Blitz

September, 1940. Three women of the Checquy, the secret organization tasked with protecting Britain from supernatural threats, stand in the sky above London and see German aircraft approach. Forbidden by law to interfere, all they can do is watch as their city is bombed. Until Pamela, the most sensible of them, breaks all the rules and brings down a Nazi bomber with her bare hands. The three resolve to tell no one about it, but they soon learn that a crew member is missing from the downed bomber. Charred corpses are discovered in nearby houses and it becomes apparent that the women have unwittingly unleashed a monster. Through a city torn by the Blitz, the friends must hunt the enemy before he kills again. Their task will take them from the tunnels of the Underground to the halls of power, where they will discover the secrets that a secret organization must keep even from itself. Today. Lynette Binns, a librarian with a husband and child, is a late recruit to the Checquy, having discovered only as an adult her ability to electrify everyday objects with her touch. After completing her training, she is assigned to examine a string of brutal murders and quickly realizes that all bear the unmistakable hallmark of her own unique power. Unable to provide an alibi and determined to prove her innocence, she flees, venturing into the London underworld to find answers. But now she is prey, being tracked by her own frighteningly capable comrades. As Lyn fights off powered thugs and her own vengeful colleagues, she will find that the solution to the murders and to the mystery of her own past lies in the events of World War II, and the covert actions of three young women during the Blitz. An epic, smart and funny mystery spanning two generations, Blitz is the long-awaited third instalment in Daniel O'Malley's acclaimed Checquy Files series, available in the UK for the first time.

'Elms is one of the greatest chroniclers of our age. He was born to write this book.' Dylan Jones 'Fantastic! It is like time travel . . . [to] the most exciting, innovative, outrageous, wildest, most creative club ever.' Steve Dagger 'Elms was not only in the room where it happened, he was at the very heart of it.' Gary Kemp 'The perfect witness and commentator: open-minded, outward looking, and an expert and shrewd cultural analyst.' Lavinia Greenlaw 'Sharp, funny and caked in two-day old eyeliner.' Jodie Harsh A history of the club that set the '80s alight, by the much-loved presenter, writer and Blitz attendee Robert Elms. The short-lived Blitz club in London's Covent Garden was more than somewhere to hang out or be seen: it was a catalyst for cultural explosion, a counter-culture blast against everything Thatcher's leadership had ushered in by the dawn of the 80s. Tuesday nights boasted a ferocious, fearless cast - from Boy George and Spandau Ballet to Grayson Perry and Peter Doig, to Michele Clapton, Sade and John Galliano. This was the vanguard of a different England; socially liberal, loud, proud and diverse, fiercely individualistic and determined to succeed. Britain was black and white; the Blitz Kids switched on the colour. In Blitz , Elms reflects on a club night founded by working-class kids, one whose impact reverberated beyond its doors, through the worlds of Art, Literature, Fashion and Music, and into the present day.

September, 1940. Three women of the Checquy, the secret organization tasked with protecting Britain from supernatural threats, stand in the sky above London and see German aircraft approach. Forbidden by law to interfere, all they can do is watch as their city is bombed. Until Pamela, the most sensible of them, breaks all the rules and brings down a Nazi bomber with her bare hands. The three resolve to tell no one about it, but they soon learn that a crew member is missing from the downed bomber. Charred corpses are discovered in nearby houses and it becomes apparent that the women have unwittingly unleashed a monster. Through a city torn by the Blitz, the friends must hunt the enemy before he kills again. Their task will take them from the tunnels of the Underground to the halls of power, where they will discover the secrets that a secret organization must keep even from itself. Today. Lynette Binns, a librarian with a husband and child, is a late recruit to the Checquy, having discovered only as an adult her ability to electrify everyday objects with her touch. After completing her training, she is assigned to examine a string of brutal murders and quickly realizes that all bear the unmistakable hallmark of her own unique power. Unable to provide an alibi and determined to prove her innocence, she flees, venturing into the London underworld to find answers. But now she is prey, being tracked by her own frighteningly capable comrades. As Lyn fights off powered thugs and her own vengeful colleagues, she will find that the solution to the murders and to the mystery of her own past lies in the events of World War II, and the covert actions of three young women during the Blitz. An epic, smart and funny mystery spanning two generations, Blitz is the long-awaited third instalment in Daniel O'Malley's acclaimed Checquy Files series, available in the UK for the first time.

A coach. A student. The rules were concrete. We broke them anyway. The night I met Toren Greely was the night I learned how to lie. He was a Treasure State football coach. I was the star of the volleyball team. Coaches and students were forbidden. My future was on the line, so I told myself it was only one night. That was the first lie. They got easier to tell after that. The lines blurred. The boundaries shifted. Our relationship became a game of its own. A chaste smile. A knowing glance. A veiled touch or a hushed kiss. We hid in plain sight. We were invincible. Or so we thought. Neither of us saw the blitz coming until it was too late. Game over. The night I left Toren Greely was the night I learned how to lose.

A coach. A student. The rules were concrete. We broke them anyway. The night I met Toren Greely was the night I learned how to lie. He was a Treasure State football coach. I was the star of the volleyball team. Coaches and students were forbidden. My future was on the line, so I told myself it was only one night. That was the first lie. They got easier to tell after that. The lines blurred. The boundaries shifted. Our relationship became a game of its own. A chaste smile. A knowing glance. A veiled touch or a hushed kiss. We hid in plain sight. We were invincible. Or so we thought. Neither of us saw the blitz coming until it was too late. Game over. The night I left Toren Greely was the night I learned how to lose.

In this historical fantasy, a new recruit to the most powerful supernatural intelligence agency on Earth is accused of going rogue--and must go on the run to clear her name. September, 1940. Three women of the Checquy, the secret organization tasked with protecting Britain from supernatural threats, stand in the sky above London and see German aircraft approach. Forbidden by law to interfere, all they can do is watch as their city is bombed. Until Pamela, the most sensible of them, breaks all the rules and brings down a Nazi bomber with her bare hands. The three resolve to tell no one about it, but they soon learn that a crew member is missing from the downed bomber. Charred corpses are discovered in nearby houses and it becomes apparent that the women have unwittingly unleashed a monster. Through a city torn by the Blitz, the friends must hunt the enemy before he kills again. Their task will take them from the tunnels of the Underground to the halls of power, where they will discover the secrets that a secret organization must keep even from itself. Today. Lynette Binns, a librarian with a husband and child, is a late recruit to the Checquy, having discovered only as an adult her ability to electrify everyday objects with her touch. After completing her training, she is assigned to examine a string of brutal murders and quickly realizes that all bear the unmistakable hallmark of her own unique power. Unable to provide an alibi and determined to prove her innocence, she flees, venturing into the London underworld to find answers. But now she is prey, being tracked by her own frighteningly capable comrades. As Lyn fights off powered thugs and her own vengeful colleagues, she will find that the solution to the murders and to the mystery of her own past lies in the events of World War II, and the covert actions of three young women during the Blitz.

In this historical fantasy, a new recruit to the most powerful supernatural intelligence agency on Earth is accused of going rogue--and must go on the run to clear her name. September, 1940. Three women of the Checquy, the secret organization tasked with protecting Britain from supernatural threats, stand in the sky above London and see German aircraft approach. Forbidden by law to interfere, all they can do is watch as their city is bombed. Until Pamela, the most sensible of them, breaks all the rules and brings down a Nazi bomber with her bare hands. The three resolve to tell no one about it, but they soon learn that a crew member is missing from the downed bomber. Charred corpses are discovered in nearby houses and it becomes apparent that the women have unwittingly unleashed a monster. Through a city torn by the Blitz, the friends must hunt the enemy before he kills again. Their task will take them from the tunnels of the Underground to the halls of power, where they will discover the secrets that a secret organization must keep even from itself. Today. Lynette Binns, a librarian with a husband and child, is a late recruit to the Checquy, having discovered only as an adult her ability to electrify everyday objects with her touch. After completing her training, she is assigned to examine a string of brutal murders and quickly realizes that all bear the unmistakable hallmark of her own unique power. Unable to provide an alibi and determined to prove her innocence, she flees, venturing into the London underworld to find answers. But now she is prey, being tracked by her own frighteningly capable comrades. As Lyn fights off powered thugs and her own vengeful colleagues, she will find that the solution to the murders and to the mystery of her own past lies in the events of World War II, and the covert actions of three young women during the Blitz.

'Elms is one of the greatest chroniclers of our age. He was born to write this book.' Dylan Jones 'Fantastic! It is like time travel . . . [to] the most exciting, innovative, outrageous, wildest, most creative club ever.' Steve Dagger 'Elms was not only in the room where it happened, he was at the very heart of it.' Gary Kemp 'The perfect witness and commentator: open-minded, outward looking, and an expert and shrewd cultural analyst.' Lavinia Greenlaw 'Sharp, funny and caked in two-day old eyeliner.' Jodie Harsh A history of the club that set the '80s alight, by the much-loved presenter, writer and Blitz attendee Robert Elms. The short-lived Blitz club in London's Covent Garden was more than somewhere to hang out or be seen: it was a catalyst for cultural explosion, a counter-culture blast against everything Thatcher's leadership had ushered in by the dawn of the 80s. Tuesday nights boasted a ferocious, fearless cast - from Boy George and Spandau Ballet to Grayson Perry and Peter Doig, to Michele Clapton, Sade and John Galliano. This was the vanguard of a different England; socially liberal, loud, proud and diverse, fiercely individualistic and determined to succeed. Britain was black and white; the Blitz Kids switched on the colour. In Blitz , Elms reflects on a club night founded by working-class kids, one whose impact reverberated beyond its doors, through the worlds of Art, Literature, Fashion and Music, and into the present day.

'Elms is one of the greatest chroniclers of our age. He was born to write this book.' Dylan Jones 'Fantastic! It is like time travel . . . [to] the most exciting, innovative, outrageous, wildest, most creative club ever.' Steve Dagger 'Elms was not only in the room where it happened, he was at the very heart of it.' Gary Kemp 'The perfect witness and commentator: open-minded, outward looking, and an expert and shrewd cultural analyst.' Lavinia Greenlaw 'Sharp, funny and caked in two-day old eyeliner.' Jodie Harsh A history of the club that set the '80s alight, by the much-loved presenter, writer and Blitz attendee Robert Elms. The short-lived Blitz club in London's Covent Garden was more than somewhere to hang out or be seen: it was a catalyst for cultural explosion, a counter-culture blast against everything Thatcher's leadership had ushered in by the dawn of the 80s. Tuesday nights boasted a ferocious, fearless cast - from Boy George and Spandau Ballet to Grayson Perry and Peter Doig, to Michele Clapton, Sade and John Galliano. This was the vanguard of a different England; socially liberal, loud, proud and diverse, fiercely individualistic and determined to succeed. Britain was black and white; the Blitz Kids switched on the colour. In Blitz , Elms reflects on a club night founded by working-class kids, one whose impact reverberated beyond its doors, through the worlds of Art, Literature, Fashion and Music, and into the present day.