Harry's England Reviews

'Congratulations on a masterpiece.

Exciting and gripping, and you just have to turn another page before putting the light out.'

David Reed, London

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'J E HALL "HARRY'S ENGLAND" - WRITING THRILLERS AND THE TRICK OF JEOPARDY

The most gripping thrillers hold our attention by building a character we care about and then putting them in jeopardy. For good reasons it's a well worn track but doesn't always, even often, match the real world and J E Hall is to be congratulated on taking the harder route by giving us the world the way it is - - worryingly divided, with hidden extremists plotting to aggravate and exploit those deep divisions. Guarding against giving anything away (Harry's England grips you to the last page) I will restrict my comments to the overall point of how successful Hall is in dealing with the challenge of not having a main character we can identify with. Instead, Hall's depiction of Harry McNamara pulls no punches: McNamara is an unvarnished monster of extreme racist and sexist views, one step away from a career of mindless thuggery on the football terraces to morphing into the puppet of sinister forces dedicated to a rebirth of Nazi forces across Europe. It's a chillingly plausible picture, and a timely one given our slide into Brexit isolation, and the book is to be recommended on that count alone. But even more, despite the monster at the heart of it (or maybe because of him - - make your own choice) it's a riveting thriller you can't put down.'

Simon Miller, Exeter Authors Association

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'The Reviews shown on the book are testament to your skill in handling the delicate topic of extremism with sensitivity and insight.'

Lambeth Palace

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'Another Exciting Read! – Thoroughly enjoyed the last part of the trilogy and am delighted to hear that we will be able to continue on the journey with these characters.'

Jody H, London

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'It opens up the complexities associated with cultural and religious diversity as they interplay with political extremism and it does so in a highly readable and theologically sensitive way. It is engaging for a church-insider and prompting also for an outsider to look in.'

Prof Brian Gates, Cumbria

 

'Very Enjoyable'

Andrew Cusdin, London

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'Hall gives the reader a pacy story that raises the odd eyebrow in believability,

providing an entertaining angle on the complexities and dangers of today’s world.'

Rev Kevin Scully, Church Times

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'A well-crafted political thriller'

Annette Shaw, Devon Life

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'I was eager to get to bed at night to find out how the story developed and felt satisfied with the ending'

Mary Rose Roe, Bristol

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'The bloke in the bookshop was raving about it. I’m off to buy the two sequels'

David R. Devon