ENTERTAINING POLITICAL THRILLER WITH A STING IN THE TAIL. This highly entertaining romp through the aptly named ‘Republic of Sardoniki’ during eight days of political upheaval is told very much from the sort of perspective you find in early Evelyn Waugh novels like Scoop or Black Mischief. It features two phlegmatic Englishmen, Ralph Longhand (a Catholic Monsignor and diplomat) and Peter Lotsmore (a former Army officer) as keen observers of the bizarre antics and religio-political passions of the foreigners. The dialogue is wonderfully pacy and gently satirical, and the plot runs like clockwork. There is also lots of clever play on names and other details; you feel you are in the company of an author who knows what he is about and has put considerable work into amusing the reader. But it’s also more than just amusing. In the posthumous intervention of the local Saint Dalmatios against the ‘globalist’ plotting of the chilling villainness Vasilissa, there is a serious point being made about the interwoven fabric of national and religious identity as something worthy of preservation. (The reviewer received a complimentary print copy of the book after taking part in pre-publication readings and discussions.)