Each edition we publish a list of upcoming book releases that have caught the attention of bibliophiles across the Spear’s universe.
This time we’ve picked four titles that take you from board rooms to royal courts, and explore the the changing notions of nationhood and identity.
After reading these, make sure to have a look at our review of Money Men by Dan McCrum, the FT journalist who brought down Wirecard.
Servants of the Damned
By David Enrich (Scribe UK, £20, from 13 October)
Having exposed the financial recklessness at the heart of Deutsche Bank in Dark Towers, David Enrich delves into the shadowy world of ‘big law’ in his new book. Servants of the Damned traces US law firm Jones Day’s rise from a small Cleveland practice to becoming the Trump administration’s legal bloodhounds. Along the way he reveals the firm’s involvement in covering up sexual abuses for the Catholic Church, supporting the marketing and mass production of OxyContin for Purdue Pharma, and helping Russian oligarchs avoid Western sanctions.
Courtiers
By Valentine Low (Headline, £20, from 29 September)
Veteran Times correspondent Valentine Low has broken many royal scoops, and here he takes a deep dive into the elusive world of palace advisers. These officials became the subject of global press scrutiny early in 2020, when the Duke and Duchess of Sussex announced they would step back as ‘working royals’, amid rumours of bubbling feuds and differences of opinion with these clandestine advisers. Low traces how a vast network of trusted officials continue to shape an ancient institution in the modern age and hopes to answer the question: who really runs the show?
Reputation Matters
By Jonathan Coad (Bloomsbury, £25)
Lawyer and PR adviser Jonathan Coad served as a partner at Schillings and Lewis Silkin, and has worked with major corporates and acted for A-list celebrities. He has also, occasionally, worked on the other side of the fence, providing editorial legal advice to current affairs programmes, autobiographers and satirical shows such as South Park. His compelling CV is matched by his robust approach and the forthright way he describes threats to reputation and the parties that pose them. This book is essential reading for anyone with a public profile that they may one day need to protect.
Who Are We Now?
By Jason Cowley (Picador, £20)
After taking two decades to decide what it is not, England has neglected to consider what it is. In Who Are We Now? Jason Cowley, editor of the New Statesman, pieces together an image of modern Englishness. From the closure of a doctor’s surgery through to a racist murder both in the small town of Harlow, Cowley juxtaposes the stories that define England and the moments that uproot them; the stories of those who come in search of Englishness, and those who defend it abroad. With each beautifully detailed vignette, he takes us closer to defining and diagnosing modern Englishness.