Blood Rival press kit
BLOOD RIVAL
by Jake Arnott
Datura
16th October 2025.
Hardback, £16.99
‘In a league of his own’ Christopher Fowler, Independent on Sunday
‘A writer unafraid to take risks’ Michael Arditti, Independent
‘Arnott’s ability to powerfully resurrect an era is astonishing’
Jimmy Boyle, Guardian
‘His prose is as smooth as a seersucker suit, as sweet as a purple heart’ Robert MacFarlane, Observer
‘Compulsive reading, powerful writing’ Dominic Bradbury, The Times
‘His fictional (or, more accurately, factional) characters bristle with authenticity’ Erwin James, Guardian
‘Arnott is quite brilliant at excavating the cultural minutiae of the time to bring the period vividly to life’ John Tague, Independent on Sunday
Jake Arnott burst onto the literary scene with his debut novel, The Long Firm, a cult hit that has sold over a quarter of a million copies and was subsequently made into a BAFTA-nominated BBC TV series. All his novels have been greeted with great acclaim, noted for their originality, wit, intelligence, gripping plots and Arnott’s unerring ability to bring defining eras of the 20th century to life. His novel, The House of Rumour (2012), was variously described as ‘virtuoso . . . Highly entertaining and perhaps even mind-expanding’ (Sunday Times), ‘a brilliant achievement’ (Independent on Sunday) and ‘a supremely intelligent book as well as a surprisingly warm one’ (Independent).
Jake Arnott’s bestselling debut novel, THE LONG FIRM, was published by Sceptre in 1999 and has been followed by HE KILLS COPPERS, TRUECRIME, JOHNNY COME HOME, THE DEVIL`S PAINTBRUSH, THE HOUSE OF RUMOUR and THE FATAL TREE. Both THE LONG FIRM and HE KILLS COPPERS have been made into widely praised TV dramas He lives in London.