'There's a thought that keeps me awake at night; I have to be lucky every time, they only have to get lucky once.'David Blake is a worried man. He should be enjoying the high life now he's Newcastle's'Top Boy', the man who controls everything in the city that's worth controlling. The money keeps on rolling in and Blake is sharing his life with the girl that he loves, Sarah Mahoney. Shame he had to murder her father to save his own skin but at least she doesn't know anything about that.Blake never wanted to be boss but who else is savvy enough to deal with all of the firm's problems? Newly-crowned Glasgow crime lord, Alan Gladwell, wants to do business with the firm and the deal makes sense but can Blake really trust the man whose brother he brutally murdered?Then one of his men takes two bullets in the back and someone tries to take Blake out. As he struggles to stay in control, Blake is in a race against time to find his potential assassin and discover the truth in'The Damage'.

Howard Linskey is the author of five novels published by No Exit Press, including the David Blake crime series, The Drop, The Damage and The Dead. Harry Potter producer, David Barron optioned a TV adaptation of The Drop, which was voted one of the Top Five Thrillers of the Year by The Times. The Damage was voted one of The Times' Top Summer Reads. He is also the author of two books set during WW2. Hunting the Hangman, is a historical thriller about the assassination of Reinhard Heydrich in Prague during WW2. His new novel Ungentlemanly Warfare features SOE agents Harry Walsh and Emma Stirling, as well as American OSS agent Sam Cooper. Howard is also the author of four books published by Penguin; including No Name Lane, Behind Dead Eyes, The Search and The Chosen Ones in a crime series set inthe north east of England, featuring DS Ian Bradshaw, with investigative journalists Tom Carney and Helen Norton. Originally from Ferryhill in County Durham, he now lives in Hertfordshire with his wife Alison and daughter Erin. howardlinskey.co.uk