Here are my thoughts on this most excellent book...
A Higher Duty by Peter Murphy. February 2013. No Exit Press. Paperback. £7.99. 351pp. ISBN 978-1-84243-668-4.
This beautifully written book had me captivated from start to finish. It is chock-full of the language and behaviour that was expected from lawyers, barristers and their families in the 1960s. Peter Murphy is himself highly familiar with the Law, having worked as an advocate for a number of years and being involved as defense council in the Yugoslavian War Crimes tribunal at The Hague. You can sense his years of experience dripping from the pages of his book, adding authenticity and interest to the tale. A HIGHER DUTY is Murphy’s second novel, and the first of his that I have read. I am keen to get my hands on his first one, REMOVAL, now as well!
The story starts in Cambridge in 1960, at a Rugby Club dinner. As usual, too much alcohol is consumed but then the high jinks of the young men lead to the accidental death of a fellow student. In shame the guilty parties are gathered together and arrested, only to have the matter mysteriously quashed and brushed under the carpet. All is not forgotten, however, since Clive Overton, the ringleader, is subsequently sent down from Cambridge in disgrace by his outraged father. He goes to America and is ordered to stay away from England for the rest of his life.
Two years later, we join up with the activities of the successful London Chambers overseen by Bernard Wesley QC. An initially straightforward divorce case is brought forward for representation and it looks as if it will be uneventful, until the barrister given the case, Kenneth Gaskell, stupidly starts an affair with his client, Anne Dougherty, and they are found out. Making the scandal public knowledge will be the ruin of everyone who works in the chambers. Bernard, who thinks of Kenneth as his own son, is shocked beyond belief and takes refuge at home to seek an answer to the issue. Help comes in the form of a random phone call from America and the cunning plan that Bernard devises, based on the code of conduct of certain individuals, will rock the foundations of the very Bar itself.
I loved this book! Everything, from the way it is written, to the way the barristers address each other, had me interested and engaged. I could vividly imagine Bernard Wesley’s chambers and feel the ever-present importance of protocol and correct behaviour. As it says on the cover, you are a fan of TVs Silk, then you are going to just love this book. I couldn’t put it better myself!
Highly recommended.
No comments:
Post a Comment