A Man's Enemies by
Bill James
hbk out August 03
Published by Do Not Press
at £15
A direct sequel to Split, this novel follows the fortunes of black agent Simon
Abelard as he is drawn into the aftermath of what appears to have been an internal
feud in 'The Outfit'. This shadowy arm of the British Intelligence Service is reeling
after Julian Bowling, ex-Outfit turned drug dealer, is apparently murdered by Verdun
Cadwallader, respected Outfit agent, who in turns dies in mysterious circumstances.
To compound matters, former agent Oliver Horton is planning to reveal everything in
his memoirs.
Simon Abelard, not entirely disinterested or uninvolved himself in the
internecine battles, has to dissuade Horton. It seems to Simon that not only does
Horton's wife Kate have more desire to reveal the corruption in the organisation than
her husband, but Carl Briers, journo extraordinaire, has more fascinating details than
the pedestrian Horton does himself. Of course, once the author tells you that "If
Briers were a character in a novel, he would be the kind of figure any experienced
reader would pick out as likely to get killed.", you know that is exactly what is going
to happen. Unfortunately, Abelard arrives on the scene just in time for the new Outfit
girl, Iris Insole, to find him hovering suspiciously and incriminatingly over Briers'
dead body. If he is innocent, why did his ex-girlfriend offer him a share in the loot
she inherited from former, and very dead partner, Julian Bowling? What part did
Abelard play in the death of another journalist, Charlie Tate, who was investigating
the shadowy American J J Ovalle? And who is the fat man in the tan cape and white
bobble hat who frequents Kate Horton's antique stall? All will be revealed in good
time.
Though the book's own blurb refers to A Man's Enemies as "an action
thriller", it is more a work of verbal rather than physical gymnastics. Swathes of pure
dialogue that remind me more of a playscript than a novel, are put in the mouths of
senior operatives in the Outfit, who are more concerned with the bon mot than clarity,
with clever obfuscation than with pedestrian instruction. This, combined with the use
of jokey names - Verdun Cadwallader, Roger Link-Mite, Turkey Latimer - and
stereotyped characters - Briers the journo has bad feet, and is "faded and pitiable" -
gives the book a lightness not expected in the usual thriller. The drawback of this is
that the reader can sometimes find the author coming between them and the story. As
though Bill James wants us to admire the cleverness of his prose style rather than the
artfulness of any plot twists. That said, the story does turn on what is said more than
what is done. What can be inferred from acts rather than the effect of the acts
themselves. James' description of coded and unclear files in the Closed Library, tales
spun to divert attention, and instructions that have to be inferred rather than clearly
understood, creates a distinctly uneasy feeling that the covert world may just be like
this.
(
Ian Morson
Author of Falconer books and short listed for 1999 Ellis Peters Historical Crime Dagger)
A Man's Enemies by
Bill James
