Lightning strikes for 'thrilling' sequel to Macqueen's Beneath the Streets

Lightning Books has snapped up the "thrilling" sequel to Adam Macqueen’s Polari-longlisted Beneath the Streets (Lightning).

Dan Hiscocks, publisher, acquired world rights in all languages to The Enemy Within from David Smith at The Annette Green Authors’ Agency. The book will publish in February 2022. 

The story centres on the bombing of the Grand Hotel in Brighton in 1984 and features real-life characters including Margaret Thatcher, Derek Jarman and a young Jeremy Corbyn.

The synopsis says: "Macqueen’s hero Tommy Wildeblood has put his days as a Piccadilly rent boy and scandal-hunting sleuth behind him, to study at the radical Polytechnic of North London. During a pitched battle against National Front infiltrators at the Poly, Tommy meets handsome young Irishman Liam and embarks on a relationship. But is it too good to be true? Liam’s abrupt disappearance prompts Tommy to question how much he knows about his new lover.

"His hunt for Liam takes him into the dark and violent netherworld of radical politics. As his search moves to an explosive climax, he finds himself in danger of carrying the can for one of the most shocking events of the decade. With the twin spectres of Aids and nuclear armageddon never far away, The Enemy Within is a gritty thriller built around a story of love in terrifying times."

Simon Edge, senior editor, said: "In his first novel, Adam Macqueen did the Seventies to a tee. He now pulls off the same trick with the mid-Eighties, perfectly capturing the spirit of the anti-Thatcher left as well as the horrors faced by gay men in the early days of Aids. It packs a powerful emotional punch while also being a thrilling page-turner. We’re confident it will be every bit as successful as Beneath the Streets, which struck such a chord with critics and readers alike."