Cause & Effect

Thomas Bladen #3

by Derek Thompson

A random attack on a child and a clinical assassination thrust Thomas Bladen into a dark conspiracy
Thomas Bladen works in surveillance for a shadowy unit of the British government. But just when he thought things had settled down, his girlfriend Miranda’s father calls in a favour. Thomas must investigate an attack on the loved one of a drug dealer. As he delves deeper, he finds out the truth about Miranda’s past and his investigation takes him to the heart of the shadow state and endangers everyone Thomas cares about.

Can a good man survive in a very bad world and who can Thomas really trust now?

Genres: Mystery

253 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 1, 2018

About the author

Derek is a British author of novels and short fiction.

The Complete Thomas Bladen Spy Thrillers boxset, published by Joffe Books, comprises: STANDPOINT, LINE OF SIGHT, CAUSE & EFFECT, SHADOW STATE, and FLASHPOINT.

Book 6, PATHFINDER, is by Sixpence Publishing.

DS Wild Crime Mysteries published by Joffe Books:
1. LONG SHADOWS
2. WEST COUNTRY MURDER
3. *** Available in April 2026 ***

INTO THE VOID is a collection of short fiction by Sixpence Publishing.

Reviews

THOMAS BLADEN SPY THRILLERS
"Realistic rather than glitzy. This story did not disappoint with its gritty detail and credible characters. Kept me hooked right to the end. Great writing!" VC

DS WILD CRIME MYSTERIES
"...Slid down like a beer at the end of a hard day... engaging and entertaining story that kept me in suspense. A good balance of male & female characters, well written and believable." Helenmx5

Reviews

[Derek · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm the author!

[Erika · Rating 3 out of 5]

***Note: Book provided by publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review***


I had a pretty hard time finishing the book but I did it! I guess the manner of speaking was difficult for me to follow so I missed a lot of the dialogue. I feel that the book dragged a bit and had to many moving pieces. Also, I feel the author should had done a better job at giving the reader more of a background story. There were pieces thrown out that seemed to have happened on a previous book but yet they were not explained so I felt like I was missing the full picture. I couldn’t grasp the conflict between Miranda and Thomas’ parents, I did not know why Thomas was so loyal to Ken, I didn’t understand the relationship between Thomas and Miranda’s parents. Definitely more information was required.

All in all it was a complicated read for me that I was unable to relate to or enjoy.

[Richard Matty · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this after the first two and feel that you need to follow the sequence if you are to understand the character and his way of thinking. If you just pick this up having not read the first two, then you could easy be lost. Much of what needs to be explained is found in the first two and this is a neat follow on in the same spy genre. It does show how a career changes over time, one time it's watching the docks, then looking at suspicious army types. I understand from Joffe Books that another of Bladen's adventures is expected.

[Gary Van Cott · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good book. The main character is often somewhat confused about what is really going on. I gather that that the author wants the reader to feel that way as well, so somethings are never completely explained.

[LILLIAN C. KNOCKE · Rating 2 out of 5]

Slow read

Long round about, difficult to follow. I stuck through it to the end. No real spark of interest for me

[Caz Jones · Rating 1 out of 5]

Crap, certainly not "unputdownable". Characters were not memorable at all. The ending was just naff. Don't bother reading, I only finished it coz I don't like to start books and not finish them.

[Maxine M. Cenker · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not as good as I expected

Too many characters. And hard to understand. Just forced myself to finish it. It definitely was not a thriller for me,