What do you think?
Rate this book
Friendly fire
Journalist Erin Florian returns home from Europe seeking silence and solitude, only to be sucked into a whirlwind of passion, political intrigue and sudden death on the windy streets. FRIENDLY FIRE is an incandescent novel.
In this stylish, fast-paced thriller the author of the best-selling MUSEUM STREET writes of teh dangerous world of MMP politics... fills his capital with a cast that is evil, brutal, ruthless, funny and lethal... and gives us a 'behind the bullet-proof doors' insight into the shadowy world of New Zealand's secret services and the sinister power they wield over our political mistresses and masters."
In this stylish, fast-paced thriller the author of the best-selling MUSEUM STREET writes of teh dangerous world of MMP politics... fills his capital with a cast that is evil, brutal, ruthless, funny and lethal... and gives us a 'behind the bullet-proof doors' insight into the shadowy world of New Zealand's secret services and the sinister power they wield over our political mistresses and masters."
358 pages, Paperback
First published August 3, 1998
7 people want to read
About the author
Michael Wall
80 books19 followersMichael Wall is a former Chief Press Secretary for the New Zealand Government. He has also worked in the Office of the Prime Minister, under the administration of Sir Robert Muldoon.
He now lives at Te Ore Ore in the Wairarapa where he writes and breeds sports horses. He has written a series of thriller novels, including Museum Street, Friendly Fire, The Cassino Legacy, The Temptations of Frederick Weld, and Cardinal Sins.
He has also written other books, including the non-fiction book Wairarapa: A Place Apart
He now lives at Te Ore Ore in the Wairarapa where he writes and breeds sports horses. He has written a series of thriller novels, including Museum Street, Friendly Fire, The Cassino Legacy, The Temptations of Frederick Weld, and Cardinal Sins.
He has also written other books, including the non-fiction book Wairarapa: A Place Apart
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 of 1 review
June 14, 2015
A terrific locally-set political thriller well worth digging out (it's out of print but can be found at secondhand bookstores and online).
Renowned expat journalist Erin Florian returns to Wellington from Europe to become Press Secretary for the new Prime Minister, after finding her French husband in bed with someone else. She quickly finds herself caught up in the political world, including plenty of intrigue caused by the new MMP system, and the Government’s junior partner undergoing a leadership coup.
When the new leader starts making outrageous demands, Erin has to dampen media speculation that the Government is coming apart at the seams. But why is the new leader so sure that Erin’s boss will eventually succumb to what seems like a poisoned chalice? Erin witnesses a killing, which is covered up, then finds herself under scrutiny from the secretive SIS, and the lesser-known but even more powerful and dangerous GSCB. More deaths, hidden conspiracies, and the country nears the brink of political and economic meltdown.
Before he became a novelist, Wall was himself a Press Secretary for a New Zealand Prime Minister (Jim Bolger in the early 1990s), and he certainly brings all that experience and inside knowledge to bear in what is a fantastic thriller, full of twists, intrigue, interesting characters, and more. Global economics, the Waihopai base and intelligence services, international relations, and the place of the media are all issues canvassed in FRIENDLY FIRE, woven into a cracking plot that keeps the pages whirring.
The best political thriller I’ve read in years, set right here in New Zealand.
Renowned expat journalist Erin Florian returns to Wellington from Europe to become Press Secretary for the new Prime Minister, after finding her French husband in bed with someone else. She quickly finds herself caught up in the political world, including plenty of intrigue caused by the new MMP system, and the Government’s junior partner undergoing a leadership coup.
When the new leader starts making outrageous demands, Erin has to dampen media speculation that the Government is coming apart at the seams. But why is the new leader so sure that Erin’s boss will eventually succumb to what seems like a poisoned chalice? Erin witnesses a killing, which is covered up, then finds herself under scrutiny from the secretive SIS, and the lesser-known but even more powerful and dangerous GSCB. More deaths, hidden conspiracies, and the country nears the brink of political and economic meltdown.
Before he became a novelist, Wall was himself a Press Secretary for a New Zealand Prime Minister (Jim Bolger in the early 1990s), and he certainly brings all that experience and inside knowledge to bear in what is a fantastic thriller, full of twists, intrigue, interesting characters, and more. Global economics, the Waihopai base and intelligence services, international relations, and the place of the media are all issues canvassed in FRIENDLY FIRE, woven into a cracking plot that keeps the pages whirring.
The best political thriller I’ve read in years, set right here in New Zealand.
Displaying 1 of 1 review