Book review: First Response by Stephen Leather - I really hope it doesn't happen here!

I’ve always thought of Stephen Leather as a versatile author – the Spider Shepherd series of thrillers, Jack Nightingale supernatural novels and a number of amusing short stories, particularly the inspector Zhang locked room mysteries. Leather also writes standalone novels.  The latest, First Response, is an unfolding drama of nine suicide bombers in separate locations around London who have handcuffed themselves to innocent people, taken group of bystanders hostage and are demanding the release of fellow jihadists from Belmarsh prison.  The drama begins during a weekday morning, with a deadline for the release of the prisoners for 6pm the same day.

As Mo Kamran the Superintendent in charge tries to make sense of the unfolding events, he’s contacted by Shahid, the terrorist leader.  Despite Kamran’s attempts to negotiate, Shahid gives Kamran a simple binary choice – free the prisoners by 6pm or all the suicide bombers will blow themselves up.  The suicide bombers demand that all their hostages flood social media with news of the hostage taking, demands to release the prisoners and the 6pm deadline.  The hashtag ISIS6 creates a media frenzy, with constant updates and media reporters transmitting live from each of the nine locations – London is in chaos.

As the day progresses, controls slips out of the authorities’ hands and the decision is made to take the ISIS six to Biggin Hill airfield as demanded.  The SAS obviously have other ideas but have less than two hours to put a plan into place to neutralise the suicide bombers and avoid carnage.  

So, what did I think?  It’s a good mix of procedural and personal – you get to see the inner workings of the response centre and the way that crisis command operates.  You also get to see different people’s reactions to being taken as hostages, which forms a variety of sub plots within the narrative.  As the story progresses, I felt the tension ratchet up, every time the elusive Shahid contacted Kamran and the narrative strongly transmitted the writers contempt of senior leaders who refuse to make decisions that could badly reflect on them is something goes wrong.

First Response is published at a time when the terrorist threat seems to increase almost daily and what Leather has successfully done is create the kind of scenario that everyone dreads.  However as with all good thrillers, the events that unfold are not quite what they seem.  Whilst some clues are scattered throughout the novel, you have to be really quick to pick them up and I’d be surprised if anyone can actually put the pieces together before getting to the final part of the book when you find out what this was really all about.

Final verdict – an excellent contemporary thriller, with a well thought through plot and good characterisation.  Don’t read it in small bits, but in big chunks to appreciate the rising tension, frustration and helplessness of the authorities.  One last thing – 10/10 for the twist at the end – Loved it!

Romancrimeblogger