minneapolis Star-Tribune\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Herron’s distinctive voice, marked by a dry wit and mordant sense of humour, runs through the series, and his latest work is no exception.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Financial Times\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“\u003ci\u003eSlough House\u003c\/i\u003e is the best yet.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e—Times Literary Supplement \u003c\/i\u003e(UK)\u003ci\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“Herron has certainly devised the most completely realised espionage universe since that peopled by George Smiley.”\u003ci\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e \u003cb\u003e—\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e (UK)\u003cb\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e“Mick Herron is one of the finest writers of his generation.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Steve Cavanagh, author of the Eddie Flynn novels\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Mick Herron’s Slough House series has quietly become one of the greatest spy series the world has ever seen. And now a soon-to-be television adaptation starring Gary Oldman should make Herron and his heroes into household names”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—CrimeReads\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“The recent passing of the late, great John le Carré leaves a gaping hole, so the arrival of his heir apparent’s new book could not be better timed.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Everything Zoomer\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Combining some of the cleverest dialogue in the genre with unexpected bursts of violence, Herron brings to the spy novel—not known in the post-Bond era for its sense of humor—an Elmore Leonard–like ability to make us laugh and cry almost simultaneously.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Bill Ott, \u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e, Starred Review\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Herron, an exceptional writer, paces his books brilliantly. He’s capable of prose that’s stark in places and beautiful in others. His action scenes hum without any wasted moments, and his dialogue is funny, or profane, or chilling, as each voice demands. Herron has the full toolkit, and he builds these stories so tight you can barely find the seams where the pieces meet.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Book and Film Globe\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Provides a crystal-clear view of modern British politics.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Kingdom Books\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Herron does a magnificent job keeping the assorted narrative balls aloft in a story that’s often gripping and even more often hilarious. This entry should garner him a slew of new American readers.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e, Starred Review\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Once again, Herron captures the dramedy of the battle between spies and bureaucrats better than anyone else on either side.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Revenge, betrayal, and gallows humor abound in \u003ci\u003eSlough House,\u003c\/i\u003e the seventh installment of Mick Herron’s ripping good series of spy novels. This time out, MI5’s disgraced spies are being hunted by Russian assassins and there’s no one they can trust to help them. Herron’s deft plotting and taut writing make his books the best spy thrillers being published today. Make room on your shelf beside LeCarre and Deighton. His books are fantastic, and \u003ci\u003eSlough House \u003c\/i\u003eis no exception.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—David Enyeart, Next Chapter Booksellers (St. Paul, MN)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e“Genuinely thrilling.”\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e—\u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eDaily Telegraph\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e“Superb.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—\u003ci\u003eIrish Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e“Brilliant.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—\u003ci\u003eLiterary Review \u003c\/i\u003e(UK)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e“I think this might be the best Jackson Lamb outing yet.”\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e—\u003cb\u003eChristopher Brookmyre\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e“I enjoyed \u003ci\u003eSlough House \u003c\/i\u003etremendously. Witty, clever and horribly on point. Lots to laugh about while being careful not to miss a word. This isn't a book to skim read.”\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e—\u003cb\u003eKit de Waal\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cbr\u003e“[Jackson Lamb] Herron's glorious creation propels the story to the bitter end where the non-stop barrage of jokes is fatally undercut by a final shocking twist.”\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e—\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eEvening Standard\u003c\/i\u003e \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e“An excellent writer.”\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e—\u003ci\u003eThe\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eSunday Times \u003c\/i\u003e(UK)\u003ci\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cu\u003e\u003cbr\u003ePraise for\u003ci\u003e Joe Country\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/u\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/i\u003e Best Crime Novels of 2019\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Spectator\u003c\/i\u003e Best Books of 2019\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Suspense, spycraft, dry wit and vulgar humor are all well-deployed in this satisfying work by Mr. Herron, whose style can accommodate everything from a tough action scene to a lyrical elegy.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Tom Nolan, \u003ci\u003eThe Wall Street Journal\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Herron writes squeakingly well-plotted spy thrillers. More than that, he composes—at the rate of a pulpist—the kind of efficient, darkly witty, tipped-with-imagery sentences that feel purpose-built to perforate my private daze of illiteracy. More than \u003ci\u003ethat\u003c\/i\u003e, he’s a world-bringer, the creator of a still-growing fictional universe with its own gravity, lingo, and surface tension.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e—The Atlantic\u003c\/i\u003e \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Herron blends character, place and espionage into a riveting melange that I’ve only encountered in the best of John le Carré or Len Deighton . . . Read one and you're hooked for the whole series.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e—The Globe and Mail\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Herron’s morbidly witty backdrop hosts incisive storytelling with a rich mix of engaging characters.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e—Financial Times\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cu\u003ePraise for the Slough House novels\u003c\/u\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e“Terrific spy novel . . . Sublime dialogue, frictionless plotting.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Ian Rankin\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“The sharpest spy fiction since John le Carré.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—NPR's \u003ci\u003eFresh Air\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Compulsively readable, tightly plotted.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—\u003ci\u003eLos Angeles Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“[Herron] really is funny and his cynicism is belied, here and there, by flashes of the mingled tenderness and anger that seem to define Britain’s post-Brexit self-reflections.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Charles Finch, \u003ci\u003eUSA Today\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Scathingly funny.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e—Newsweek\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Irony and black humor abound.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Newsday\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e“[Herron is the] le Carré of the future . . . The characters are brilliant.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Patrick Neale on BBC’s The Oxford Book Club\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Heroic struggles, less-heroic failures and a shoot-out-cum-heist . . . with no let-up in the page turning throughout.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—\u003ci\u003eEsquire\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Slough House, in this winning series, is where incompetent or disgraced British spies spend their days on meaningless busywork. That is, unless they stumble into genuine espionage. Herron is a subtle stylist, and he strikes a perfect balance of big-hearted humor and thrilling spy stuff.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e—The Seattle Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Hilarious and suspenseful . . . Sharper than most espionage fiction being written today and manages to stay uncannily contemporary.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003e—St. Louis Post-Dispatch\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eMick Herron\u003c\/b\u003e is a British novelist and short story writer who was born in Newcastle and studied English at Oxford. He is the author of the Slough House espionage series, four Oxford mysteries, and several standalone novels. His work has won the CWA Diamond Dagger for Lifetime Achievement in Crime Writing, the Gold Dagger for Best Crime Novel, the Steel Dagger for Best Thriller, and the Ellery Queen Readers Award, and been nominated for the Macavity, Barry, Shamus, and Theakstons Novel of the Year Awards. He currently lives in Oxford and writes full-time.Let’s be honest. Frontal aspect, first reaction: it’s not the best-looking property on the market.\u003cbr\u003e      But consider the potential.\u003cbr\u003e      Conveniently located above a Chinese restaurant and a newsagent whose enterprises occupy the ground-floorage, these upper three storeys present a rare opportunity to acquire a toehold in this up-and-coming area. (Nice little mention in the \u003ci\u003eMail \u003c\/i\u003enot long ago. Not the property pages, but still.) East-facing, but sheltered from morning dazzle by an imposing view of the iconic Barbican Centre, and offered further protection by being on Aldersgate Street, in the London borough of Finsbury, renowned for its temperate climate. Traffic calmed by nearby lights; buses a regular fixture. And the Tube on the doorstep, with the popular Hammersmith \u0026amp; City, Circle and Metropolitan lines literally a minute away.\u003cbr\u003e      The front door’s not in use but never mind. We’ll go round the back.\u003cbr\u003e      To this nicely low-maintenance yard, with ample room for wheelie-bins and broken furniture. Ignore the smell, that’s a temporary blockage. Through this back door, sticking a bit today—doesn’t usually do that—but a bit of shoulder work and Bob’s your uncle. Then up the stairs, but best not put weight on that banister. It’s more ornamental than load-bearing. Original feature, mind.\u003cbr\u003e      And so we come to the first floor, a matching pair of offices, with a view of the heritage brickwork opposite. All unspoilt, very much on-plan. Notice the fixtures and fittings. Authentic period detail there, and the ’70s is a decade that’s coming back, isn’t it, what with the riots, the recession, the racism—ha! Our little joke. But no, really. Nice lick of paint, put your own stamp on it. Splash of yellow, splash of grey. Nothing like a touch of colour to bring out the natural warmth of a room. \u003cbr\u003e      But time’s wingèd chariot, eh? Onwards and upwards, onwards and upwards.\u003cbr\u003e      Which means another flight of stairs, a little cardio-workout. That’s not damp on the plasterwork, just the discolouration you get with age. Two more offices on this level, plus a compact kitchen: bit of surface area for your kettle and your microwave, storage space for your crockery and whatnot. Washer needs a tighten, but that’s easily sorted. Your facilities through here, and—oh. Eco-conscious, the previous user. Just give it a flush.\u003cbr\u003e      And up we go to the final two offices. Crying out to be bedroomed, our opinion. You’ve got your sloping roof, adds character, but leaves ample space to maximise your lifestyle requirements, once you look past the telephone directories and the overflowing ashtrays and the mess on the carpet there. Nothing a deep-clean won’t set to rights. Ideally the premises would be decluttered before a viewing, but access was an issue, apologies.\u003cbr\u003e      Window appears to be jammed shut too. But a quick minute with a screwdriver’ll see to that.\u003cbr\u003e      Anyway, there you have it. It’s quirky—little bit different—and benefits from a colourful history. A department of the secret service, though not an especially active one. Paperwork, we gather. Current occupants have been in possession for an eternity, though it probably feels longer. You’d think spies would have better things to do, but then again, maybe they were never the best sort of spy. Maybe that’s why they’re here in the first place.\u003cbr\u003e      But we can see you’re not convinced—it was the toilet, wasn’t it? —so maybe we should head west, where more traditional premises are available, over towards Regent’s Park. No, don’t worry about the door. Security’s never been a major concern here, which is a bit peculiar now we come to think of it.\u003cbr\u003e      Not that that’s our business—all that matters is getting this place off the books. But sooner or later, we’ll find a taker. That’s the thing about this line of work; the same in yours, we’ll be bound. The same the world over. When something’s for sale, eventually someone’ll buy it.\u003cbr\u003e      Just a matter of time, really.\u003cbr\u003e      Just a matter of time.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003eLooking for donor sperm?\u003c\/i\u003e read the ad above her head.\u003cbr\u003e      Definitely not, though on the Central Line at rush hour, you couldn’t rule it out.\u003cbr\u003e      But for the moment, Louisa Guy hoped herself impregnable. She was jammed into a corner, true, but had her back to the enveloping mass, and her attention fixed on the door she was pressed against. In its reflection all became disjointed, like a 3D movie without the specs, but she could make out human features: blurred mouths lip-synching to music, faces shuttered against contact. While the chances of a stranger-on-stranger encounter turning nasty were rare—a million passenger journeys for every incident, said the stats—you’d hate to be the one to buck the trend. Take deep breaths. Don’t think about bad outcomes. And then they were at Oxford Circus, where the crowd split apart like murmurating starlings, her half spilling onto the platform, heading for exits.\u003cbr\u003e      She didn’t normally come into town after work. Her barhopping days were largely over, largely unregretted; shopping expeditions were for weekends; and cultural outings—theatre, museums, concerts—let’s face it, didn’t happen: she was a Londoner, not a bloody tourist. But she needed new trainers after a ten-mile outing in the rain last week; a stupid idea but she’d been having a bad day, thoughts of Emma Flyte refusing to leave her alone. You couldn’t run away from your memories, but you could tire yourself to the point where the details blurred. So anyway, the trainers had either shrunk or changed shape so fundamentally they belonged on different feet, which meant here she was, heading into town after work; the evenings lighter now the clocks had gone forward, but the air still bearing shades of winter. On the escalator, video ads encouraged her to rethink fundamental choices: change bank, change phone, change job. In a perfect world she’d have managed all three by the time she reached street-level.\u003cbr\u003e      Where the pavements were damp from rain. Louisa circumnavigated clumps of pedestrians, crossed Regent Street at a trot while the LED warned \u003ci\u003e3-2-1\u003c\/i\u003e, and dipped into a sporting goods store, its neon logo a pale imitation of itself in the watery light, its tiled floor slick with grime. A yellow bollard exhorted her to take care. If she’d taken care, Emma Flyte would still be alive. But it was pointless to think such things; the clocks had gone forward since then, and only ever went so far back. Trainers were in the basement. She took an elevator again; she was always going up or down, it seemed. Always up or down.\u003cbr\u003e      On the back wall, running shoes were displayed like ranks of heads in \u003ci\u003eGame of Thrones\u003c\/i\u003e. As always there was a sale on, high-street retail being mostly zombie since You-Know-What, but even at reduced prices, trainers were mad. The ones that looked good were, anyway. And while the main thing about trainers was they had to feel right, not look good, still: they had to look good. So she picked the pair that most impressed on the wall, which proved nothing but was a sensible starting point, and sat and tried them on.\u003cbr\u003e      They felt okay. She walked up and down and they pinched a bit, more than when sitting, but it was hard to tell whether that was a new-shoe thing or a fitting issue. These places should have a treadmill. She flexed her leg to see if that helped, and noticed a guy noticing this—he was down the far end, examining a Nike—so did it again, and he kept on noticing, though studiously pretended not to. She crouched, and pressed the toe end of each trainer, checking for fit. He replaced the Nike on the wall and took a step back, his face a studied neutrality. Yeah, right, thought Louisa, awarding herself a mental high-five.\u003cbr\u003e      Still got it.\u003cbr\u003e      She sat again, removed the trainers. They cost more than she wanted to spend, and while that had rarely stopped her in the past, it would be an idea to try on a few more pairs first. As if agreeing with this notion, her mobile trembled in her pocket, and at precisely the same moment she heard a nearby ping—someone else’s phone registering an incoming text. It was the guy who’d been watching her, or pretending not to, and he stepped out of sight behind a rack of socks and wristbands, reaching into his jacket as he did so. Could’ve been a meet-cute, she thought, self-mockingly. Hey, simultaneous texts—what are the odds? And she reached for her own mobile while having the thought, and checked her message.\u003cbr\u003e      \u003ci\u003e. . . Fuck!\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e      Louisa leaped up, shoeless, and raced to the far wall, slipping a little, steadying herself by grabbing the rack, but he was gone already—was that him on the escalator? Taking the stairs two at a time, as if alerted to a sudden emergency—yeah, she thought. You and me both. There was no point following, not with nothing on her feet. He was out of sight now anyway; would be on the street, picking the busiest direction to disappear in.\u003cbr\u003e      Bastard, she thought. You sly cunning bastard.\u003cbr\u003e      And then thought: So what the hell’s going on here then?, as she padded back to her shoes, the wet floor working through her socks with every step. \u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e If you didn’t count the text that pinged in five minutes ago, this was the first action River Cartwright’s phone had seen in days. He seriously needed to do something about his social life.\u003cbr\u003e      “. . . Mr. Cartwright?”\u003cbr\u003e      “Uh-huh.”\u003cbr\u003e      “It’s Jennifer Knox?”\u003cbr\u003e      River kept a mental list of the women he’d had contact with over the past few years, and it didn’t take long to scroll through. B—K was a blank.\u003cbr\u003e      “From next door to your grandfather’s?”\u003cbr\u003e      And that explained the senior wobble in her voice, which was a relief. Not \u003ci\u003ethat\u003c\/i\u003e desperate, whatever anyone thought. \u003cbr\u003e      So “Of course” was what he now said. Jennifer Knox. A caller-in on the O.B.: supplier of casseroles and local gossip, though the visits had tailed off as the Old Bastard’s grasp on gossip and solids, and such fripperies as who this woman he’d known for years might be, had slackened to nothing. She had River’s number because River was who you called when the O.B. had an emergency, though the old man was beyond such contingencies now. Which Jennifer Knox knew very well, having been at the funeral.\u003cbr\u003e      “Of course,” he said. “Mrs. Knox. How can I help you?”\u003cbr\u003e      “There’s someone in the house.”\u003cbr\u003e      His grandfather’s house, she meant, which had been unoccupied for a while. It belonged to River now, \u003ci\u003etechnically\u003c\/i\u003e, as his mother kept stressing—“technically” apparently meaning in every possible sense, including the legal, barring his mother’s own feeling that the natural order had been disturbed—and was, equally technically, on the market, though at a price the agent had declared “way too optimistic.” \u003ci\u003eWay\u003c\/i\u003e, in these post-You-Know-What times. Its refusal to budge suited River, for the moment. He’d grown up in his grandparents’ house, having been abandoned there by a mother whose horizons hadn’t, at the time, included future property rights. He’d been seven. That was a lot of history to sell.\u003cbr\u003e      Jennifer Knox was still talking. “I thought about calling the police, but then I thought, well, what if they’re friends of yours? Or, you know, potential buyers?”\u003cbr\u003e      “Thanks, Mrs. Knox. I should have let you know. Yes, they’re old friends passing through, in need of somewhere to spend the night. And I know the furniture’s gone, but—”\u003cbr\u003e      “It’s still a roof and four walls, isn’t it?”\u003cbr\u003e      “Exactly, and cheaper than a hotel. They’re travelling at the moment, and—”\u003cbr\u003e      “We all do what we can, don’t we? To keep the costs down.”\u003cbr\u003e      “They’ll be gone in the morning. Thanks, Mrs. Knox. I’m grateful you took the trouble.”\u003cbr\u003e      His flat was a rented one-bedder, “nicely off the tourist track,” as some smug git had once put it. He might have inherited a country pile, but his actual living conditions remained urban haemorrhoid. The flat was cold most times of year, and even in daylight felt dark. The nightclub over the way hosted live bands twice a week, and a nearby manhole cover had loosened; every time a car ran over it, the resulting \u003ci\u003eka-chunk ka-chunk\u003c\/i\u003e made River’s jaw spasm. It happened now, as he tucked his phone in his pocket. Not so much a soundtrack; more an audible toothache.\u003cbr\u003e      River raised a middle finger in the world’s general direction. Then went to see who’ broken into his dead grandfather’s home.","brand":"Soho Crime","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46304016007397,"sku":"NP9781641293099","price":19.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9781641293099.jpg?v=1767736777","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/products\/slough-house-isbn-9781641293099","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}