Going East

"Fast-paced from start to finish. . . . A smart, absorbing thriller." —The Baltimore Sun"[Going East] adds a vibrant literary sheen to what was once London’s most benighted quarter." —Newsweek“Matthew d’Ancona brings to vivid life the mysterious realities of London’s East End in this rich and compelling novel.” —Peter Ackroyd“Although every note sounded in this picture of today’s London demonstrates near perfect pitch, there’s a pleasingly old-fashioned feel to the massive, heaving cast, conjured with Dickensian richness. The author’s background as a journalist shines in the glowing panoply of observation that distinguishes his novel. But although all the very disparate characters are well drawn, it’s the beautifully rounded picture of the luckless Mia, struggling to come to terms with her new life, that really marks Going East as a book of authority and insight.” —Barry Forshaw“d’Ancona charts beautifully the daily tactics required to carry on living a shattered life. There is no faulting his delineation of how pain turns the familiar into the strange.”  —The Observer“As the action zig-zags across the capital, from posh balls to seedy lap-dancing clubs, from car showrooms to dining-rooms in the House of Commons, the rich diversity of London life is brilliantly and exuberantly captured.” —The Sunday Telegraph“Every conversation is a poker game, a tournament of feints, rallies, skirmishes and compromises where weaknesses are probed and false moves ruthlessly punished.   [An] impressive debut.” —The Evening Standard