Princess Fuzzypants here: it is 1967 and the Kray twins rule the East End and much of London with a bloody and violent fist. They coerce Charles into doing their bidding. The police have been building a case against them and are getting closer and closer. Charles is caught in a vice that is tightening. The Krays want him to defend an associate whom they have chosen to take the fall for them in the murder of another confederate. Charles is flummoxed. He will not see anyone convicted of a crime they did not commit but his hand is forced and in spite of attempts to wriggle out of the brief, he is caught in the middle.

He comes up with an unorthodox plan to make sure the Krays pay for their crimes without getting himself and those he loves killed. It is brilliant and the reader will enjoy the action as Charles navigates some very tricky waters. I really enjoy reading these stories. Charles is such an interesting character. Cockney kid who gets a break and makes something of himself but whose past indiscretions come back to haunt him. It is a nail bitter from beginning to end peopled with lots of great characters. If you are a fan of gritty mysteries and love stories about London, this should not be missed. Five purrs and two paws up.

‘Is this the end?’

London, 1967. Barrister Charles Holborne and his partner Sally are expecting their first child. Things are looking up for them, but Charles is unable to leave the past behind him. The Kray twins, rulers of London’s underworld, have something over Charles which would ruin his career and send him to prison. The threat has hung over Charles for some time, but the stakes are higher now than ever.

Detective Superintendent ‘Nipper’ Read’s taskforce has been working hard to take down the Krays, but he needs Charles Holborne to testify against them. Sally is threatened, and Charles is under no illusion about the threat to him, his family and his career. So, what can he do?

Strap yourself in for a rollercoaster ride as Charles Holborne faces his biggest threat. Mr Michael takes us deep into 1960s London, into Kray territory where fact (sometimes, at least) seems stranger than fiction. There are some clever twists and some dramatic turns as this eighth instalment in the Charles Holborne series unfolds.
Yes, you could read this novel as a standalone, but the entire series is well worth reading in order. And now I wonder what Mr Michael will write next.

Note: My thanks to NetGalley and Sapere Books for providing me with a free electronic copy of this book for review purposes.

Jennifer Cameron-Smith

A nice light and enjoyable read, taking you back to the sixties. An ideal book to enjoy with a couple of cups of coffee. It doesn’t tire you out trying to keep up with the characters and the plot and might prove to be a refreshing read for many.

I finished Nothing But The Truth by Simon Michael feeling very disappointed. Not by the book,which is truly excellent,but on realising that it was the latest,and possibly last, in a series I'd never come across before. My loss and I'd definitely recommend readers new to this series to begin with the first in the series,The Brief, and work their way to this one ,the big finale in lawyer Charles Holborne's ongoing problems with the notorious Kray Twins in 60's London.

Born Charles Horowitz ,changing his name in an attempt to side-step the anti-semitism that would have blighted his career as a lawyer, Holborne is a tough East End Jew growing up in the same area as the Krays. Their paths first cross as boys and as different choices take the men to different sides of the law Holborne's life,like everyone who crossed the path of the gruesome twosome,is continually blighted by their wickedness,threats and manipulation.......a constant theme of this series.

This book is set at the time Nipper Read is closing in on the Krays ,who like cornered rats are trying to subvert investigations and a potential court case in their usual thuggish manner. Part of their plan involves putting Holborne under massive pressure to help them ,literally,to get away with murder.
Holborne needs to find a way to free himself of his twin nemeses while very publicly appearing to support them.

I really enjoyed this book,it's a time and era that has always fascinated me. Simon Michael skilfully mixes fact with fiction. Being very familiar with the story of the Krays there was a point where I was thinking ,with a wrinkled brow, "that's completely wrong,it never happened", then..........well that would be telling.
A very clever and entertaining read that brilliantly evoked 60's London,sadly I'm old enough to remember it quite well. There are plenty of spot on social references and the authentic atmosphere of "old London" is captured perfectly, there's even a brief cameo appearance by Pink Floyd.

Nothing But The Truth is the latest and the last instalment of the consistently excellent Charles Holborne series by Simon Michael and it deservedly goes out with a bang!!

The main storyline is superb with a brilliant and very novel twist and the author pulls together all the various strands from the previous books into a very satisfying ending

This series deserves to reach a very wide audience and comes highly recommended

I’ve been a big fan of Charles Holborne/ Horowitz since I read this author’s first book and I certainly hope this current one will not be the last as one or two loose ends are neatly tied up.
Charles has been threatened by the Kray twins since early on in the series and I for one was hoping that he would manage to get the better of them and they would get what they truly deserve.
In “Nothing But The Truth”Charles has to use all his legal knowledge and keen intelligence to try and outwit them, particularly when they threaten his own family and Sally, his girlfriend.
The plot is extremely clever and well laid out and of course the author has researched the Krays’ trial and uses that knowledge to good effect in the book.
I loved all the sixties background detail which made the novel all the more enjoyable. Charles does not have the benefit of any twenty first century technology to help him in his plan to ensure the Krays are sent to prison for good.
Nipper Read, the policeman who is endeavouring to bring down the Krays, wants Charles to testify against them and the Krays want Charles to ensure one of their cousins is wrongly convicted for a murder which they themselves committed. Charles wants to do neither and has to work hard to keep himself free of the gangsters and the police.
I also liked the back story of Charles’ family- his parents are now in a care home but his mother still bears animosity towards him despite her increasing dementia. The anti- semitism present in the nineteen sixties has been explored in the earlier novels but was also in the background of this one. It is quite shocking to read about but eminently believable.
I’m really hoping that us readers will get the chance to hear more about Charles and his exploits and that this book is not the conclusion of his story. I love these books and in my opinion they just keep getting better and better.
I recommend the whole series to anyone who enjoys an excellent and well researched legal thriller.
Thanks to NetGalley and Sapere Books for my advance copy.

This was the eighth and hopefully not the final episode in the exceptional Charles Holborne/Horowitz series of legal thrillers.

Well written, beautifully researched and full of accurate and arcane details of life in 60s London the author uses his legal background to paint a wonderful picture of the prejudice and discrimination faved by a East End born Jewish barrister in those less enlightened times.

Charles’s life is inextricably intertwined with those of the notorious Krause twins as it has been throughout the series and finally the end and denouement is nigh.

There is a magnificent and breathtaking sleight of hand which helps being about the solution which I shan’t reveal.

I have adored this series which is evocative and entertaining and hopefully there is more to come.