Conflicts of Interest

by Terry Stiastny

It is 2010 and failed war correspondent Lawrence Leith has retreated to a small town in the French countryside where he is taking refuge after the end of his marriage and the loss of his job.

When a friend from the past arrives in town, he stirs memories that Lawrence has been trying to forget; memories of a dusty road in the Congo where everything went disastrously wrong. Martin Elliott is convinced that what Lawrence needs is to get back in the game but when that involves returning to Africa, Lawrence isn't convinced. That is until he meets Isabelle Vernet, the woman leading the trip.

When Martin goes missing, Isabelle's and Lawrence's lives are thrown together in ways neither of them could have imagined and when the lies that bind the three of them together start to unravel, truths are revealed that no one could have expected.

Masterfully constructed and universally topical, Conflicts of Interest is a novel about betrayal and political double-dealing, about the realities of being in the public eye and no matter how hard you try to conceal it, the truth will always come out.

Trade Paperback

Published June 1, 2017

Reviews

[Claire Fuller]

Interesting political drama told from the point of view of two (male) friends. Politics is really only the backdrop - this novel is about relationships and old friendships gone bad. Stiastny's writing is beautifully unfussy, and full of lovely detail.

[Emma Curtis · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received my advance copy of this novel from the publisher and it has to be one of my books of the year. Lawrence Leith is a wonderfully rounded character - a washed out Foreign Correspondent who finds he has to start engaging with the world again when his friend disappears. A story of sex, love, political intrigue and betrayal, it had me absolutely riveted. Intelligently and beautifully written. I highly recommend it for book clubs, holidays and everything in between!

[Sid Nuncius · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought Conflicts of Interest was very good. I enjoyed Terry Stiastny's first novel, Acts of Omission; this is even better.

Conflicts of Interest is a sort of political thriller. I say sort of, because it is unlike conventional political thrillers. There are no car chases, deeply sinister threats or Conspiracies Which Go Right To the Top (thank heavens!); it's a thoroughly believable novel which is largely about character and about how politics, international charity, high-level PR and journalism interact. Here is a world of networking, social gatherings with the Right People, words in the right ears and a sense of entitlement and everything being within one's grasp – until apparently small, unimportant blind eyes turned in the past begin to resurface.

Written in the third person we get narratives from two points of view: Lawrence Leith, a British TV journalist with what sounds like PTSD who is now retired in Provence after a near breakdown and divorce, and Martin Elliott, once Lawrence's producer and now head of a very successful high-end PR and reputation management consultancy, who also owns a house near Lawrence's in France and who moves in very exalted political circles. The plot moves slowly but grippingly as Lawrence begins to rebuild and events begin to close in on Martin. It's hard to say more without giving away too much, but all the main characters seemed extremely real to me and Stastny paints a vivid, wholly plausible picture of the way in which corruption's stain can spread to those around it and how loyalties can evaporate instantly when self-interest intervenes.

I found this readable, gripping and thought-provoking. It has important things to say about the world of politics and those associated with it and also about loyalty and friendship. I was expecting to enjoy the book but I was still surprised by how good I found it. I can recommend it very warmly.

[Miriam Smith (A Mother’s Musings)]

Won in Goodreads Giveaways- not read, passed on.

[Thelastwordreview · Rating 4 out of 5]

Here is a writer that is already making a name for herself with her political thrillers, Terry Stiastny’s debut novel Acts of Omission won her the Paddy Power Political Fiction Book of the Year for 2015, now she returns with her second novel Conflicts of Interest that will really appeal to those who like the thrillers with a political twist.

I have to say just how much I really enjoyed this thriller, why I really enjoyed Conflicts of Interest is that there are no murders, no real high octane crime thriller this is just a real gripping political thriller that just moves along at a steady pace and keeps the reader glued to the storyline. What really helps here is Stiastny’s very clever writing and plotting.
What is have is wonderfully created characters and a story that is believable, as we move through the storyline we start to uncover a real scandal that is starting to come through. With the trapping of becoming a Lord comes all the trappings and at the same time all the seedier goings on and in this story that is actually what is happening. It is something we all know has happened and we all know it goes on. Lawrence Leith is a former TV Journalist and now retired living a peaceful life in Provence. Close by his former producer lives and this is where the story now focuses as Martin Elliott is about to become a Lord. Just how did this all come about? The story never changes pace as it moves along steadily with enough to entertain. The real star is Terry Stiastny and how she writes with just wonderfully crafted prose a novel written so beautifully. A novel of corruption and how its tentacles can spread far and wide. This is not a fast paced thriller by any means but how this really entertains is down to the authors skill in using the right words.

My copy was provided by the publisher John Murray for review.

[Debbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting novel about political corruption and how it impacts on real lives. The story follows retired political correspondent Lawrence Leith and his former colleague Martin Elliott, alternating its viewpoint between the two of them.
Martin has friends in high places but with that comes the obligatory corruption and "dodgy dealing" that orchestrates his inevitable fall from grace. Lawrence, although arguably the chief protagonist is an observer to the main events of the novel, something I found very clever as this mirrors his role in his former profession.
The characters work well and are rounded and realistic which makes it easy to believe in them and root for them and the narrative flows well. The language used is relaxed and easy and I particularly loved the descriptions of the village in the South of France and its surrounding areas.
The only issue I had was that sometimes when switching from one point of view to another, it seemed like a step too far and it wasn't immediately obvious that the narrative had switched or that the characters or the situation had changed. This gave a slightly disjointed feel until I found my bearings.
However, overall a thoroughly enjoyable read. I've not heard of Terry Stiastny before but will definitely be keeping an eye out for her other novels.

[Jo-anne Atkinson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lawrence used to be a journalist covering war zones but after his cameraman was shot in the Congo he suffered, divorced, and has virtually retired to France. Martin used to be Lawrence's boss and now runs a successful business which is about to receive a huge investment from the City. Lawrence is asked to work with an NGO and returns to the Congo but has to escape quickly, his daughter drops out of University and his life appears to be going nowhere. Meanwhile Martin is invested in the House of Lords but his relationship with a disgraced French businessman and his affair mean that personally and professionally his life is falling apart.

This is a very gentle tale about some big politics and the role of the media. I found it quite hard-going but that was mainly because there is little action to speak of and I found the characters very hard to like. There are lot of knowledgable insights from journalist Stiastny and the whole thing reeks of authenticity but it was just so slow.

[Danielle Keene · Rating 5 out of 5]

Please excuse any spelling mistakes or punctuation errors I am dyslexic and I am trying to get better at it.

I won Conflicts of Interest in a competition I wasn't sure if I would like it but I wanted to try to read new things. It wasn't what I thought it was going to be like but I defiantly enjoyed it. I love the way Terry Stiastny writes and it makes me want to read anything else she writes.

I don't want to give to much of the story away and seeing as its my first review I might do that.
The story was beautifully written in the third person and the characters seemed very real along with the story itself. I will defiantly get my friends to read!

Thank you, for an amazing book!

[Carofish · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great political story, full of greed, infidelity, double dealing, secrets. Loved the description of the aging cyclists in Lycra! I was appalled but unsurprised by Lawrence writing the ‘real story’ so that the ‘truth’ could be told, when really it was just in the pursuit of success and ego. A telling reflection of humanity today

[Anthony · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting tale of the conflicts that arise when politics and business interests intermingle. The description of the world inhabited by the novel's protagonists is another reminder of the political and social bubble that they live in and their dislocation from the lives of "ordinary people" .