David McCloskey is one of the best current spy thriller authors and London Station only confirms that title as it is an excellently written book which keeps a reader absorbed from the first to the last page.

My only reservation is how much of this is based on what is actually happening at the moment as it is very plausible.

An outstanding book.

I really hope that this book is fiction but I well suspect that it’s faction and if so that’s a terribly worrying state of affairs that it describes.

What if the US government led by a megalomaniac president aided and abetted by his acolytes running the CIA as if it was a house building company decided to examine the long standing special relationship between the US and Great Britain parties it pertains to information sharing?

What if the CIA decided that the dice were loaded totally in their favour and they were giving far more than they received?

What if the CIA decided to turn off the tap in terms of information flow?

Well the SIS would retaliate, misunderstandings would occur and agents would die.

Who could possibly knock heads together and force both sides to see sense and bury the hatchet somewhere other than in their respective heads ?

Artemis Proctor that’s who - the only grow.n up in the rain who somehow makes things come right but it’s a scarlet ride and a close run thing as the Chinese seek to take advantage of wounded foes.

An incredible read but please God it’s fiction.

Artemis Proctor is back, and she is in London! I love this series and this is the best so far. The special relationship between the US and UK spy services has gone downhill, and Artemis is sent to London to manage it. There are a lot of interesting characters, and many sub-plots, all woven together in an elegant way. There is so much humour in ths, it is almosy farcical in places. Highly recommended.

Almost certainly the finest book yet from David McCloskey.

"London Station" opens some years after the events of "The Seventh Floor". Against all the odds, Artemis Aphrodite Procter still has a job at the CIA. Currently she is undertaking a clandestine, un-authorised and unethical operation in London. She plans to recruit a Chinese minister as a CIA asset - something that the Special Relationship definitely prohibits. However, the op fails spectacularly, and ends with Procter being unceremoniously sent back the the US. However, a new President has taken office and installed a brash and unconventional businessman as CIA Director. with the remit to shake up the Agency. His first decision is to appoint Procter as the new Chief of Station in London, following the previous incumbents' hasty dismissal.

With the pieces on the board, David McCroskey's fastest-moving and most provocative book yet launches into a non-stop journey of political manoeuvring, power struggles and downright shenanigans, as Procter tries to navigate a new world of MAGA-like management within the CIA, the Special Relationship in tatters, and various rogue elements intent on taking advantage of the chaos. And when bodies start mounting up- Procter realises she has a mole in her Station. There's a huge cast of characters, most of them new to fans of Procter's adventures - as well as the new CIA Director (modelled on who, I wonder?), there's his sycophantic son-in-law, a disgruntled MI6 officer, an angry former Station Chief, a psychotic analyst, and the most gorgeously-written Diana Taverner clone as head of MI5 (who we don't see half as much of as we deserve). Ironically, here we see Procter as the most level-headed and professional body in the book.

We know the author has insight into the goings-on within the CIA - and while I'm sure he has taken much artistic licence in writing "London Station" you can't help but wonder how much is true - from the Machiavellian relationship between the US and UK, to the internal power struggles and machinations, it all seems just a bit too plausible. Which makes this a superb read. Procter has always been the star of the show, but some readers might have thought the previous book to have been her swan song - thankfully not. She shines here - not just for her gung-ho approach to her work, but also the fact that she proves she is a top-tier agent- she knows the business and she knows the score.

Bobby Jerome, the new CIA director, is also a gem of a character - his assumption that he has successfully built up a huge company, and can run the CIA in the same way makes him a man you love to hate. He's McCloskey's best villain yet. Luckily in Procter he meets his match.

This is most likely the authors finest book to date - timely in its plot, pitch-perfect in its delivery, and just crying out to be made into a film (Parker Posey for Artemis, please). Fans of the series will lap it up.

Heartily recommended.