The Peppered Moth

On the most important day in his business calendar, Michael Peel awakes to find that he has undergone an inconvenient transformation. Melissa Viney, frequent Guardian journalist and presenter of BBC Radio 4's "Something Understood", describes The Peppered Moth as "a hilarious and pacey debut novel." which "had me laughing out loud." Inspired by the grotesque comedies of Tom Sharpe and with a nod to Kafka’s Metamorphosis, The Peppered Moth is a lively romp through late twentieth-century London. Pitilessly skewering such monsters as a personal loan company boss but equally scathing of the out-of-control mores of political correctness, this is a blast of fresh air that tackles the delicate subject of identity with what appears to be reckless glee. Although Michael Peel's inconvenient transformation is only skin deep, it is a change that immediately induces hysteria in his wife. The police are called and Mr Peel finds himself on the run, the prime suspect in a murder case and the focus of a national news story. Forced to impersonate a fictitious friend, he embarks on a desperate adventure that will involve him in everything from enforced stand-up comedy to naked cycling in South London – and will test every fibre of his being. Culminating in a riot in Trafalgar Square, this is a hilarious roller coaster that will have you laughing out loud.