Dealer [Paperback]

Firstly, it's about an elite group of people who earn a lucrative living from the City (some in a rather unusual fashion as you will find out), but who find their lives dramatically and adversely affected by the sudden death of a company Director in a dark basement. The main characters have a wide range of personal motivations, fears and aspirations and at least two are leading double lives of sorts. Many of the scenes written from one characters viewpoint are interspersed with other scenes from another's viewpoint that I think presents the reader with a more varied insight to the characters. Ultimately The Dealer is about justice of sorts for the main players but you must read the press cuttings in the last chapter to see the full circle.

Secondly, like my first novel Square Mile, I wanted to impart to everyone some inside knowledge about how the City works, but to do it in a very user-friendly way. So many of us now own shares in BT or Halifax or day trade on-line with Schwab, that's its no harm knowing how the mega-deals are struck, take-overs are covertly planned, millions of bucks are made and fortunes or careers are lost in a single dealing day.

Thirdly, I wanted to have a wider geographical canvas to the book, so there are major scenes set overseas, particularly in the USA where I worked for extended periods. I have always enjoyed travel and there's no reason why a novel has to be confined to a single city. It's not a Berlitz guide or the BBC Holiday Show, and it never will be I hope.

Lastly, I focussed on creating a breakneck pace in the novel because I guess that most thriller readers (including myself) can't bear to delve into meandering books.

Like Square Mile, I have included my home email address on the last page. I got many great emails from readers of the first book (99% were positive!) and I hope that readers of The Dealer will likewise let me know if it is better than Square Mile.