Don’t rely too much on the blurbs for this one. If you pick up this book expecting it to give you a glimpse into the world of football, the premier league and its stars, then you’d be better off reading even a book like Goals of the Season. But if you want a racy crime thriller, then this book is just the one for you.

English Premiership star Henri Dumas, shot in cold blood on a busy Soho street. Who is behind this killing— a crazy fan-turned-stalker, a blackmailer, or is it just a crime with no motive? Or worse, is it just the first of many such to come?

What does the shooting have to do with the brutal rape and murder of a young girl in a little village, many years ago— at a time when the current stars would just about have been starting their careers?

Jack Garrett, freelance reporter, is one of the eyewitnesses at the shooting. At first looking for a new angle to the story; a feature on one of the country’s biggest footballers in the wake of Dumas’ murder. But as he tries to find out more for his harmless feature, he is plunged into it headlong— from a harmless feature to a not-so-harmless discovery, to a situation where he could lose his life. Garrett is aided by cop (and single mom) Laura McGinty— who finds herself involved in the case long after her department is taken off it.

Unlikely duo

It’s an unlikely duo— freelance reporter Jack Garrett, a boy from Turners Fold who wants to make it big in London City, and single mom and detective Laura Mc Ginty. But in a sense, both of them have something in common— a point to prove.

Garrett being a freelance reporter, has to produce a better story for it to be accepted in one of London’s dailies; McGinty, a single mom, whose commitment to her career is always suspected by her colleagues.

Fallen Idols is quite impressive for a first-time novel— and that’s apparent even to those for whom crime fiction does not form part of their staple reading diet; White, a lawyer, seems to have put his knowledge of crime and the law to good use.

Of course, the book is far from perfect; White keeps you guessing about what happens next, but some of the twists and turns in the plot are rather predictable; some of the developments are not too credible (the part where Garrett and Mc Ginty escape from a professional hitman, running away from Garrett’s family home), and some characters not developed properly— for instance, though the reader learns enough about why the murderer has to resort to such means, the book fails to explain how.

The author, Neil White, has been quoted as saying, “I’m not trying to change anyone’s life with my work. As a reader, I want something that doesn’t make me work hard, I want to be entertained and enjoy a book…That’s what I try to achieve as an author and it is going better than I could have imagined.” And that’s exactly what he’s managed to do.

Fallen Idols
Author: Neil White
Publisher: Avon Books (A division of Harpercollins)
Price: Rs 195