An Honourable Thief by Douglas Skelton

1715. Jonas Flynt, ex-soldier and reluctant member of the Company of Rogues, a shady intelligence group run by ruthless spymaster Nathaniel Charters, is ordered to recover a missing document. Its contents could prove devastating in the wrong hands.

On her deathbed, the late Queen Anne may have promised the nation to her half-brother James, the Old Pretender, rather than the new king, George I. But the will has been lost. It may decide the fate of the nation.

The crown must recover it at all costs.

The trail takes Jonas from the dark and dangerous streets of London to an Edinburgh in chaos. He soon realises there are others on the hunt, and becomes embroiled in a long overdue family reunion, a jail break and a brutal street riot.

When secrets finally come to light, about the crown and about his own past, Jonas will learn that some truths, once discovered, can never be untold…

An atmospheric and utterly compelling blend of crime, history and thriller, to delight fans of S. J. Parris, Andrew Taylor and C. J. Sansom.

About the author

Douglas Skelton has published 12 non fiction books and eight crime thrillers. He has been a bank clerk, tax officer, shelf stacker, meat porter, taxi driver (for two days), wine waiter (for two hours), reporter, investigator and editor.

His first thriller BLOOD CITY was published in 2013.

The gritty thriller was the first in a quartet set on the tough streets of Glasgow from 1980 onwards. It was followed by CROW BAIT, DEVIL'S KNOCK and finally OPEN WOUNDS, which was longlisted for the first McIlvanney Prize for Scottish Crime Book of the Year in 2016.

His two Dominic Queste thrillers, THE DEAD DON'T BOOGIE and TAG - YOU'RE DEAD lightened the tone but didn't skimp on thrills.

He followed this with his New York-set chase thriller THE JANUS RUN in 2018.

THUNDER BAY, a dark and atmospheric tale of secrets, lies and murder on a Scottish island, was published to great acclaim by Polygon in 2019. It has been longlisted for the McIlvanney Prize for 2019. The second in the series THE BLOOD IS STILL, is out now with the third due early 2021.

Douglas is often recruited by documentary makers to contribute to true crime shows on TV and radio and is a regular on the crime writing festival circuit.

He takes part in comedy shows with other crime writers. To date he has written three Carry on Sleuthing plays in which he also appears along with Caro Ramsay, Michael J. Malone, Theresa Talbot, Pat Young and Lucy Cameron, with occasional guests Alex Gray, Lin Anderson and Neil Broadfoot.

He is also one quarter of Four Blokes in search of a Plot, along with Gordon Brown, Mark Leggatt and Neil Broadfoot. This is a fun show in which they invited the audience to give them a murder weapon and a protagonist. They then take it in turns to create a crime story (usually developing into something wild and wacky) while also answering audience queries about the craft.

His one man event, You the Jury, invites audiences to deliver verdicts on real life but heavily disguised cases from around the world. In 2019 the format was extended into a court drama, thanks to the Faculty of Advocates in Scotland, within Stirling Sheriff Court played to three sell-out houses during the Bloody Scotland festival.

He is, with bestselling author Denzil Meyrick, a regular on the SBOOKS podcast.

Author Web Page:

https://http://www.douglasskelton.com/

Review

‘An Honourable Thief’ is the start of a brand new series from Douglas Skelton and boy does it land with a bang! It's a compulsive page-turner of a historical thriller and I devoured it. The atmospheric settings of gritty London and Edinburgh in the 1700s lend themselves to an action-packed narrative where the protagonist stands tall and proud. Jonas Flynt is going to be a character that flies and success for this series would be well deserved!

Jonas Flynt is an ex-soldier and a member of the Company of Rogues set up by the spymaster, Nathaniel Charters. Flynt is tasked to locate and secure a document penned by the late Queen Anne. It's contents could change the course of history as she may have promised the throne to her half-brother James, the Old Pretender, rather than King George I. The trail takes Flynt from London to Edinburgh where he has to also face personal demons!

Gosh, I just loved this book! I'm such a nerd for historical fiction and I am so glad that Denzel Meyrick challenged Douglas to write a full historical fiction novel as it was brilliant. Packed full of rich details that meant the story felt authentic and fully set in its period. The inclusion of historical events being weaved into the story allowed the reader to learn about Scotland and it's history. The writing in this tale was excellent and meant you were able to imagine the setting and the characters with ease. Flynt was the standout for me - ex-soldier, suffering of PTSD, hiding behind walls but with a true sense of right and wrong! His background was well developed and I can't wait to see where his story takes us!

Let me know if you pick this one up!