This novel is out there, and reviewing favorably. It comes in two parts,
Nest of Rakes
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Nest-Rakes-Daniel-Doherty/dp/1
Rakes Resurgent
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Rakes-Resurgent-Daniel-Doherty/dp/1694751686/ref=sr_1_10?key
Drakes Progress
or as a Compendium
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Rakes-Compendium-Daniel-Doherty/dp/1
The third book in the trilogy, Rake Rides Out, is a work in Progress.
reviewers have said kind things, including
Linda Long. A really funny page-turner.
Initially, I thought this was just going to be a book about self-absorbed middle-class white people -yawn- but, yes it was so funny and a real page-turner. Set in the world of coaching but could be any one of a thousand industries. Don’t, for goodness sake read it on the Underground. You know your fellow passengers hate people snorting with laughter first thing in the morning.
Greg Stone: Biting Satire.
Daniel Doherty applies his trenchant wit and inventive mind to the executive coaching industry and the result is a clever novel that pulls you into its vortex. The dialogue is sharp and the plot is compelling. A very good read.
Christine Eastman: Achingly funny and spot on accurate.
This novel is achingly funny and all of it is spot-on accurate, especially the menacing corporate politics that pervade many scenes. The dialogue is sparking – it is a strength. The scenes come thick and fast, some of it reminding me of Kingsley Amis and some of The Circle.
Chris Mabey: cracking humour, the dialogues work a treat
Humorous without dodging real darkness, multi-vocal in an authentic way, clever without being self-indulgent, finding originality in the ordinary. I have to say it engaged me throughout. I actually found myself ‘seeing’ it as a semi-satirical TV series.’
Susi Lennox: Original and Accomplished.
The sense of place is vividly realised and Bristol and its environs provide a credible and colourful setting for the action.
Whimsical, witty, sparkling with ideas and invention, engaging characters, unexpected plot twists, delicious prose and an ingenious episodic structure, Nest of Rakes evokes David Lodge meets Kingsley Amis, via Miles Kingston.
A Draft Chapter from Nest of Rakes