An international thriller featuring a female journalist who stumbles upon a dark conspiracy, and her determination to follow the clues, no matter how far that takes her.Casey Benedict, star reporter at the Post, has infiltrated the lives and exposed the lies of countless politicians and power players. Using her network of contacts, and her ability to slip into whatever identity suits the … whatever identity suits the situation, Casey is always on the search for the next big story, no matter how much danger this might place her in, or what the cost might be, emotionally.
Tipped off by an overheard conversation at an exclusive London nightclub, she begins to investigate the apparent suicide of a wealthy young British man whose death has left his fiancée and family devastated. The young man’s death, however, is only the tipping point of a much more sinister and dangerous scandal involving the world’s most powerful leaders and magnates—men who are gathering in northern Africa for an extreme and secret hunt. With fellow reporter Miranda and combat veteran Ed by her side, Casey’s determined hunt for the truth will take her from the glitz of St. Tropez to the deserts of Libya and on to the very darkest corners of the human mind.
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A globe-trotting tale of investigative journalism that crackles with the energy of peak James Ellroy.
4.5s!
Okay, I’ve decided I’m not going to write a description of this novel because you can just read that in the blurb on goodreads or amazon etc. I’m going to stick to what I thought about it, because that’s why we read reviews, right? But, just in case you haven’t read the blurb, I’ll just say this real quick.. the story revolves around a couple of British journalists who are determined to break a story involving refugee camps that are worlds away from their safe, beautiful homes and they will do ANYTHING to get it…
So, I thoroughly enjoyed this novel, the story was a fast-paced political thriller; one of those that you say ‘just one more chapter’ and 15 chapters later, when your eyes feel like sandpaper, you are still telling yourself that.
This was quite a terrifying read, as it was so very realistic and I could absolutely see something similar happening in real life. In the West we have a bad habit of turning a blind eye to ugly things that are going on across the world. Refugee camps that are filled with thousands of terrified & exhausted people, are dotted all over the place and yet we rarely hear about them. So it’s quite easy to imagine terrible things happening in them that just magically disappear.
This story also brings to mind one of the first questions from your philosophy 101 class: “if you had the chance to save just one person but in doing so know others will die, what do you do?” That may sound simple enough to answer, but could you truly stand back and watch someone die, knowing you could have saved them?
This book was so thought provoking , horrifying and disturbing. The author’s career as a journalist brings a rare sense of authenticity to the story. You can easily picture every setting she describes. From the ever expanding, beautiful (but desolate) sand dunes of the Sahara in Libya, to the sprawling Thames flowing under Lambeth Bridge in London. She touches on some of the most desperate of humanitarian crises happening right now and teaches us some of the history that has caused them. I learned so much in these jam packed 386 pages. While this is Holly Watt’s first novel, I certainly hope it will not be her last! I was lucky enough to have won this book in a giveaway.
I don’t normally read thrillers – especially just before bed – because they’re too exciting and keep me awake at night. But I’ll happily make an exception in the future for anything written by Holly Watt. ‘To the Lions’ is pure adrenaline with an unspeakably dark crime at its centre. Written with punchy and distinctive prose that can evoke the heat, smell and horror of murder in a Libyan desert with a single word, it is tightly plotted, frighteningly plausible and packed with insider knowledge about investigative journalism.
Loved this book!
An old-fashioned slap-up adventure that spans Europe and North Africa in a propulsive tale of a reporter determined to track down a story about the hunting of helpless human beings by wealthy people seeking the thrill of a human kill. A great story that is wonderfully written. Highly recommended.
To The Lions is a debut novel by Holly Watt, who is a UK based investigative reporter who has written for The Sunday Times, The Telegraph, and The Guardian.
The story is about Casey Benedict, a star reporter for The Post who is looking for the best story in a dog eat dog and cutthroat world of journalism, where you are only as good as your last story. She overhears about a recent scandal and a game being played by the uber wealthy on unsuspecting refugees in Libya. She partners with a fellow reporter Miranda and combat veteran Ed by her side following the story from the UK to St. Tropez to Libya.
The book could only be told with so much grit and gore of the subject matter based on the writer’s experience first hand when she was in Libya reporting, and have experienced first hand government uprisings and corporate greed and disloyalty for money, greed and power. The story is very suspenseful and thrilling. The writing has a lot of elements that are terrifying, heartbreaking, dark and chilling. However, I found it thought provoking and still shocking. I love that there are two strong female protagonist that would do whatever it takes to expose how people with money and privilege can use and abuse their power.
I think that Holly Watt was able to accomplish what she wanted to throw To The Lions in this gripping tale of terrifying proportions I recommend this book for fans of political thrillers and strong female characters.
Thank you for the ecopy provided in exchange for unsolicited and objective review of this book.
This amazing debut is my favorite book of 2019. So far.
The story is so gripping, the writing so razor-sharp that the compulsion to read is undeniable.
Holly Watt uses her knowledge of investigative journalism to infuse the tale with fascinating information on the techniques used in going undercover for a story and what it’s like to be there.
It’s brilliant.
Casey Benedict is a star reporter for the London Post.
One night, in a club, she overhears on conversation that will lead her to one of the most harrowing stories of her career.
It will lead her to the hills above a refugee camp in Lybia, where she witnesses something so horrific and shocking that her life, and others, will be in danger.
But she must get this story out. She MUST.
This international thriller is as exciting as it gets. There is a particular chase scene through some caves that will leave absolutely breatless and gnawing your nails.
The whole book is great. Sociologically timely and reaching into the dark corners of the human mind and soul, I couldn’t put it down.
I like how the ending doesn’t tie everything up in a nice little bow…just like in real life, things aren’t always that simple.
This deserves to be a bestseller and then a major film.
Well done, Ms. Watt!
Tightly plotted, frighteningly plausible and packed with insider-knowledge, To the Lions is an astonishing debut. Holly Watt has written something really special.
An amazing book … Completely riveting … A breath-holding roller coaster of a read, which opens doors and windows into the way the world is that are genuinely shocking.
Sensational! I loved it. Superbly plotted… A sure hit.
Casey is a reporter for the Post in the UK, and in the midst of her undercover work, she catches a tip, people are hunting humans. Surely that can’t be what is going on, but worse things have happened in the history of humans. With the help of Miranda, another reporter that she works closely with, they set out to uncover what exactly is going on and how they can bring it to light for the world.
Watt covers quite a few things in To The Lions, including the refugee crisis, human smuggling, the starvation, the extent of sexual assault, and the suffering people endured under Gadaffi. I also think, whether intentional or not, she exposes some of the filth that is the world of reporting, the lengths people will go to “get the story”, and Ed’s character does a great job at sharing the feelings of the distaste at the fact the line is always moving, the lengths and risk always growing bigger.
The book had a bit of a slow start for me, there was a lot of groundwork to get the story in place and we were thrown a lot of characters at once. But once the story picked up, it turned fast-paced, and you found yourself anxiously turning pages. Casey and Miranda were exceptionally strong characters and this was very well-written. Nicely done.