The Whistleblower: The explosive thriller from Britain's top political journalist

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I thought this was very time specific and did well with the nostalgia side like arsene wenger coming in as nobody and and the technology like Nokias and 308s considering this is a 2021 novel. The crime story is the core of the book and what makes it work. They say write what you know and Peston sensibly creates a tangle of politics and finance, all hiding murder. As someone who studied economics, I had no issues following the more detailed sections, but some readers may be as bored by them now as they were then – hence one of the reasons that there was a crash as no one was interested in mortgage issues for the poor. Election Day is looming and Gil is determined to find out the truth and try to get justice for Clare. And then, the next day, Marilyn Krol, a director of the Bank of England, commits suicide. At least that's what it appears to be.

The Whistleblower by Robert Peston review | Evening Standard

Whilst Gil is most certainly a flawed character, I found myself warming to him and cheering him on to uncover the truth. Given we don't actually meet his sister, she is still a central figure to the book and one who adds to the political intrigue. There is great deal of financial information covered in the novel, and indeed this is essential for the storyline, but Peston has been careful to include this content in a user friendly manner - so even this reader could comprehend the details. Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.He says: “I grew up in a household where my father [the Labour life peer Baron Maurice Peston] was militantly atheist. He became this arch-rationalist at the London School of Economics and decided that all religion was hocus-pocus. Although there were all these behavioural things in his case that he never shook off — he could never bring himself to eat bacon or pork sausages, for example. The only thing he would cook for himself was cholesterol on a plate (this turns out to be worsht and eggs)”. I’ll be honest, this isn’t my usual type of book to read but I do like to branch of of my comfort zone and try new books. I'm not the biggest fan of political thrillers, but I made 2021 the year of trying new things, and that also extended to genres of books I had either dismissed a few years ago or never really go in to in the first place. I don't usually read books by celebrities as I think there's better authors out there not getting the credit they deserve. Yet Robert Peston writes with an enjoyable and knowledgeable style. As a journalist he knows how to create a riveting story and as such I judge him on his words and not his name. This is a brilliant and exciting read that I really enjoyed.

Robert Peston interview on his new book The Whistleblower Robert Peston interview on his new book The Whistleblower

Members of the public are constantly asking. If they think I’d be any good, I think it’s mostly a function of how terrible the current lot may be. The crime genre is huge, and a protagonist can become involved in solving a murder in numerous ways. Being a police officer or PI makes sense, being an elderly lady or vicar less so, but authors still manage somehow – to remarkable success. Another easy option is a journalist. Their job is already to investigate so it makes sense that a roving crime reporter comes across a case of misjustice and wants to settle the score. Crime reporter on the beat. What? Robert Peston’s The Crash is about the Chief Finance Reporter at the BBC solving a murder, but it works. I'm a big fan of Robert Peston and really enjoyed his first novel, The Whistleblower, so I was really pleased to be offered the chance to read the follow up, The Crash. This book mirrors what actually happened within the subprime mortgage market - which I remember the fallout of quite well. It also questions the use of the media by people in power for their own ends and means. This is also something I see quite a lot these days, especially by politicians "leaking" stuff to friendlies to gauge the public interest prior to announcing in the House. If only the Speaker would really get to grips with this, but that's by the by.I read this book from a pre-publication copy kindly supplied by the publisher, but this is an honest review with no concession to their generosity. Political shenanigans abound in this tale of corruption money and murder and the writing is excellent, keeping you involved throughout and often on the edge of your seat. We’ll start by talking about three or four different issues that really matter to people, such as the cost of living, the battle against inflation. Then there’ll be other business stories —for example, I’m completely obsessed with Artificial Intelligence at the moment and what effect that is going to have on people’s jobs”. Because of such mixed messages, he says, the adolescent Peston “devoured” books by Isaac Bashevis Singer or “almost every Jewish author on the planet”. So Jewish identity, for Peston, “is a big part of who I am, but working out exactly what that is has always intrigued me”. All of this is in addition to Peston’s regular workload, including his eponymous must-see Wednesday night politics programme on ITV.