Urban Scarecrows

by Jim Chambers

The Labour Party election victory of 2019 ushers into power a radical socialist government which swiftly mutates to a British form of totalitarian Marxism in its quest for social justice and equality. Dominic Green, a Labour Party activist and celebrity chef, is caught up in the economic and social crisis as the country lurches towards civil war.
Taunted by the jibes of his volatile Spanish wife, Rosa, he moves from denial to acceptance to opposition and becomes a totemic media figure in the struggles. His marriage is in terminal decline; Rosa cannot forgive his philandering or his support of the government. His family falls apart as Rosa leaves him and one son is incarcerated, whilst the other attempts to liberate his sibling. Labelled a turncoat terrorist he is hunted by the brutal SNPS state police whose attempts to subjugate the population includes 'urban scarecrowing'.
Who can he trust as he goes on the run whilst assisting the resistance movement? Will Rosa forgive him as she tracks his public pronouncements and his efforts to free their son? Will Dominic escape the clutches of the SNPS as the net closes? Will international outrage translate into military intervention as sections of the armed forces rebel? And can Dominic survive and recover his relationship with Rosa and their surviving son?

276 pages, Paperback

Published May 25, 2022

Reviews

[Reading_ Tamishly · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the fastest one-sitting read I have ever read and that too a political thriller read. I'm happy.

This is my first Jim Chambers read and I would say I would like to read any book the author comes up with.

The story is about a celebrity chef, Dominic, getting caught up in the economic crisis with the country heading towards the civil war. However, his life is crumbling, his marriage is failing, his wife leaves him and one of their sons gets incarcerated. The family is falling apart.

He, a Labour Party activist, gets labelled as a wanted terrorist and he's on the run. He doesn't know who to turn to; who he can trust. The main things is if he would be able to escape the hunt by the notorious SNPS state police.

The second half got me really anxious. I felt helpless for the characters. I felt really bad for Dominic but also I could understand Rosa.
The influence of the media is scary.
You will get to know from this story.

I would say the writing is fast-paced without a chance of getting bored. The characters make you really anxious. Of course.

I was a bit disappointed by how things turned out to be somewhat unexplained towards the end even though the ending has a good closure.

The writing, the plot and the characters reminded me so much of the thrill provided by Sidney Sheldon's books.

Thank you, author, Literally PR and SilverWood Books, for the advance reading copy.

[Emma Cook · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you love a political thriller, then this one is for you.
Heavily loaded with political drama, which you could scarily imagine happening here over time.
Dominic is a loveable ladies man who you can't help liking throughout the book. Rosa, I struggled to sympathise with, but the love they have for their children is apparent. I enjoyed the dual time line and the drama leading up to it, I had to concentrate a few times, but could follow the storyline. I liked the Royal Family element too. With being just under 300 pages, an easy book to fly through!

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

 

When the Labour Party take a landslide victory in the 2019 general election, people are looking forward to a new way of life, less austerity, an end to penny pinching and less debt. Little do they really know about what is going to happen.

The new government rapidly change the country into a British form of totalitarian Marxism, in its quest for social justice and equality. Taking a high-profile celebrity chef along for the ride, and this is whose point of view the book is written from.

 

A story of human emotions and frailties: love and hate; lust and betrayal; cowardice and bravery; cruelty and kindness; rejections and reunion; death and renewal.

 

Thank you to Literally PR for a gifted copy of this book in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

 

There is a lot of political language within this book, and I found myself reading this book with Google open to research some of the language, and although this didn’t detract away from the storyline, I did find it a little cumbersome at the start. Once I had overcome this however, I did begin to engage with the characters. This is a book where you must be prepared to take a side, and the author does a pretty good job of making you really think about whose side you want to be on.

 

Several times I wanted to give Dominic, the main character, a good shake and try to help him take some responsibility for his actions, and to witness first-hand the repercussions of these. I was less armoured with Rosa, his wife and the way that the author extenuated her consonants…’godddd’, I must admit did grate on me towards the end...

 

This is not an easy or light-hearted read, it’s a thought-provoking book, and with the current political turmoil that is gripping the UK and the conflicts around the world, - from government politics, war, climate change, unemployment, through to the cost-of-living crisis and beyond, it felt quite close to home at times.

 

This is a book that I would recommend to fans of John Le Carre, Robert Harris and Ken Follett. As I mentioned above, it’s not a light-hearted book, but what it is is a thought provoking, political thriller that will leave you with far more questions than answers.

 

 

 

[Books By Your Bedside]

Thanks to LiterallyPR for the gifted copy of this title and a place in the book tour in return for an honest review.

Obviously for a political book, there’s going to be political language and terminology, so there were parts I didn’t fully understand but it was well explained in context and well thought out.

I wasn’t the biggest fan of Rosa, even by the end she still wasn’t my favourite character. There was something about her that just grated with me, just got under my skin. I enjoyed the writing of their two sons, they seemed opposites and well rounded in and of themselves. The main character of Dominic did irk me at times, I just wanted to grab him by the lapels and shake him, but he soon endeared himself.

It was an interesting book to read whilst were experiencing our own conflicts - government politics, war, climate change, unemployment, the rise of living cost etc.

I did like that whilst this was a book about politics and elections and riots and government promises, for me it was more a focus on the humanity, it’s more an exploration of the characters rather than what’s happening in society as a whole.

I did think when reading the premise that it was going to be more like The Handmaids Tale, a bit of a fantasy dystopia, but at times it is a little too close at times to reality to fully lose yourself in - or at least that’s how it felt to me. But part of me wishes he’d chosen fantasy names for the political parties; in my opinion, using Labour and the Conservatives puts it firmly in reality and I found it difficult to detract from what was happening in reality, it seemed neither realistic or fantastical.

I felt some of it was a little clumsy and some of the narrative could have been tidied up a bit, but overall I found it to be enjoyable,, thought proving, questioning, eyebrow raising. It’s not a lighthearted read by any stretch of the imagination. It’s one that will ask you questions and demand answers and demand you pick a side. A real conversation starter, it would be ideal for a book club debate.

[Joanna McQueen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Urban Scarecrows is the depiction of chef Dominic Diamond’s migration from labour supporter to an unintentional activist against the newly elected government’s totalitarianism agenda. This tepid celebrity Dominic, a handsome man, has several women pulling him in varying directions; he is forced to reconsider his loyalties, not only to his political party but to his fiery wife Rosa, his sons and his manipulative business partner. With the country (and his family) in ruins, Dominic is forced to take a stand, but who can he trust?

I am not usually a fan of political thrillers, but this book has a dystopian edge that left me enjoying it more than I expected to. Certain politicians, and their antics, are definitely cringeworthy but add the necessary element needed to pull off the ghastly government.

At first I was bothered by Dominic’s lack of a backbone, but he too did not disappoint, although he was cutting it fine. I found the diverse range of good and bad characters interesting and was often questioning who was good and who was bad; I did not know who to trust either.

The writing is descriptive and pulls you into the setting of a country (the UK) in turmoil. The tragedies are depicted well. Oftentimes I cringed at some of the nasty content (abuse, rape, murder, scarecrowing - hanging a persopn in public to resemble a scarecrow) so there are definitely triggers that readers should be aware of. The atrocious tragedies are addressed for what they are and are the push that Dominic needs to get off his arse.

If you like a thriller with a political agenda and a dystopian edge I highly recommend this book. It’s an engaging story that touches on some serious issues. It also examines the lines between socialism and totalitarianism and the people who cross them.

Thanks so much to the author, the publisher and Literally PR for the copy to read and review.

[Rebecca Jamison · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was sort of a new genre for me and I was very pleasantly surprised. Urban Scarecrows is a political thriller but I would probably also class it as dystopian fiction.

Set following the Labour Party's election win in 2019 and carrying through to 2027, celebrity chef and activist Dominic Green is caught up in the country's economic crisis.

One son is imprisoned and sent to a rehabilitation centre that is run by the SNPS state police in order to either recruit young people into the SNPS or train them for other jobs in society. His other son is an activist and his relationship with his Spanish-born wife is on the rocks. Dominic himself is then painted as a terrorist.

This is a slow burner at the start but really kicks up a notch about halfway through. It is a good insight into how things are portrayed, how words can be twisted by the media and highlights what could happen if power is given to different parties with extreme views on how society should be run.

I really enjoyed the thrill of this novel and like the author's writing style.

[Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

Urban Scarecrows is a suspenseful political thriller. Although it's really intense and creepy at times, it's definitely worth the read.

The story alternates between 'then' and 'now' chapters and I really enjoyed how it all played out. It begins with Dominic in a prison and in quite a dire situation. It then goes back to the start so you get to see how he ended up in that prison and how his life fell apart. I liked the sense of urgency I felt during the prison scenes and how, if he didn't escape, he would likely die. These chapters really helped build the suspense and my feeling of dread increased with each chapter. I couldn't wait to see how it would end and whether Dominic would find a way to escape.

I did like Dominic but it took a while for me to warm to him. It felt like he wasn't doing much at the start and it was only when his own family was impacted by the events that he started to speak up for people. I did feel sorry for him though because his life is completely turned upside down and it was quite shocking how quickly it happened. He goes from being a beloved celebrity chef to an enemy of the government just for expressing his views and ends up losing everything. It was disturbing to see how easily the government could work to silence people and that everyone was powerless to stop them.

Dominic's situation becomes increasingly dire as the story progresses. I was shocked that the government managed to stay in power and was able to torment so many people. I kept asking myself at what point has the government gone too far and when will someone finally step in and stop them from going any further? It was also fascinating seeing what role the media played in it all. I feel like they definitely stoked the fire and made Dominic's situation much, much worse. I couldn't imagine being in his situation. It felt like he lost either way no matter what he said or did.

Urban Scarecrows is such a thought-provoking read. I'd recommend it if you enjoy political thrillers and dystopian reads.

*I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.*

[Sophie Hopkins · Rating 3 out of 5]

Urban Scarecrows is a political thriller with many dark twists and turns. I particularly enjoyed the narrative style and felt the evocative language used made it possible to imagine vivid scenes when reading. The combination of a political backdrop with a thriller combined also meant it was quite thought provoking, which was an enjoyable aspect whilst reading. 

[Katie]

This political thriller was such a fast and suspenseful read. It was so well written and thought out. I could not put it down. I did anticipate (and hoped) that this would create a more dystopian government (1984) than it did, but it was still creepy nonetheless.

I am uncertain on a star rating at this point.

Thank you LiterallyPR for sending this my way