Young Harry, an orphan from an impoverished council estate, becomes the link between starkly contrasting worlds: north and south, the deprived and the over-privileged, the powerful and the defenceless. With this compelling story of blackmail, media politics, corrupted innocence and redemptive love, Melvyn Bragg delivers an unforgettable portrait of modern life.
Read MoreA splendid Dickensian sweep of a book - ObserverA decent and intelligent novel, one which can be read, and will be read, with a great deal of pleasure - Allan Massie, ScotsmanAs a guide to media London, the novel is essential reading - T.J. Binyon, Times Literary SupplementThe very good Bragg has forced a complex contemporary plot to work magic - David Hughes, Mail on SundayBragg has scarcely ever written better...A state of England message transfused by fiction - Tom Adair, Scotland on SundayMelvyn Bragg writes with a lyrical nostalgia which is as important to the novel as his energy - Penelope Fitzgerald, Evening Standard