House of Cards is the internet sensation du jour. Streaming exclusively via Netflix, this political drama series is being credited for revolutionising the way we watch television - without, for example, a television. This may be a bridge too far. But the political satire, starring a wonderfully oleaginous Kevin Spacey, had me downloading Michael Dobbs' original 1989 novel. Also adapted into a successful series by the BBC, Dobbs' story follows the Machiavellian schemes of Francis Urquhart. On the page, he is a chain-smoking, foul-mouthed political schemer who pursues his ambition to be prime minister by disposing of the competition. Having spent a career behind the scenes as Chief Whip (the party enforcer), he puts his understanding of politicians' sins and peccadilloes to dastardly use. In this he is aided by young female journalist Mattie Storin, whose ambition he manipulates. This is a slightly clunky, but intensely entertaining page-turner about spin and the media that has aged well over the years.
foreword by Michael Dobbs.
