Ex Chronicle reporter pens hit book
A football writer from Shrewsbury has changed sports in a bid to bring the criminal arm-wrestle of post-war Germany alive in his stunning debut novel.
Neil Sambrook was a sports journalist for the Shrewsbury Chronicle in the late 1980s and early 90s.
During his time in the newsroom he also penned a couple of local football books.
But the 56-year- old has turned to a celebrated cricketer for his brilliantly-observed historical thriller, Monty’s Double.
Neil said: “Monty’s Double is set in the British Occupation Zone of Germany in 1945 and former County cricketer Montgomery ‘Monty’ Bossitor finds himself tasked with selling off British Army surplus equipment.
“‘Monty has reached the end of World War Two with a number of loose ends in his life. He has spent most of his adult life travelling either to play sport or work after his cricket career ended, his love for the sister of his best friend has been unrequited, his step-brother has been killed in the war and his sister-in- law and young nephew have moved to San Francisco to start a new life
“Tempted by offers from the criminal fraternity to sell the goods as scrap Monty makes a fortune - but in supplying one gang double-crosses another and finds he has the underworld, an assassin and Scotland Yard on his tail.”
As well as soaring into the top ten of Amazon’s highly-competitive Historical Fiction charts, Monty’s Double has received rave five-star reader reviews.
The book has been described as ‘top class’ and ‘a really good read’ by readers as well as having ‘great attention to historical accuracy’.
Although a fascination with history from a young age eventually led to Monty’s Double, it was the music of the 1970s first inspired Neil to pick up the pen.
He added: “During my teens I remember writing, merely for my own pleasure, page after page about The Who, Bruce Springsteen and The Clash.
“For me the incentive to start writing came from reading great articles in publications like the New Musical Express and Rolling Stone.”
As well as writing novels, the father-of- three still regularly blogs and continues to work as a freelance film and sports reporter.
Neil is currently at the plotting stage of a sequel for Monty’s Double.
For more details, visit Amazon and search for Neil Sambrook, where the Kindle format of Monty’s Double is available.
