The Enemy Within

Adam Macqueen

The prime minister, the terror plot of the decade and an ex-rent boy who knows too much

‘Accomplished and gripping’ The Observer

It’s 1984. Tommy Wildeblood, hero of Beneath the Streets, has put his days as a Piccadilly rent boy and scandal-hunting sleuth behind him, to study at the radical Polytechnic of North London.

During a pitched battle against National Front infiltrators at the Poly, he meets handsome young Irishman Liam and embarks on the sort of romantic relationship he never thought he would have. But is it too good to be true? Liam’s abrupt disappearance prompts Tommy to question how much he knows about his new lover.

Dusting off his old sleuthing skills, Tommy’s hunt for Liam takes him into the dark and violent netherworld of radical politics. As his search moves to an explosive climax, he finds himself in danger of carrying the can for one of the most shocking events of the decade.

With the twin spectres of Aids and nuclear armageddon never far away, The Enemy Within is a gritty thriller built around a story of love in terrifying times. It captures the unique spirit of a dark and brooding age, with a supporting cast including Derek Jarman, corrupt Trotskyist leader Gerry Healy, a young Jeremy Corbyn and even Maggie Thatcher herself.

‘An accomplished and gripping continuation of Wildeblood’s adventures [in] a grim 1980s bedevilled by Aids, Thatcherism and IRA bombings. Cameos by everyone from Jeremy Corbyn to Derek Jarman add texture and wit’ The Observer

‘Rent boys. Revolutionary communists. Frankie Goes to Hollywood. And a plot to blow up Mrs Thatcher’ Popbitch

‘Brilliant. Beautifully drawn. A superb final twist’ Boyz

‘The protagonist of the series is a former rent boy, and Adam Macqueen’s research is peerless, so these books are an intriguing combination of horny and historically accurate’ Helen Lewis

‘I loved this – the kind of book I wish I’d written’ Jonathan Harvey

‘Macqueen has created a really memorable main character: brave, clever and brimming with moral indignation, but also vulnerable’ John Preston, The Critic

Paperback: 416pp

Published: Lightning (February 2022)

ISBN: 9781785632341