Readers like book series because they give protagonists the space to mature and expand. In the Mainstay, the latest in Richard Robinson’s Topaz Files saga, MI5 rookies Jones and Jenny Richmond come of age. They are a little older, a little wiser, but no less addicted to extreme peril.
The action has shifted to late 1990s Northern Ireland, where there is real hope of lasting peace after the Troubles. However, this does not mean a quiet life for our protagonists. Against the backdrop of burgeoning peace talks, an innocent student witnesses the brutal execution of a unionist politician. Feeling duty-bound to save him, Jones and Richmond are confronted by a chilling nexus of terrorism, organised crime and high-level corruption.
Evoking Mick Herron’s Slough House series, Jones and Richmond are accompanied by a crew of misfits who charm the reader with their camaraderie and craic. Still, Robinson disrupts any cosiness with some brutal shocks amidst the rapid-fire action. The antagonists, whoever they might be, are as slippery and duplicitous as any in Line of Duty.
The complex politics of the setting drives much of the intrigue. Robinson clearly has a deep understanding but knows better than to get bogged down in the intricacies. Instead, he delivers a taut, compelling thriller with a mesmerising cast of characters, all to a Britpop soundtrack.