Thriller

The Sandpit

The Sandpit

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  • Create Date：2021-08-17 02:41:16
  • Update Date：2025-09-23
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Nicholas Shakespeare
  • ISBN：1529111846
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Summary

'A remarkable contemporary thriller。。。 A triumph' WILLIAM BOYD

A journalist becomes embroiled in a world of secrets and paranoia when a nuclear scientist goes missing。

When John Dyer returns to Oxford from Brazil with his young son， Leandro， he expects a quiet life。 His time living on the edge as a foreign correspondent is over。

But these rainy streets turn out to be just as treacherous as those he used to walk in Rio。 Leandro's schoolmates are the children of powerful people， and a chance conversation with another father， Iranian scientist Rustum Marvar， sets Dyer onto a truly dangerous path。

Then Marvar disappears。 Soon， sinister factions are circling， and become acutely interested in what Dyer knows about Marvar's world-changing discovery。。。

'An absorbing thriller with shades of John le Carré' Evening Standard

'Exciting。。。 A page-turner' Daily Telegraph

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Reviews

Simon Chapman ，

The first time I’ve read anything by this author。 There’s lots to appreciate in this， but in the end I didn’t enjoy it as much as I wanted to。 Some great characterisation， and contemporary themes， but in the end too much was left unresolved。 Occasional Brexit asides added nothing， and made the author， not the main character， appear obsessive。 I enjoyed his descriptions of Lancashire and the Trough of Bowland， （too little written about） and think I recognise the fishing Inn that may have inspired The first time I’ve read anything by this author。 There’s lots to appreciate in this， but in the end I didn’t enjoy it as much as I wanted to。 Some great characterisation， and contemporary themes， but in the end too much was left unresolved。 Occasional Brexit asides added nothing， and made the author， not the main character， appear obsessive。 I enjoyed his descriptions of Lancashire and the Trough of Bowland， （too little written about） and think I recognise the fishing Inn that may have inspired that。This is very well written but oddly unsatisfying。I will pick up the Dancer Upstairs （a long-ago prequel to this） if I find a copy。 。。。more

Anne Brown ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 It’s taken me longer to read this novel than usual。 I am in the strange position of admiring it， more than liking it and I’m not sure why。 John Dyer has returned to Oxford after many years abroad in Brazil。 He was the South American correspondent for a quality paper but a story came up which he felt he could not publish and it broke him as a journalist。 After his marriage ended too， Dyer has brought his eleven year old son， Leandro， back to his home， even back to his old prep school， the Phoenix It’s taken me longer to read this novel than usual。 I am in the strange position of admiring it， more than liking it and I’m not sure why。 John Dyer has returned to Oxford after many years abroad in Brazil。 He was the South American correspondent for a quality paper but a story came up which he felt he could not publish and it broke him as a journalist。 After his marriage ended too， Dyer has brought his eleven year old son， Leandro， back to his home， even back to his old prep school， the Phoenix。 Being home has triggered a lot of memories， especially of his brilliant childhood best friend who he has not seen for decades， Rougetel。 But time has moved on。 The British middle class classmates of Dyer’s day have morphed into the children of Russian oligarchs， French Canadian international financial traders， Chinese businessmen。 There’s only one person whom Dyer has any sort of meaningful conversation with and he’s the physicist father of Leandro’s best friend Samir。 He doesn’t fit either。 His name is Rustrum Marvar。 The backdrop to the novel is the worsening relationship between America and Iran。 Marvar is not a fan of the Iranian regime and tells Dyer his wife and baby daughter are being held at home as a guarantee of his good behaviour whilst abroad。 Dyer and Marvar only meet three times but their last meeting is monumental。 Marvar， considered a plodder by everyone， has had a moment of brilliance and has worked out the algorithm which solves the riddle of nuclear fusion。 He has even tested it works by conducting an experiment which he tried to cover up。 Now Marvar has a massive problem。 Nuclear fission could bring incredible good to the world or blow it up。 It is harnessing the power of the sun after all。 Who should he give his work to？ Should he destroy it instead？ What will happen to his wife and child if the Iranians suspect what he’s done？ Does anyone suspect？ Marvar is sure he’s being watched and the list of possible agencies is endless。 Everyone wants a piece of this pie。 Actually， that’s not true。 Everyone wants the pie for themselves。 Then Marvar disappears。 He collects his son early from a sleepover and he vanishes。 Dyer tries to find out what happened to him and fails。 Instead， he finds Marvar has left him with his algorithm…。 and his problems。 Soon Dyer is being watched， almost abducted， searched in the street。 He and Leandro are not safe His journalist training combined with his experiences in Brazil keep him one step ahead but what to do？ Dyer finds a unique solution。As well as a thriller， The Sandpit is a story about a man reconnecting with himself， his past and his future。 For too long he has been stuck but handling the whole Marvar conundrum gets his life started again。 Winter has turned to spring by the end of the book。I still can’t put my finger on what is holding me back。 There is sometimes a clunkiness in the writing for me; sometimes an awkward phrase， sometimes an idea awkwardly expressed。 Sometimes， to be fair， the writing is silky too。 I definitely had the most trouble with Book One and that’s maybe because I wasn’t sure where we were going。 Dyer seemed hard to get hold of。 Once I felt like I had a handle on him， things improved for me。 I think I may re-read this novel。 I believe it’s worth another try。 。。。more

ROBIN SAUNDERS ，

Disappointing。 Billed as an espionage type novel， it was plodding with a thin plot。 Some reviewer even likened him to Le Carre and Graham Greene。 His novel is poles apart from these two great writers， although there were episodes of good writing and the characters were believable。

Dennis McGarty ，

Described as shades of Le Carre really can't see that。This seemed a very thinly plotted novel that had a basic storyline which had the absolute smallest amount of plot development。 The characters were one dimensional and they seemed to hover around the hero whilst never actually doing very much。 The ending was telegraphed from miles away。The one good scene was the torture of the protagonists wife in Tehran I found this and the atmosphere created around that scene very gripping hence the 2 stars。 Described as shades of Le Carre really can't see that。This seemed a very thinly plotted novel that had a basic storyline which had the absolute smallest amount of plot development。 The characters were one dimensional and they seemed to hover around the hero whilst never actually doing very much。 The ending was telegraphed from miles away。The one good scene was the torture of the protagonists wife in Tehran I found this and the atmosphere created around that scene very gripping hence the 2 stars。 On the evidence of this novel I will not be rushing out to read anything further by this author 。。。more

Heather Boundy ，

I think I should have enjoyed this more than I did。。。。the characters were quite believable， but I found the plot a bit stodgy and uneven。 The intrigue didn't carry through properly for me。 A good， but not great， read。 I think I should have enjoyed this more than I did。。。。the characters were quite believable， but I found the plot a bit stodgy and uneven。 The intrigue didn't carry through properly for me。 A good， but not great， read。 。。。more

John ，

It is a long time since Nicolas Shakespeare wrote his two enjoyable novels set in Peru， so this new one was very welcome and is， very loosely， a follow-up to the second of the Peruvian stories。 Dyer， the protagonist， is faced with a terrible dilemma， although the reader has to be very patient to find out about it。 Reviewers have suggested that the first 100 pages of the book， setting the scene in Oxford and describing Dyer's background and why he is living there， are excessive， and I agree。 Once It is a long time since Nicolas Shakespeare wrote his two enjoyable novels set in Peru， so this new one was very welcome and is， very loosely， a follow-up to the second of the Peruvian stories。 Dyer， the protagonist， is faced with a terrible dilemma， although the reader has to be very patient to find out about it。 Reviewers have suggested that the first 100 pages of the book， setting the scene in Oxford and describing Dyer's background and why he is living there， are excessive， and I agree。 Once his new friend Rustum Marvar has revealed his secret and entrusted it to Dyer， the story really develops。 The reader might wish that the enjoyable plot had begun earlier and become even more complex， but there is a nice twist linking Dyer's past life as a schoolboy to the solution he finds for his dilemma。 Let's hope that， having broken his silence， Shakepeare continues to provide us with stimulating stories that span Europe and Latin America。 。。。more

Sarah Nosworthy ，

I’m not sure about this book - I wonder if I looked up Portuguese or the history and customs of Brazil， whether it’ve made more sense？ Or knew the streets of Oxford， to navigate the inane details of so many routes？ The premise of the book interested me but the execution was lost on me - maybe I’m too lowbrow to get it？

Annette Chidzey ，

This is the first book by Nicholas Shakespeare that I have read and it is another instance of my frustration with the rating system that does not allow for any assessment between 3 or 4 where I would like to place this book。Many parts were very gripping but a few were less engaging and seemed to complicate the narrative unnecessarily from my point of view。 Nevertheless， I am glad to have been able to read this account and certainly enjoyed it overall。

D Jackson ，

The underlying idea in this is quite interesting but， if it’s action you want， this was very slow to get going。 Shakespeare‘s writing leans heavily on the inclusion of thoughts and rumination of possible theories which I’m sure will appeal to many but， for me， these needed to be offset by more conclusions。Thank you to NetGalley and Vintage Books for this free copy in exchange for an honest review。

Alex Rogers ，

Interesting， well written contemporary spy/intelligence novel， but with a human edge and very well written。 Enjoyed his main character， and was thoroughly sucked in to the narrative - nice one。 I'll look for more of his books Interesting， well written contemporary spy/intelligence novel， but with a human edge and very well written。 Enjoyed his main character， and was thoroughly sucked in to the narrative - nice one。 I'll look for more of his books 。。。more

Eileen ，

The Sandpit by Nicholas ShakespeareRearing 4。2/5 A twisty thriller which had you gripped and slightly weary in almost equal parts but when it took off， it was truly gripping， which is why I rated it 4。2/5。 John Dyer a quondam reporter returns to England from Rio with his 11 year old son， Leandro。 Leandro’s mother， Nissa has moved on and has a family with her new husband。 Having been left an inheritance from his eccentric Aunt Vivienne， Dyer enrols Leandro in a private school， the Phoenix situate The Sandpit by Nicholas ShakespeareRearing 4。2/5 A twisty thriller which had you gripped and slightly weary in almost equal parts but when it took off， it was truly gripping， which is why I rated it 4。2/5。 John Dyer a quondam reporter returns to England from Rio with his 11 year old son， Leandro。 Leandro’s mother， Nissa has moved on and has a family with her new husband。 Having been left an inheritance from his eccentric Aunt Vivienne， Dyer enrols Leandro in a private school， the Phoenix situated in Oxford， where he was schooled。A number of the international parents make appearances usually around their sons football matches， including Rustin Marvar， an Iranian scientist who’s wife has remained in Iran with their baby daughter。 A friendship of sorts develop between Marvar and Dyer。 Nicholas Shakespeare has a way with words， “a bayoneting wind” and the throat of dawn” being my particular favourites。 I would have rated The Sandpit higher had it not been so detailed around the fly fishing although I have to say， in my opinion this would transfer brilliantly to the screen; including the menacing， the characters， the threats， the betrayals and the humour。Some first rate characters， very well portrayed。 Miranda， her mother and enigmatic Rougetel really stand out。 Also up there is the Tupi tribe。Really recommended， if you stay with it to its conclusion you won’t be disappointed。My thanks to Nicholas Shakespeare， Vintage Books/Penguin and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read The Sandpit。 In return I have given an unbiased and honest review。 。。。more

Kate Manning ，

I have to admit that I stuck to this book to the end because the story itself was quite good。 The jumping between tenses was terribly jarring though， and not masterfully done。 I am not sure what the rain was behind the style， but I will not be reading any more of this authors books。。。 And I will not be recommending it to anyone。

Gina ，

I loved this and could not put it down。 A beautifully written literary thriller set in Oxford。 Not necessarily my go-to genre， the plot， characterisation， contemporary context and moral undertow caught me from the first。 I was sorry to finish it。

Martin ，

A classic espionage thriller that is well written。For me I did find the ending somewhat pedestrian which slightly detracted from my enjoyment。

Stef Gibby ，

I expected a spy novel but instead found a novel that explores the human psyche and which has an interesting take on modern politics and the nuclear arms race （present day）， which definitely got me thinking。

Suzanne ，

I ordered this book after listening to a podcast where Shakespeare talked fondly and eloquently of his friend and mentor， the recently deceased Patrick Cornhill， better known as John Le Carré。 I was reminded of how much I had enjoyed Shakespeare’s biography of Bruce Chatwin。Although there are some hints of Le Carré in the plot with its intrigue and international cast， that is where the resemblance ends。 The suspense is never quite enough and the discovery on which the plot rests is implausible， I ordered this book after listening to a podcast where Shakespeare talked fondly and eloquently of his friend and mentor， the recently deceased Patrick Cornhill， better known as John Le Carré。 I was reminded of how much I had enjoyed Shakespeare’s biography of Bruce Chatwin。Although there are some hints of Le Carré in the plot with its intrigue and international cast， that is where the resemblance ends。 The suspense is never quite enough and the discovery on which the plot rests is implausible， as is the scope for the astounding finding to be reduced to an algorithm on a post-it。 The lead character， Dyer， strikes one as rather feeble and coincidences abound。 Particularly grating is the appearance of an old school friend， sleeping rough， who conveniently provides an answer to Dyer’s problem of passing on his knowledge。 I was also upset not to find out anything about where Rustum Marvar and his son disappear to。 A little too much is left to the reader to fill in。It is an easy read but occasionally the language overreaches as in “They came out of the throat of the dawn”， when Dyer is attacked in the early morning。 Overall， a disappointment。 。。。more

Jennifer ，

I’m a big fan of Len Deighton and John Le Carre - the spy novels of the cold war。 So I picked this up with anticipation。And it was okay。 Once I got my head around all the characters， I didn’t mind the story。 I found the protagonist to be a bit pedestrian and stolid but figured that was probably an accurate representation of a person researching the esoteric topics he was。

Mary Byrnes ，

An excellent story of spies ， espionage 。。 loved it ！！

Tim Armstrong ，

I so wanted to love this book， and there is plenty to love。 Clearly one is the writing which at times is simply beautiful。 But the plot was convoluted and confusing， or at least， to me it was。 Yes， it smacked of Le Carre， at times， but it never reached the heights of say a William Boyd， who was quoted on the back of the book！！But yes， it’s still damn good， but for me， more like a 3。5， but worthy of having a dip， in the sandpit， as it were。。。

Scott ，

setting the scene was very good but the finish could have delivered more

Jenny Veigel ，

When oh when am I going to get to the story？ Please tell me it's worth persevering。 Nothing like John le Carre - seriously storytelling in 2020 is like a long walk back in time。 When oh when am I going to get to the story？ Please tell me it's worth persevering。 Nothing like John le Carre - seriously storytelling in 2020 is like a long walk back in time。 。。。more

Ann Tonks ，

I'm torn over my response to this novel。 On the one hand there's an overly artificial set up based around the parents of students at a public school。 And there's a later set up which doesn't ring with any particular truth。 But at the heart is a man， a father， trying to good in a complex world。 And that did ring with truth。 I'm torn over my response to this novel。 On the one hand there's an overly artificial set up based around the parents of students at a public school。 And there's a later set up which doesn't ring with any particular truth。 But at the heart is a man， a father， trying to good in a complex world。 And that did ring with truth。 。。。more

Jane ，

What a plod。 Forced myself to read this。 Has no fire， vim or vigour。 I always say to my friends and colleagues there are too many good books in the world to force yourself to finish one your not enjoying！ I should learn to take my own advice！

Amanda ，

This was my first novel by Shakespeare， who I believe， is considered a truly excellent writer。It's also a spy thriller， which isn't a genre that I have read much of - in fact the last spy thriller I had in my hands I abandoned after 100 pages。I love a bit of a moral dilemma， which this novel has， and enjoyed the compelling plot， which romped along （mostly） at a good pace， and the writing， although a bit clunky in places， was great。I'd certainly give Shakespeare another run， and he appears to hav This was my first novel by Shakespeare， who I believe， is considered a truly excellent writer。It's also a spy thriller， which isn't a genre that I have read much of - in fact the last spy thriller I had in my hands I abandoned after 100 pages。I love a bit of a moral dilemma， which this novel has， and enjoyed the compelling plot， which romped along （mostly） at a good pace， and the writing， although a bit clunky in places， was great。I'd certainly give Shakespeare another run， and he appears to have quite a few to choose from。 。。。more

lyny ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 I ordered this after hearing a good interview with the author， where he talked about the fact that the setting and scenario was based in part on his experience as first a student then a parent at an elite prep school near Oxford， and the kinds of powerful parents and gossip that circulated as they watched their sons at sport。 In this book the central character， John Dyer， is an ex-journalist who has come back to the UK after a broken marriage in South America and living off （but fairly frugally） I ordered this after hearing a good interview with the author， where he talked about the fact that the setting and scenario was based in part on his experience as first a student then a parent at an elite prep school near Oxford， and the kinds of powerful parents and gossip that circulated as they watched their sons at sport。 In this book the central character， John Dyer， is an ex-journalist who has come back to the UK after a broken marriage in South America and living off （but fairly frugally） an unexpected inheritance while he decides what to do with the rest of his life。 He encounters a range of other parents， including a somewhat aggressive Russian oligarch， someone else who may be working for the CIA， and an Iranian， Marvar， whose son is as good at sport as Leandro， Dyer’s son， and they bond a little as their sons are being bullied by the son of the oligarch who is larger but less talented at sport。 Marvar is a physicist， and one day he is clearly distressed， and Dyer takes him home for a chat。 He says he has discovered the secret to eternal fusion – ie fusion that goes on creating more energy than is put into it， contradicting previously assumed laws of physics， and potentially throwing international energy markets into chaos， as well as promising enormous benefits to whichever country gets the formula。 The book then turns into something of a Le Carre type spy novel。 Marvar and his son disappear after giving the only copy of the formula to the trustworthy Dyer， who has also made his own notes following the evening when Marvar explained it all。 （Prior to Marvar’s disappearance there is a fairly horrible and graphic scene of the kind of torture Marvar imagines his wife and baby daughter are now suffering back in Iran， as hostage for him – it appears this is his imagination， but also likely to be true， but the graphic details here jarred with the style and ambiance of much of the rest of the book。） As the formula is only a single page （or even a single post-it note） it apparently will need both that and the notes of the conversation to make sense of it。 Following this there are various scenes of Dyer working out ways to conceal the pieces of paper， and being interrogated （by both sides） and searched and threatened by thugs; a honey trap with the wife of the Russian; taking his son off to teach him fly fishing， and finally a kind of deux ex machina， when an old school friend of Dyer’s reappears as a homeless man， Rougetel， who has spent the interim 30 years searching knowledge and the truth。 The problem had been for Dyer that either giving the information to one side or other， or making it public， or destroying it， all seemed to betray Marvar who had decided to give it to an honest person to make the decision for him。 So for Dyer， the fact that he sees Rougetel as both conveniently knowledgeable （having mastered physics and philosophy and ethics and knowledge of various religions in his search for truth） and conveniently so full of integrity means that Dyer can pass on the material and free himself and his son from potential ongoing danger。 The whole Rougetel episode for me was both over-convenient and very uninteresting。 The story overall is most like a recap of a John le Carre or Graeme Green story， full of dangers and ethical problems， with a good man at the centre， but doesn’t quite come off。 Both the discovery and its ability to be held in one post-it note， and the array of characters， begin to seem a bit unlikely and stereotyped， at least as a whole。 Some aspects of the writing， such as the class dynamics of the school， and the changes in politics and in British/US relationships， and the hollowing out of the investigative press， are well done， and it is certainly readable。。 。。。more

Gnome ，

How disappointing this book was in both content and writing style。 It seems semi autobiographical and rather lazily put together。 I would highly recommend any other book by Nicholas Shakespeare but， this was a COVID cobbled together effort， no doubt to pay the bills。Don't judge him by this book， he normally writes a hugely well researched book that is written beautifully。 Would highly recommend， his other books including， 'Six Minutes in May'， 'Bruce Chatwin'， 'Snowleg'。We all have off days。 Wou How disappointing this book was in both content and writing style。 It seems semi autobiographical and rather lazily put together。 I would highly recommend any other book by Nicholas Shakespeare but， this was a COVID cobbled together effort， no doubt to pay the bills。Don't judge him by this book， he normally writes a hugely well researched book that is written beautifully。 Would highly recommend， his other books including， 'Six Minutes in May'， 'Bruce Chatwin'， 'Snowleg'。We all have off days。 Would definitely bin this in your mind and move on to another one。 。。。more

Carmel Brady ，

Absorbing and well plotted。

Rod Hunt ，

I found this a difficult read。 The story （after a meandering but necessary scene setting start） wants to race but the prose doesn’t。 A good plot and very contemporary。 The South American material seemed a bit less than realistic。 I much preferred Secrets of the Sea。 Worth reading for the story and some great thoughtful parts。

Sybil Nolan ，

3。5 from me。 I'm a fan of Nicholas Shakespeare， so started with high expectations。 Found the opening chapters rather more formulaic than his usual but got into the flow and enjoyed this in the end。 Not NS's best IMHO but certainly the insights into contemporary Oxford were one of the reasons to keep reading。 3。5 from me。 I'm a fan of Nicholas Shakespeare， so started with high expectations。 Found the opening chapters rather more formulaic than his usual but got into the flow and enjoyed this in the end。 Not NS's best IMHO but certainly the insights into contemporary Oxford were one of the reasons to keep reading。 。。。more

Nigel mcguckian ，

I had a lot of difficulty settling into the voice， and didn't。 I struggled to keep reading but wanted to find out what happened。 I think he couldn't work out how to end it， and invented a strange new character so he could。 I had a lot of difficulty settling into the voice， and didn't。 I struggled to keep reading but wanted to find out what happened。 I think he couldn't work out how to end it， and invented a strange new character so he could。 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Sandpit

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Sandpit&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Sandpit&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0