Vine Street

"It feels epic to me. I think because it takes place over quite a long period of time. It starts in the thirties, which is why I’ve included it on the list, but it goes on for a few decades. It has a great story, and you can get lost in Soho, down in all the jazz clubs, with celebrities popping up. There are all these different elements, but then it all comes together like a big conspiracy. You’re trying to figure it out: Who’s the good guy? Who’s the bad guy? This is more cop-driven—it’s not a police procedural, but there’s a detective at the heart of it. It moves through World War Two, and by the time it got to the end I was just in awe. It was one of those books where there is nothing that I would have changed. Word perfect. As a writer, you can pick up books and start editing them in your head as you go, which cuts down some of the enjoyment, it’s like work. But this one was more like, wow, how has he done this?"