Not my usual reading genre but its always nice to try something new!
Im not a James Bond fan and thankfully the protagonist Jackson Lamb is no James Bond!
The writing style is quite unique so it will be the kind of book that you will take to or not, not much middle ground for me anyway!
The series of books are entered around a group of outcast MI5 spooks who have been relegated to pen pushers and office workers due to botched carers. Reject spooks versus the real thing!
But looks can be deceiving and Jackson Lamb proves that he shouldn't be underestimated!
With humour throughout and some interesting characters it makes for a quick entertaining read ( )

This one was more intriguing than the last two. There was also a little more character development and and focus on interpersonal relationships. I enjoyed it. ( )

Here's something to think on - around the 1800's the Home Office was split into Home and Foreign. Home had a finger everything that needed doing within the Empire, so the boundaries were still somewhat blurry, about what was in which brief, no matter. In the FO there were something like 25 people, the Secretary and two Under-Secretaries and a bunch of minions to do paperwork, clerks mostly. They were housed in the former tennis court (!!!!!) in the Whitehall Palace, still extant. In the HO there were many many more and they were housed in something like an old church, but the point is beyond having folded a police force into the organization the HO had nothing even remotely resembling MI5 and the FO didn't use spies so there was no hint of anything like an MI6 either. Not officially anyway and nothing traceable, so likely nothing.
The French? They already did have a spy network.

What has this to do with the Herron ouevre (and all who have gone before Le Carré & etc)? Nothing really, just a thing to marvel over. In this offering River is worried about his grandfather, a former big time spook, who raised him and is now sinking into dementia. He's convinced someone is planning to kill him. Then, something does happen that seems to prove he was right. At the same time a pointless explosion in a shopping center kills around 250 people, including youths coming to a flash mob dance/singing scene. Are the two connected?

Herron's delicious characters enduring their tedious lives in Slough House, and yet? Even though these are broken people; they are a mess and they do stupid things, they are also disaster magnets and they constantly surprise, not unlike Clouseau but different. There is the enigma that is Jackson Lamb for one thing. And one begins to think that the slow horses got where they are because . . . they are naive, yes, but have ethical underpinnings that betray them. This is the best of the best in spy writing and pretty darn great for many other elements: dialogue, humour, characters, you name it, it's here. ***** ( )

Simply excellent. Great characters, page-turning plot, evocative prose and a nice touch of dark humour (sometimes laugh out-loud humour). Highly recommended. ( )

Another fantastic page turner, how I love this series and the characters. It does feel like a game of Russian roulette though with a main character dying in each book though. ( )

Jackson Lamb is Reginald Hill's egregious cop Andy Dalziel, repurposed by Mick Herron as a spy. Herron has acknowledged this.

This series almost defies categorization - it's very funny at times, and then someone gets killed and it's suddenly serious for a while. It's supposed to be about the screwups, but then they seem to be the only ones who know what's going on, in spite of the best efforts of those in charge to keep them down. Jackson Lamb, the leader, acts like they're all a bunch of losers, but then he comes through for them when they need him, except when he's firing them suddenly for little reason. Lamb is a boss from hell if you take him seriously. I don't know if I could, but I suppose you need to when he's the boss. But he always seems to go well above and beyond any thoughts of good manners or political correctness, so far beyond that he has to be doing it on purpose - but is he?

I'd hate to work for Jackson Lamb, but he sure does make things interesting to read about.

This one seems to have a more exciting story than many of the others, but there is still the trademark craziness that makes the series so much fun. ( )

Another enjoyable read about Slough House. ( )

When River Cartwright's grandfather shows signs of dementia River is not the only one worried. Grandfather David Cartwright was also a spook, First Desk in fact, and as a holder of secrets he could cause untold problems to current MI5 operations by accidentally spilling the beans. This was a fast moving, highly entertaining episode of Herron's Slough House series featuring terrific characters such as Jackson Lamb, said to be despicable but easily my favourite. This book had a Brave New World flavour, which nevertheless did not deviate from the special world of Herron's "slow horses", those spies relegated to the bottom of the heap that makes up Slough House. Brilliant, funny, clever: no one can write espionage like Herron. ( )

Long odd tale of David Cartwright and River. A bit slow, I think, but good. ( )

Slow Horses Under Attack
Review of the Recorded Books audiobook edition (February 21, 2017) narrated by Gerard Doyle, released two weeks after the Soho Crime hardcover (February 7, 2017)

"That's the measure of our success, Claude. That the country still leads a normal life, even while we bury the dead."
"I'm not sure Marketing'll approve that as a slogan." - conversation between Second Desk Diana Taverner and First Desk Claude Whelan.

"Do you all act dumb all the time? Or is it not an act?"
"We take it in turns," said Louisa. - conversation between new 'Head Dog' Emma Flyte and Slough House's Louisa Guy.

See photograph at https://www.thetimes.co.uk/imageserver/image/%2Fmethode%2Ftimes%2Fprod%2Fweb%2Fb..."
Actor Gary Oldman as Jackson Lamb, the head of Slough House. in a characteristic pose. Image sourced from The Times UK.

Events move fast in the Slough House / Slow Horses universe and I'm glad to be reading and/or listening to the books in fairly quick order right now due to being incentivized after seeing Season 1 of the Apple TV+ series based on Book One. There are many ongoing subplots and character arcs which must have been difficult to keep track of if you were reading them a year apart as they were originally released.

As a refresher, the agents of Slough House, aka the "Slow Horses," are a group from the MI5 British Security Service who for various reasons (e.g. bungled field assignments, alcoholism, poor social skills, etc.) have been shunted aside from head office or field operations and sent to work at their off-site building, a pre-retirement resting stop of paper pushing & electronic surveillance to keep them out of the way of their supposed betters. At Slough House, they are presided over by their chief, the slovenly, flatulent Jackson Lamb. Lamb was once a field operative and still has an instinctive sense for the wiles of bureaucracy and espionage, especially in the areas of incompetence and betrayal.

In Spook Street, the 4th novel in the series, we find that some previous characters have moved on, First Desk Ingrid Tearney has been shunted aside and been replaced by Claude Whelan, previous 'Head Dog' Nick Duffy has been replaced by Emma Flyte, Jackson Lamb's Slough House assistant Catherine Standish has retired and her replacement is Moira Tregorian. Several new Slow Horses have joined the crew and we will continue to discover that the life expectancy at Slough House is almost as perilous as that of being a 'Joe' in the field.

The novel starts off with two quick shocks, a terrorist bombing attack on the general public and an apparent assassination attempt on Slough House agent River Cartwright's grandfather, the long retired First Desk David Cartwright, aka the O.B., who is showing signs of dementia. In the aftermath, a dead body in the elder Cartwright's home is identified by Jackson Lamb as being that of River Cartwright. We soon discover that Lamb is playing a deception game and that River has instead brought the O.B. to Catherine Standish for safekeeping while he follows a lead to France to discover the source behind the attacks.

Too much further information would be a spoiler, but the revelations and further shocks are quick to follow as River Cartwright discovers family secrets that have been kept from him, while Jackson Lamb knows more than he has previously revealed about the past of the Cartwright family. Before the end, Slough House itself comes under direct attack and not all of the Slow Horses will survive.

The narration by now series regular Gerard Doyle (several of the earlier books have 1st edition audiobooks voiced by other narrators) was excellent as always, especially in his 'Jackson Lamb' voice.

Trivia and Links
There is a Slough House glossary at SpyWrite.com (with some spoilers obviously, but the most major spoilers are hidden behind white script which you have to mouse over in order to read) which is extremely useful if you are trying to follow all of the characters and story arcs of the series and looking for definitions to the words and expressions of author Mick Herron's invented spy terminology.

Spook Street could be the basis for a future Season 4 of the Apple TV+ series Slow Horses (2022 - ?), if the show is renewed after Season 2. You can watch the Season 2 trailer (based on Book 2 "Dead Lions") on YouTube here. You can watch the Season 1 trailer (based on Book 1 "Slow Horses") on YouTube here. ( )

https://www.instagram.com/p/CXmn-YyFyjD/

Mick Herron - Spook Street: Mr. Herron, please stop introducing Slough House as if it were a character of its own. I get the point, but it’s a boring trope now. #cursorybookreviews #cursoryreviews ( )

In Mick Herron's Spook Street Slough House "was where they sent you when they wanted you to go away, but didn’t want to sack you in case you got litigious about it." To David Cartwright, affectionately known as OB the Old Bastard by his grandson River, and who was a legend in MI5 during the Cold War years, considers himself living on Spook Street, where "Your friends and neighbours were not to be trusted, but it was your family you had to fear." When Jackson Lamb identifies the body found murdered in OB's bathroom as being River Cartwright fear and surprises roil through Slough House.
Herron has outdone himself in Spook Street. The Slough House series keeps getting better with each novel.

The fourth volume in the 'Slough House' series didn't disappoint either. Actually, all employees are on the sidelines and yet it is they who make British intelligence look old.
This time, too, an employee is the main character and yet everyone is involved. River Cartwright is found dead in his grandfather's bathroom. Jackson Lamb quickly realizes that the dead man is not River, but does not make a big announcement. River has since gone to France to find out why someone wants to kill their grandfather. In doing so, he discovers his own roots, which he doesn't like at all. Various killers are set on him. Patrice in particular makes life difficult for him and his colleagues from Slough House.
As always, it was engaging from the first to the last page. ( )

I'm in this series for the very British quips, the action and the perverse esprit de corps. The overarching plot drivers sometimes leave me a little cold but that's only a minor bit of the whole entertaining package.

"...looks like he could be dangerous. Probably takes two of him to scramble an egg."

An emergency meeting was called for "7:30 in the morning, the early start a traditional method of indicating the serious intentions of all concerned. We may not be getting anywhere, the subtext read, but at least we've had very little sleep."

"This haircut 'makes me look like a young Mia Farrow,' she said. 'If she'd been dark instead of blonde.'
'Yeah,' said Lamb. 'And if she'd eaten Frank Sinatra instead of marrying him.'"

In a very funky old cabin in France, "River thought he could smell a cat, but it was hard to tell. Perhaps Victor had been smoking one." ( )

Herron is one of those authors where you can never really tell how far he'll push you as a reader. Already he's shown that he has no compunctions about killing off main characters so when he immediately (like right out of the gate) puts you on edge in this book you have no recourse but to grit your teeth and carry on with fingers crossed. Each volume of this series scrapes away at the pasts of each agent in Slough House (although its exalted leader Jackson Lamb still remains shrouded in darkness) and interestingly this one delves into the background of the O.B. (if you know you know). Spook Street felt ramped up in action from start to finish so I zipped through it lickety-split.

Looking for dark humor, farts, and gritty detectives? Congrats, you've hit the jackpot! Herron is imminently readable so if you're looking for a quick mystery series I highly recommend this one (but start with Slow Horses or you will be L-O-S-T). ( )

As a writer, you often wonder if it’s possible to tell a story using completely unlikeable characters. But then you grow up and realise no reader is interested in a story involving characters who repel them. Unless you’re Mick Herron. In this installment, a suicide bomber kills a bunch of teens in a shopping mall and then one of the Slough House agents is murdered, and the dead agent’s grandfather, the “Old Bastard”, an ex-MI5 bigwig, goes missing… and it’s all to do with a rogue CIA agent who set up a secret school in France to raise kids as terrorists and everyone is surprised when they turn out to be terrorists… The Slough House books do not score well on plausibility when it comes to their plots, but this one is even less believable than the ones preceding it. Herron seems keen to depict MI5 as a bunch of criminals – although he lavishes real contempt on Tory politicians – but his so-called heroes are all unlikeable incompetents. Sigh. The first book in the series is possibly worth a go, but the sequels are entirely missable. ( )

This review is repeated for all the books in the Slough House series:
Slow Horses
Dead Lions
The List
Real Tigers
Spook Street
London Rules

I’m on holiday in Australia and like all good holidays I came with a pile of books. Also like all good holidays, the books are pure escapism writing. It doesn’t matter if you don’t finish it, missing a page or two will not spoil the plot, not remembering a word of it the next day? well that marks it as a really good holiday read.

I devoured this series, one every two days and loved every minute of them all. haven’t found the last one yet but ave got all the ones that came before including the novella, The List. You could pick any one of them up and read it and it wouldn’t matter if you hadn’t read the preceding ones, they all work individually but just like soup, steak and syrup pudding they work best in the right order.

The setting is a dingy, run down building in a dingy, run down part of London. It is called Slough House and the people in there are referred to as Slow Horses. They are all members of the Secret Service who have fucked up one way or another and are no longer suitable for active service, but cannot be sacked without falling foul of the Employment Act, yes it even applies to spies.

So they are banished to Slough House and given menial, mind numbing repetitive, pointless, soul destroying, work to do until they eventually give up and leave. Except, some of them don’t leave. Everyone pretty much knows exactly how everyone else fucked up big time to be in Slough House except for their boss, one Jackson Lamb, no-one knows how he ended up here or even suspects that he bargained his place here in exchange for doing a nasty job that was necessary at the time. He could best be described as cunning, nasty, abrasive, insulting, crude, ill-mannered and very politically incorrect, except that he spent the majority of his time in the service behind the wall working undercover in Soviet, Cold War territory, something that very few came back from alive.

The books are a series of events that befall the occupants of Slough House. You soon get a feel for the characters and the James Bond meets Coronation Street situation. But them some of them die and some of them don’t. From book to book you never know who will be around at the end of the book. The characters of Jackson Lamb had me laughing out loud on many occasions, making me realise how seldom this happens!

The real enemies are seen mainly to be those within the Secret Service and their political masters and the ends they will go to secure what they see as their rightful place in history. Right and Wrong are easily mistaken for each other and beyond a certain point it depends where you stand as to what you call which. The guns are seldom in the right hands and the good guys quite often don’t make it.

The incidental characters are easily seen for the current political muppets they are based upon, a particularly evil Boris Johnson is never far from the plot. Also current events, Brexit and so on. In discussing the seemingly unbelievable factors in the current case it only takes Jackson Lamb to point out that Tony Blair is now a Peace Envoy for everyone to grasp that nothing can be dismissed as highly unlikely.

If this ever gets turned into a Netflix series I will buy a television just to watch it! ( )

Let me start by saying that having now read the first four books in the Jackson Lamb/Slough House series, I think we can pretty well give up on any expectation that the plots are going to get any more realistic. That having been said, why read the books? Because the characters are, well, characters. Jackson Lamb himself, first of all. It’s taken me about a week to finish the first four books in this series, and I’m not saying it’s addictive, but … I will miss the misfits of Slough House while we wait for Mick Herron to write more books. ( )

The story lags at the beginning but it picks up as the suspense builds after the first third of the book. By the end it becomes a fast-paced chase thriller.
What is best about "Spook Street" is Jackson Lamb, the chief spook at Slough House and master of the slow horses. He holds the group together while being boorish and cynical about the Intelligence Establishment personified by the likes of Charles Whalen ("First Desk") and Diana Taverner ("Lady Di"). River Cartwright is a lead character who plays a ket role in the series up to now and probably into future books.
It is possible to read this book as a standalone spy thriller, but all of the books in the series are worthwhile reading. ( )

Brilliant. ( )

Thia is the fourth book in the Jackson Lamb series about failed spies in a quiet London office. This one was just as good as the other three I've read. The head of the office , Lamb, is still as foul and yet reliable as ever. River runs off to try and save the world. Catherine still wants a drink. Ho is still terrible at being a human being. These characters mixed with the aftwrmath of a terrible bombing and an increasingly confused elderly spy make for gripping reading. And also laughs.
When the taxi dropped them, they walked to Baker Street. Patrice still had the gun, though where he’d secreted it, River couldn’t tell. If down the back of his waistband, as River suspected, he must have spent hours practising how to walk, sit, move, without looking like his haemorrhoids were flaring. ( )

What happens to spies when they get old? This is the intriguing question posed by Spook Street. Former senior spy David Cartwright is showing the early signs of dementia. He wanders round his village in his pyjamas, convinced that the flickering streetlights are a code, and that the local shopkeeper’s small talk is an interrogation. What might he reveal in his confusion?

His grandson, River Cartwright, is one of the misfit spies exiled to Slough House under Jackson Lamb (the so-called Slow Horses). He is concerned about his grandfather and wants to take care of him before the Service move to ‘take care of him’ in another sense.

At first I found it hard to orient myself in the present day, particularly as this was my introduction to Slough House. I’m a big fan of John le Carré and I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was back in the world of Smiley. The grotty building, the sluggish central heating, the air of ennui, the animal terminology (stoats and horses rather than moles) – Even the cadence of the prose echoes le Carré. It’s only the references to technology that hurtle you back to the present day.

But this is more than Smiley with iPods. I soon warmed (if that’s the right word) to the Slow Horses. They are flawed but clever, unlikeable to varying degrees (likeability is, in my view, a much-overrated quality in a fictional character) but always interesting.

One way Spook Street differs from le Carré is that no one here seems to much believe in anything. In Smiley’s world, people are motivated at times by principle, even if they’re not the principles they’re supposed to have. Here the ambitious are motivated by their own power and status, while the employees at Slough House seem to have enough to do just to make it through the day.

A lot of contemporary spy fiction, and crime in general, seems to be high in concept and low in substance. Fast food for the eyeball, with clockwork characters marching through the obligatory twists. This is the opposite. The plot is the plot, and is probably best not examined too closely, but the prose is rich and satisfying and funny in the darkness and bleak in the light. There are complex, grown up characters and a world in Slough House that may owe a debt to le Carré but clearly has a life of its own. A world that lives and breathes and which you are sure is still there when you have stopped reading. I’ll definitely be back.
*
I received a copy of Spook Street from the publisher via Netgalley.
This review first appeared on my blog https://katevane.wordpress.com/ ( )

Mick Herron’s series of espionage novels featuring Jackson Lamb and his team of ‘slow horses’ goes from strength to glorious strength. The ‘slow horses’ are intelligence officers who have been cast into ignominious exile in Slough House, the repository for the Security Service’s has-beens and failures. Jackson Lamb is himself a marvellous creation, resounding with an almost Dickensian monstrosity, eating, drinking, farting and swearing his way through the day, and never happier than when crushing one of his staff with unremitting and deliberately wounding rudeness. Jackson Lamb reminds me of Reginald Hill’s Superintendent Andy Dalziel, just without the Beau Brummell charm.

Herron does not, however, rely solely upon the grotesqueness of Lamb’s character. His plots are well constructed, watertight and all too plausible. Spook Street opens with what appears to be a flash mob prank at a large shopping mall in West London which rapidly becomes a gruesome act of terrorism, with dozens of victims. In the wake of this outrage the Security Service, now under new management following the events of the previous novel, is stretched to the limit as is struggles to find any leads. Meanwhile David Cartwright, grandfather of River, one of Lamb’s ‘slow horses’, and formerly an eminence grise within MI5, is growing increasingly worried. Sometimes he is convinced that he is being watched, while at other moments he begins to doubt his own sanity. It is, therefore, perhaps unfortunate that he still has his old Service revolver close to hand.

Each of the ‘slow horses’ has their own individual frailties and failings, often gleefully mocked by Lamb with the utmost disregard for their feelings. They do, however, complement each other, and over the last three novels have gelled together into a capable, if unorthodox, team. Meanwhile, their counterparts within the Service’s mainstream, housed at Regent Park, have more than enough of their own problems, particularly as they face additional scrutiny following the revelations in ‘Real Tigers’.

Herron has the happy knack of combining gripping spy stories with colourful characters, strewn with moments of high comedy. All utterly entertaining. ( )

River's grandfather is showing signs of dementia and appears to have shot and killed River, but (thankfully) it isn't quite that simple. Very much in the vein of the earlier instalments in this series, which I intend as a compliment, I was glad to see the return of Catherine and plenty of Lamb. I just skimmed a tiny bit of the chase scene at the end, but otherwise enjoyed every word. ( )