A young boxer, ready for the fight of his life. A murderous crime syndicate, wanting a piece of him. An ex-cop and his family, putting their lives on the line to save their own.When Terry Hawkins gets a shot at the British welterweight title his whole family and community are electrified – until a powerful crime syndicate moves in and starts calling the shots.Terry finds himself threatened and … himself threatened and alone, but can tell his family nothing if he is to keep them alive. As the fight draws near, the thugs up the stakes and take control. But they have underestimated the rage and resilience of the boxer’s uncle, ex-London copper Harry ‘H’ Hawkins. As Terry buckles under the pressure and the storm clouds gather, H gets on the front foot.
But time is short – can H identify and track down the men responsible for the terror and destruction raining down on his family before his loved ones start to die? And can he juggle this with the impending death of his father, his struggle with an old adversary aiming to bring him to public disgrace and imprisonment, and his attempt to give his nephew a fighting chance of coming through in one piece?
If you like Connelly’s Harry Bosch, McNab’s Nick Stone or Martina Cole’s family crime dramas you should join Harry Hawkins on this gritty and addictive rollercoaster ride through the dark and bloody underbelly of criminal London.
TRIGGER WARNING
The London Large books do not pull their punches, especially when it comes to the depiction of violence and use of strong language. If you require a trigger warning of any kind they are not for you.
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This book is a bit of a departure from the rest of the series as it is based entirely around the world of boxing and the criminal activity around fixing fights. In a way it is a shame that the police or private investigator work is missing, but for me the story is strong enough to justify the change in direction.
There are always two aspects of the ‘London Large’ series that can be relied on, and these are the characters, and then there is the action, and both of these are present in spades in this book. I particularly like ‘H’s family who are a real cross section of working class characters, and who (mostly) support each other.
Although this book is centred on boxing, I don’t think that it is essential to have a detailed knowledge of the sport to enjoy the book.
I received an advance copy of the book but this honest review was written voluntarily.
I don’t usually like sports books but this combination of noir PI procedural and boxing title bout is well-crafted, PG for violence, and requires a long weekend. I had an ARC and this voluntary review is my own opinion.
I fell in love with Harry Hawkins way back in his first couple of books. He was a London cop back then and I described him as Dirty Harry if he’d been born in London and grew up in the soccer stadiums of England. Over the years, I’ve followed him while he saved England and stopped a regicide, battled Russians, the London underworld, sexual preditors and crazy occultists, and survived a stint in an American prison on a trumpted up sex murder charge.
After all the edge of your seat drama, I wondered how this latest book would top all that. Telling you how it was done would be way too many spoilers for a book review, but trust me, the brothers Robson managed to do it in a big way.
In Undefeated, the whole Hawkins family gets involved, taking on old enemies and old ghosts, dealing with family honour and family tragedy. They made me laugh, made me cringe at the violence and cheer at the justice and before the last page, they even made me cry.
Undefeated is a great book, one that I will take pride of place beside the rest of the London Large novels and, if my guess is right, mark a turning point in the Hawkins family saga. I can’t wait to find out where the tale will go next.
The Undefeated #5 – I love this series and this is another well written part of H and the Hawkins family. While blending the past and present storylines into a hard to put down venture into H’s world, there are glimpses into his future.
Typical London Large characters that keep the reader involved with the gamut of emotions and actions faced by all. Ronnie and his cousins work on an old mystery concerning the death of and rumours about a great-uncle while H’s past dealings come to haunt him when pushed through by a typical young ‘Let’s clean up the present dirty police by punishing past suspected dirty police’ minded, fame seeking policewoman. Kind of the present day mentality of let’s kill all the cattle since they have flatulence. Yep, you know where that storyline is heading.
This review is too easy to turn into a book report. It is easy to get excited about the indepth, multiple layers in the London Large tapestry and the subtleties each book brings to the series. Sadly, the authors are following the disrespectful editing guidelines of using lowercase for proper and family names, which is ironic since family is so important to H and old school South London. I contacted the authors to review their books. 5*
London Large, Blood on the Streets #1 – A well written, action filled, suspense novel set in present day London. The multiple battles of old school vs. new police, Russian and Albanian mafias, and the elites of government. The pace is fast and the reader is intrigued by what is on the pages. I couldn’t put the book down. I contacted the authors to review their books after reading Tipping Point, the intro of the old school raising of several of the major characters. Tipping Point should be read first, if possible. 5*
London Large, Bound by Blood #2 – A well written, action filled, suspense novel set, in present day London, that picks up from Blood on the Streets a few months later with the same characters plus. The prime focus is still the continuing battle against the Albanian mafia. I couldn’t put this book down any more than I did the first book. I contacted the authors to review their books after reading Tipping Point, the intro the old school raising of several of the major characters. Tipping Point should be read first, if possible. 5*
London Large, Bloody Liberties #3- Blood and thunder, to borrow a British phrase. A well written, action packed, suspense filled novel that grabs the reader by the throat and doesn’t let go until the end. Then you think about what you’ve read. I couldn’t put the book down; I was immersed in the horror that is so possible today. Good old fashion soldiering, new technology and human perseverance; the combination making a great read. The twisting plot was well thought out and believable; the dialog realistic; and the technology spot on. If you haven’t read the prequel and the first two books, you need to do so. Liberties can be read without them, but they enhance the story and you understand the viewpoints of the characters better. 5*
London Large, American Lockdown #4 – Absolutely the best of this good series. Fast paced; action packed; suspense filled; evil and deadly. It’s even harder to put this book down, the others were difficult to stop reading, but this one makes the others look like child’s play. Every character is well developed and we have the gang from previous books. The plot is a roller coaster ride of horror, hate, revenge, anger and love. Full of emotions: simmering to full blown; you name it, it’s covered. How much can H take? I wonder what the next book will be since it will be difficult to top this one, but I’m sure the Robson Brothers can handle it. This is a 10 star book! 5*
London Large, Tipping Point, Prequel- Must read Tipping Point first before LL Blood on the Streets. The introduction of the old school raising of several of the major characters of the London Large series. This intro clarify any confusion the reader may experience in LL, Blood on the Streets. 5*
Sharp and Short: A collection of shorts about Harry ‘H’ Hawkins, which should be read, in the sequential order of time, before and during the London Large series, especially Tipping Point. Tipping Point will explain a lot about the type of man he is and how he became Harry of the London Large series. Also, there’s some information in this book that is mentioned in the first book and causes confusion for the reader that hadn’t read TP. The other books have background about how H develops his feelings, good and bad, of the people, good and bad, in his life and work. Also, his mates are featured. Good background stories. 5* Home Front – November, 2003. Age 45. Harry’s reaction to a string of violated, murdered young girls and health scare and his marriage. Counter Punch – October, 1984; February, 1985. While still in the army, H handles an extended family problem against a crime lord, with an American GI by H’s side. On Tour – 1978. Nineteen year-old H, Shy Nervous John and Ronnie as part of the Anglers Athletic under-21s on tour in Amsterdam and Hamburg. Their first time out of England. That’s Life – November, 1995. Little Ronnie is born and H lives his code about his friends, his “own”. Unsafe Space – November 2017. As a private investigator, a case leads him to a university where the students are brainwashed by their professor into destruction and hatred. Tipping Point – January, 1974. Prequel – Must read Tipping Point first before LL Blood on the Streets. The introduction of the old school raising of several of the major characters of the London Large series. This intro clarify any confusion the reader may experience in LL, Blood on the Streets. Sharp and Short: End
I enjoyed this book. I was on the edge of my seat throughout the book. I kept wondering what else could go wrong for this family? There were so many bad things happening and it seemed unlikely that Harry could solve these problems. But things really did work out in an amazing way. The author does a great job as usual and it is one of the best books he has written so far!! I am impressed!