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The Dope Priest
David Preston is the Dope Priest and he has a headache. If you've smuggled drugs out of war zones, you're not going to worry about a spot of illegal land trading between the Palestinians and Israelis. But David never planned on amorous nuns, kosher egg racketeers and the full might of the Israeli secret housing service. Even now, he feels he could cope. If only he could win the heart of the local drive-time DJ, or at least find something decent to smoke.
291 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1999
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About the author
Nicholas Blincoe
29 books20 followersBlincoe was born in Rochdale, Lancashire in 1965. After briefly studying art at Middlesex Polytechnic he attended the University of Warwick where he studied Philosophy, gaining a PhD in 1993. The thesis was entitled Depression and Economics. The thesis explored the relationship between political sciences and economic theories, with particular reference to the philosophy of Jacques Derrida.
Blincoe released a Hip-Hop record on Manchester's Factory Records in 1987 and his subsequent relationship with Factory records and the nightclub The Haçienda informed his early work.
In 1995, Blincoe married the Bethlehem Palestinian film-maker Leila Sansour, director of the documentary Jeremy Hardy vs The Israeli Army (2003).
Blincoe has written for British radio and television, including episodes of the BBC TV series Waking The Dead and Channel 4's Goldplated. As a critic and reviewer he has worked for the Modern Review, under the editorship of Toby Young and Julie Burchill. He was a columnist for the London Daily Telegraph until September 2006, writing the weekly 'Marginalia' column.
He is the author of six novels, Acid Casuals (1995), Jello Salad (1997), Manchester Slingback (1998), The Dope Priest (1999), White Mice (2002), Burning Paris (2004). He was a founding member of the New Puritans literary movement and co-edited (with Matt Thorne) the anthology 'All Hail The New Puritans' (2000) which included contributions from Alex Garland, Toby Litt, Geoff Dyer, Daren King, Simon Lewis, and Scarlett Thomas.
Blincoe won the Crime Writer's Association Silver Dagger for his novel Manchester Slingback in 1998. His early novels were crime thrillers set in or around his native Lancashire and the clubs of Manchester.
Some of his more recent novels reflect his life split between homes in London and Bethlehem. He is also a co-editor of a book on the International Solidarity Movement Peace Under Fire: Israel/Palestine and the International Solidarity Movement (2003) with Josie Sandercock, Radhika Sainath, Marissa Mcloughlin, Hussein Khalili, Huwaida Arraf and Ghassan Andoni.
Blincoe released a Hip-Hop record on Manchester's Factory Records in 1987 and his subsequent relationship with Factory records and the nightclub The Haçienda informed his early work.
In 1995, Blincoe married the Bethlehem Palestinian film-maker Leila Sansour, director of the documentary Jeremy Hardy vs The Israeli Army (2003).
Blincoe has written for British radio and television, including episodes of the BBC TV series Waking The Dead and Channel 4's Goldplated. As a critic and reviewer he has worked for the Modern Review, under the editorship of Toby Young and Julie Burchill. He was a columnist for the London Daily Telegraph until September 2006, writing the weekly 'Marginalia' column.
He is the author of six novels, Acid Casuals (1995), Jello Salad (1997), Manchester Slingback (1998), The Dope Priest (1999), White Mice (2002), Burning Paris (2004). He was a founding member of the New Puritans literary movement and co-edited (with Matt Thorne) the anthology 'All Hail The New Puritans' (2000) which included contributions from Alex Garland, Toby Litt, Geoff Dyer, Daren King, Simon Lewis, and Scarlett Thomas.
Blincoe won the Crime Writer's Association Silver Dagger for his novel Manchester Slingback in 1998. His early novels were crime thrillers set in or around his native Lancashire and the clubs of Manchester.
Some of his more recent novels reflect his life split between homes in London and Bethlehem. He is also a co-editor of a book on the International Solidarity Movement Peace Under Fire: Israel/Palestine and the International Solidarity Movement (2003) with Josie Sandercock, Radhika Sainath, Marissa Mcloughlin, Hussein Khalili, Huwaida Arraf and Ghassan Andoni.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
July 25, 2015
What happens when a British drug smuggler who had to leave Palestine years before in a hurry, cause one of his deals blew up, returns to help out a friend? Chaos ensues...
The book is oddly entertaining and I think a very interesting read, even though it can be a bit confusing at times.
Even though the Palestine/Israel conflict isn't the center of the narrative of course it is a main character in the story. The thing to have in mind though is, that this book was written in 1999 when Palestine still consisted of more than Gaza... actually here you can see some of the things that went into Israel taking over Jerusalem. But if you are expecting clear political commentary, then this is the wrong book to read on the matter, even though it does show the day to day struggles of Palestinians at that time.
The book is oddly entertaining and I think a very interesting read, even though it can be a bit confusing at times.
Even though the Palestine/Israel conflict isn't the center of the narrative of course it is a main character in the story. The thing to have in mind though is, that this book was written in 1999 when Palestine still consisted of more than Gaza... actually here you can see some of the things that went into Israel taking over Jerusalem. But if you are expecting clear political commentary, then this is the wrong book to read on the matter, even though it does show the day to day struggles of Palestinians at that time.
July 17, 2007
This was a fairly entertaining and dramatic book set in Israel/Palestine. It looks at the conflict and the ways people survive following a perpetually stoned protagonist ex-drug smuggler on the run.
The weaknesses and vulnerabilities of the protagonist are really well explored and drawn out. It maybe could have had a bit more depth with regards to some of the plot twists and turns, but it all tied together fairly well.
The weaknesses and vulnerabilities of the protagonist are really well explored and drawn out. It maybe could have had a bit more depth with regards to some of the plot twists and turns, but it all tied together fairly well.
June 10, 2019
A funny story while the main characters were young, but also a dramatic novel about a society in the middle east, where the situation between Jerusalem and Arabia-Palestina is very tensed. But with a dosage of sarcasm and noir comedy, and a stoned junkie Priest(a fake one) is trying to help his best friend Toni. But under the very harsh rules, laws and traditions between Palestinian Muslims and Jews, every broken law has big consequences, therefore is it very difficult to trade, sell, buy anything you named from jews to Muslims and vice-versa. It's very easy to read, and I really enjoyed reading this Novel about two old friends. This crime novel is better than, "just another crime novel", without the genial and very good time tempted noir humour and sarcasm in situations were u would freeze because of the feer, Nicholas puts in such cases a sarcasm, where u can o laugh or cry. :)
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 6, 2022
Funny and fast... but it all comes together a bit too neatly.
September 13, 2025
Quite an entertaining yarn, nice twist at the end I didn't see coming.
March 29, 2013
David Preston in the Dope Priest and he has a headache. If you've smuggled drugs out of war zones, you're not going to worry about a spot of illegal land trading between the Palestinians and Israelis. But David never planned on amorous nuns, kosher egg racketeers and the full might of the Israeli secret housing service. Even now, he feels he could cope. If only he could win the heart of the local drive-time DJ., or at least find something decent to smoke.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews