Will I love Slow Horses?

I liked the fact that despite everything that seemed to be going wrong, it all came right in the end and you ended up liking the most odious characters.

I stumbled across Mick Herron thanks to the TV series 'Slow Horses' and I'm glad I picked up his books. They help fill the gap while waiting for the next season. Not sure if it's a good thing or bad, but I can't help but hear Jackson Lamb's dialogue in Gary Oldman's voice.

If I could give Slow Horses more than five stars, I would!
Loved it. Absorbing, tricky, with just enough action and deception to keep you on your toes.
Perfectly flawed characters, who aren't afraid to double cross each other.
If you love spy stories, then you'll love this.

Each book in this series is about the illusions we create and live with, depicted through a team of rejected British spies.

When a M15 spy screws up an assignment they are transfer to the Slough House to waste away until they retire. That’s the premise, but it’s led by a master spy, who is entrenched in the highest levels of the spy world. You don’t know what is real or what is an illusion, as situations evolve.

It’s at times insane, the characters are unusual, and the situations are full of twists and turns, from the illogical to the… show more.

Really original take on a familar genre. Great evocation of London. Intriguing storyline. Flawed by likable charaacters.

The characters, if I'm being perfectly honest. The trend for 99% of the spy thriller genre is to have characters who are unbelievably smooth (James Bond) or who consistently get everything the author can think of thrown at them and they somehow maintain this odd modicum of control over life (Bourne, Gentry, etc.)... But the crew of Slough House is, just, well, damned. They're flawed and believable. And Jackson Lamb is the icing on the cake.

Herron creates flawed characters and hilarious situations like none other. Loved the books. Love the series.

Unlike other spy stories, Herron doesn't get tied up in an overly complex plot, but keeps the focus on the characters and their reactions.

Mick Herron had me by the end of the first chapter. His writing had me laughing out loud. As a writer, myself, I loved, and learned from his total disregard for the 'rules' of writing. His main character, Jackson Lamb, defies every convention - including the need for hygiene and lifestyle choices - yet, I believe he has a heart of gold. The discredited spies under his tyrannical care are also interesting and believable. I have since read every one of his Slow Horses books and his Oxford Series. I am an addict!

I enjoy spy novels, and I think Mick Herron is the best person writing them since John Le Carré.

The “slow horses” are a young crew of failed British spies, members of MI5, exiled to a do-nothing outpost for various mishaps. I love their hard-won camaraderie. I also love Jackson Lamb, their boss. A heavy smoking, heavy drinking, unhygienic, and decidedly non-PC lout, he’s cunning, sarcastic, and cares deeply for his crew of misfits, despite constantly mocking and demeaning them.

This book is full of twists and turns and is often laugh-out-loud funny. I enjoyed how Lamb and the “slow… show more.