{"product_id":"a-very-english-scandal-9780241973745","title":"A Very English Scandal","description":"\u003cb\u003eBook Synopsis\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe bestselling book that inspired the Bafta-winning BBC drama\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eCorruption. Blackmail. Conspiracy to murder. \u003ci\u003eA Very English Scandal\u003c\/i\u003e has all the hallmarks of a classic thriller with one difference. It''s all true.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn the late 1960s Jeremy Thorp, the charismatic leader of the Liberal Party, was at the height of his political career. But homosexuality had only just been legalized, and a former relationship with a younger man named Norman Scott threatened to destroy Thorp''s carefully curated facade. Helped by fellow politicians, Thorpe schemed, deceived and embezzled until he saw only one way to silence his ex-lover for good.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMeticulously researched and endlessly extraordinary, Thorp''s trial captured the moment that British society discovered the truth about its political class - and learned just how far the Establishment will go to protect its own.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e''Gripping. A story of cack-handed assassins, buffoonish policemen, dodgy Home Secretaries'' \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eTrade Review\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe shocking true story of the first British politician to stand trial for murder\u003c\/b\u003e * Publisher's description *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eThis is a brilliant, sad, startling nonfiction novel\u003c\/b\u003e about the Jeremy Thorpe murder-plot scandal. It is as funny and dark as anything by Evelyn Waugh or Jonathan Coe. And in these post Cyril Smith\/Jimmy Saville days, it's so \u003cb\u003etimely and relevant\u003c\/b\u003e * Jon Ronson *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA terrific book and brilliantly researched. \u003c\/b\u003eJohn Preston writes wonderful dead-pan prose and reveals the depths of depravity, the absurd power of snobbery and the old boy networks of the time -- Claire Tomalin\u003cbr\u003eA brilliant exploration of an extraordinary political scandal... deeply researched, fluently written, and darkly comic,\u003cb\u003e it reads like a thriller\u003c\/b\u003e -- Ben Macintyre\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eI loved it;  eccentric, dark, humane and English in the very best sense.\u003c\/b\u003e It's going to be a sure fire-hit -- Alain de Botton\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe most forensic, elegantly written, compelling account\u003c\/b\u003e of one of the 20th century's great political scandals... a real page-turner' * Observer *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eVery funny and endlessly extraordinary\u003c\/b\u003e... makes for amazing reading -- Catherine Shoard * Guardian *\u003cbr\u003eImpeccably researched... \u003cb\u003efull of shocks, surprises and laugh-out-loud moments. \u003c\/b\u003ePreston revives a forgotten era and delves into the personalities behind the headlines. * Times Crime Club *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eRetold with masterful skill... It grips like a detective story\u003c\/b\u003e, as compelling as BBC2's \u003ci\u003eLife of Duty\u003c\/i\u003e and every bit as dirty in what it exposes about the upper echelons of society in the Sixties and Seventies * Daily Mail Book of the Week *\u003cbr\u003eThis \u003cb\u003ebrilliant account\u003c\/b\u003e made me feel I was hearing the tale for the first time ... Preston is \u003cb\u003ean enthralling narrator\u003c\/b\u003e * Mail on Sunday *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eGripping\u003c\/b\u003e ... cack-handed assassins, buffoonish policemen, dodgy Home secretaries and sozzled judges. \u003cb\u003eThe conclusion of an Establishment cover-up is hard to avoid\u003c\/b\u003e * Daily Telegraph *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe unbelievable truth... \u003c\/b\u003ePreston is a natural storyteller ... he provides the context for actions that seem unbelievable today * The Times *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWonderfully readable\u003c\/b\u003e ... \u003cb\u003eJohn Preston is the ideal author\u003c\/b\u003e, having researched for years many minor characters and talked to dozens of well-known political and literary friends and enemies of Thorpe * Standpoint *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFluent, readable\u003c\/b\u003e ... \u003cb\u003ea vivid tableau\u003c\/b\u003e of the players in Thorpe's long, tragic downfall * Evening Standard *\u003cbr\u003eI spent a \u003cb\u003ethrilling\u003c\/b\u003e 48 hours reading it. \u003cb\u003eThe narrative is so vivid, the characterisation so brilliant\u003c\/b\u003e... I thought I knew all about these events, but the full horror of them has only now become apparent -- Antonia Fraser\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA gripping account\u003c\/b\u003e of the Jeremy Thorpe case. The details \u003cb\u003emake one laugh out loud or gasp with amazement\u003c\/b\u003e -- Charles Moore * Spectator *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe whole affair is retold here compellingly and fluently\u003c\/b\u003e, bringing to life the cast of characters with some verve * The i *\u003cbr\u003eNothing comes close to the eyepopping outrageousness of the gay murder shenanigans that engulfed and almost destroyed a Liberal leader. \u003cb\u003eReads like a comic thriller\u003c\/b\u003e -- Rachel Johnson\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA wonderful, wonderful read\u003c\/b\u003e -- Nick Robinson, BBC Today Programme\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Penguin Books Ltd","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":48733413966167,"sku":"9780241973745","price":10.44,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0817\/1739\/5799\/files\/9780241973745.jpg?v=1720000017","url":"https:\/\/bookcurl.com\/products\/a-very-english-scandal-9780241973745","provider":"Book Curl","version":"1.0","type":"link"}