The Whistleblower: 2021's most explosive thriller from Britain's top political journalist

This book was enjoyed by the majority of our readers but it seemed to separate those who are interested in politics and those who aren't. All to believable for most of us unfortunately. Good characters, interesting plot and interplay between the various factions but let down in part by spelling and grammatical errors - need a better proof reader! Average score was 7 out of 10

I am not a great fan of political thrillers so didn't expect to enjoy this book as much as I did. It felt like a realistic portrayal of Fleet Street and the Government, and I spent a lot of time thinking that I recognised some of the characters from real life! The story is fast paced and exciting - a real page turner. Recommended.

This was an interesting book with a clever plot. I do not follow politics, so at times I found it difficult to follow, however, I feel this aspect of the book was ‘dumbed’ down enough to keep me engaged.
The story overall wasn’t very descriptive and I found it hard to imagine some characters appearance etc, as little was said about them except for the clothes that they wore.
This made it, at times, hard to keep a track of who was who, as there were so many names, job titles etc and not much description along with each one.
I found the world of journalism and politics as depicted in this book quite fascinating as I know so little about it and I couldn’t quite believe how unlikeable and snakey a lot of the characters seemed. Whether this is a realistic reflection of how things are? I don’t know.
The book did drag on a bit towards the end but overall it was a fairly good read.

I didn’t expect to like this book as I’m not really very interested in politics. As I read the first few pages, which set the scene, I was still unsure whether I would be able to persevere but I kept reading and suddenly…wow! Gil Peck’s sister was in an accident & from then on I became hooked on the story! I loved the character of Gil and the insight not only into his world of work - I loved his interactions with Marilyn & Jess - but also into his own psyche…his OCD, his addictions, his tangled emotions and childhood memories, his difficult relationship with his parents, his love of Clare. I got quite emotional at times and there were some really poignant moments in the story, beautifully done. I can’t say that I always fully understood all the ins and outs of all the intrigue involving the bankers, politicians and high profile companies (some bits I had to reread!) but that didn’t detract from my enjoyment of this excellent novel.

‘The Whistleblower’ is undoubtedly a case of ‘write what you know’. Political journalist Robert Peston has smattered his first thriller with a huge swathe of characters and events from 1997. And they’re thinly veiled. I spent a lot of time (too much) trying to guess who was who in the newspaper world of Fleet Street and which events really happened.

Mix that with too much info on the ins and outs of taxes, and the fact not many characters were likeable, and you’ve got yourself a bit of a political potboiler.

As thrillers go, it was ok. More of a beach holiday read than one to keep on your shelves and read again later.

Gripping from the first page, I was drawn into the plot and the characters. It reinforced my scepticism about the morality of people with power and influence. The dilemma for me was how to interpret the behaviour of characters who bore such a close resemblance to individuals from the period in which the the story was set.

THE WHISTLEBLOWER BY ROBERT PRESTON
An excellent book set in the world of politics. The theme covers a situation of intrigue and dishonesty. The narrative is easy to follow and provides the reader with an insight to political events over decades without naming individuals. The character descriptions enable the reader to connect or relate with past parliamentarians.
My thought that the main character Peck was suggestive of the author in as much as it described his life as a political correspondent. The flow of the story created the life of the author himself as I pictured him in my minds eye.
The plot develops over a wide area of government departments and sleazy industrialists seeking to influence government action. The book was a page turner encouraging me to seek out the murderer, however I found parts were farfetched and became an aside to the developing plot. The lifestyle of the man Peck did not correlate to his position as chief political correspondent. Linking the titles of the newspapers within the story gave an added interest as the reader was able to readily identify titles commonly read today.
I found it a book that I would recommend to others and look forward to other books by this first-time novelist.
Score 8/10 Peter@Methley

Well this was certainly a pacey read once you got used to the clipped style of writing. I think Peston was channeling Raymond Chandler! I liked the character of Gil Peck who I could believe was an investigative journalist. I enjoyed the mix of fact and fiction, so that you were in a world that was both familiar and unknown at the same time. The evil media baron was a wonderful mix of Robert Maxwell, Rupert Murdoch and a few others. I was surprised by the cynical tone towards politicians. The story ends quite down beat.
Altogether a gripping read, ideal for those who enjoy a good thriller plot.