Monday 22 August 2011

My Review: Sensitive New Age Spy by Geoffrey McGeachin

Alby Murdoch, (acting) head of D-E-D (Directorate for Extra-territorial Defence), another Australian national security acronym, awakes with a hangover on the Australia Day public holiday. His attractive work partner Julie, who has never responded to his lusty advances, is chastely asleep on his lounge. Alby however, is still  hopeful. It's a public holiday and you never know what the day may bring.

The last thing Alby needed though, is for an 80,000 tonne rogue tanker to have covertly snuck into Sydney Harbour under the cover of darkness, possibly filled to the eyeballs with Liquified Natural Gas (LNG). Potentially, it is a floating atomic bomb. Compounding the danger, is an American Navy Cruiser parked nearby, that may, or may not be carrying a couple of nuclear warheads.

Despite being warned off the case by the Minister of Defence, through his minion Chapman Pergo, Alby smells a rat and doggedly continues with his investigations. This results in some riotously funny liasons with the very (rich) Reverend Priday and his most attractive young wife and even more attractive daughter, some whale-loving fundamentalists and a lesbian bikie's birthday party in Canberra. Throughout which Alby is nearly blown-up, shot at and taken hostage.

My advice is that you do not read this book in public if you are embarrassed by sudden outbursts of spontaneous laughter. The humour infuses every page, and McGeachin cleverly understands the Australian irreverence to politicians, tall poppies and themselves. When this laconic humour is wrapped around a captivating, espionage plot, the result is a thoroughly enjoyable read, and one that will have you quickly searching for more Geoffrey Mcgeachin books. I'm googling as we speak!

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