Divorcing Jack

Colin Bateman's debut won the Betty Trask Prize, and it is easy to see why — the Belfast setting during the peace process era is vivid and specific, and Dan Starkey's sardonic journalist voice drives the narrative at pace. The dark comedy somehow makes the political violence feel both harrowing and absurdly funny, which is a hard needle to thread. The mystery at the center, involving a compromising tape about a prime ministerial candidate, is tightly constructed. Content-wise, this one needs a clear flag: heavy drinking, marital infidelity as a plot trigger, extensive profanity, and graphic violence throughout. The protagonist's adultery is not incidental — it launches the whole story. For adults who enjoy British Isles crime fiction and can handle the darkness, it is a sharp and memorable read. Not for faith-sensitive or family audiences.