The Diary of Lies

Miller’s outstanding third case for reporter Shona Sandison (after The Hollow Tree) effortlessly braids together three interconnected story lines. At the outset, Shona receives a U.K. Media Award nomination for her exposé of the government’s plans to pass the Great British Freedom Act, which would undermine Scottish autonomy. Soon afterward, Shona’s anonymous source for that story sends her a cryptic message: “Find Grendel.” Meanwhile, Shona’s friend Hector Stricken—a media officer for the government’s Capacity and Resilience department—is accidentally included in a virtual discussion about a shadowy operation called Grendel, leaving him afraid that he’s learned something he shouldn’t have. As both Shona and Hector work to uncover what Grendel is and what threats it might pose, Miller weaves in diary entries from an unnamed intelligence agent, which may hold important clues about the operation, though the agent admits much of what they write may be untrue. Miller doesn’t rush things, allowing the disparate strands of his sophisticated narrative to come together slowly, and he enriches the proceedings with striking prose (a stream runs “hard and clear, whitening with grinning teeth over boulders”) and lovable characters. Fans of Mick Herron will adore this. Agent: Fiona Brownlee, Brownlee Donald Assoc. (Aug.)