Single Cell by Phil Rowlands

 

You can buy Single Cell...Here

You can follow Phil Rowlands...Here

The Blurb...

Deputy Prison Governor, Giles Lawson, has doubts concerning the suicide of a lifer. No one listens to him, so he begins to rattle cages. He is suspended after ignoring orders from his boss to drop it. Convinced his suspicions are valid, he enlists the help of the Prison Chaplain, and through him, an investigative journalist.As they edge closer to the truth, they are dragged into a dark world of retribution and murder, which threatens not only their lives but also those of Giles’ wife and teenage daughters.

My Review...

Deputy Prison Governor Giles Lawson  has trouble at home with his wife and teenage daughters. He also has nagging doubts about the suicide of an evil killer, hung in his own cell. The more he pushes the more his boss pushes back. 

He enlists the help of his friend and Prison Chaplain Peter Sattori, but Peter is not all that he seems. He has a shadowy past and contacts in the underworld (the criminal kind not the biblical kind) They set off in pursuit of the victim's cell mate and thus begins an adventure of  betrayal, revenge, vigilante justice and murder. 

After reading the blurb one could be forgiven for thinking that this would be a gritty, prison drama full of screws and grasses and claustrophobia, which it is for the first few chapters before it develops into a sort Roman Catholic spy adventure. Quite unexpected but nonetheless entertaining.

There were a couple of things that threw me off a little. A lot of similar characters were introduced, all around the same time, near the start of the book. By chapter 6 my pen and notebook was out trying to keep track, but before long most had been bumped off. Notepad back in the drawer after a few chapters. 

Also I struggled a little to appreciate the motivation of some characters. Notably the villain in setting up the organisation that Giles and Peter uncover and the motivation of one his associates near the denouement. 

The pace fairly rattled along, probably a little too quickly for me. I read that the author has a history of writing screenplays and I can see why, the rhythm of the book resembles a tv thriller. However, I often feel  the beauty of a book is in lingering and developing. I realise these minor stones in the shoe are probably mine and mine alone. Reading is a very subjective pastime🤷.

Minor quibbles apart I did enjoy the story. The main crux of (POSSIBLE SPOILER) a secret society of powerful relatives of victims ensuring that old school eye for an eye justice is applied in spite of our legal system not because of it is a very good one. 

Also the character of Peter and  a Papal spy network is intriguing and ripe for future books. 

Selected Quotes...

"Patty, who was not looking at him with the warmth that he had hoped. It was more the way you would look at cat shit that had squeezed through your bare toes."

"Only use the weapon when the words fail."

"...were members of the same club as him and it left a bad taste in the mouth when something like this happened. Almost as an afterthought he said that they had better be seen to take the families of the dead policemen to their hearts and give them a full ceremonial burial. It was the kind of emotional response the people liked and it would be good for the government’s flagging popularity if there was a serious slice of authority on show; Troakes could now ‘piss off and do what he was paid a fucking good salary to do."

"Go straight in Giles," Deborah, snake protector of the inner sanctum hissed at him as she sat coiled behind her desk"

About the Author

Phil is a screenwriter, author and producer.
After many years as a ‘safe pair of hands’ actor, mainly in film and television, he moved into the production side as a freelance writer and producer. He has written feature films, TV and radio dramas, documentaries and animation series and worked on productions as a script doctor and consultant.
In 2009 he was one of the co-founders of Funky Medics, a production company focussing mainly on innovative health education. Their projects have included heart disease, diabetes, smoking and drug abuse,
Siena, his first novel, has recently been republished by new indie publisher Diamond Books along with his second, Single Cell. A third TimeSlip will be released in August 2021. He writes in a small shed at the bottom of his garden.
Originally from Pembrokeshire in West Wales, he now lives near Cardiff and has British nationality and Canadian citizenship.