I binge-read both of these books in a sprint over a couple of days, and I have to make a confession here, I originally read the first one “To Kill the President” quite some time ago. Then, I started reading the new one, “To Kill the Truth”, and fifteen pages in realised I needed to go back and re-read the first one if the second one was to make any sense. That’s both the advantage and disadvantage of being someone who reads very fast. You can read a book over and over again, getting something new every time, but equally you don’t retain that much after each read – otherwise there would be zero room in your head for anything else.

Sam Bourne has definitely got the knack of a gripping first chapter, that’s for sure. As an aspiring writer, I found myself admiring the way he ratchets up the stakes until you are desperate to know what happens next. To be honest, I don’t know how much I want to say about the plot of either of these two books, because I don’t want to spoil it if you haven’t read them. Both of them are extremely timely. In each, he’s managed to build a plot which is highly relevant to what’s going on in the world, touching on key political and social themes. He’s a clever writer, if that makes sense, because in the middle of some racing plotlines, he makes you stop and think about bigger ideas and issues than those which simply live on the page.

The protagonist, Maggie Costello is likeable, fallible and real – there have been a number of excerpts doing the rounds on Twitter from male authors writing female protagonists, where they’ve got it horribly wrong, but that’s not the case here.

If you want a couple of thrillers that’ll glue your eyes to the page, these are highly recommended. Made me want to go and look up Sam Bourne’s back catalogue to see what else I can read.