The Work of The Devil

London 1641: The first revolution by the people for the people is about to begin. The showdown between cavaliers and roundheads is coming to a head. Patrick Growsby is a printer's devil. His writing ability is discovered by his employer Samuel Marmite and is featured in Marmite's fledgling newspaper 'The Speculator'. Patrick soon finds himself embroiled in the street riots and begins the first investigative journalism. By telling the truth he is hunted by the authorities and is also the ultimate target of a series of ritual murders. To survive he must solve the riddle of the killings and avoid the forces of the Crown hell-bent on silencing him and the newssheet.
Growsby has one ace up his sleeve – he is the world's most forgettable character ... nobody remembers or even recognises him! When he is given the pen-name of The Devil his writing looks set to swing the people and the balance of power to his side. But which side will that be?
In a roller-coaster romp, told in the style of the times, through the streets, taverns, waterways and whorehouses of London Patrick Growsby learns that there are no winners and losers or heroes and villains when it comes to a country tearing itself apart. With the help of the cheeky Edward and the homicidal beauty Ethus he bluffs and tricks his way through a Dickensian array of lords, cavaliers, villains, soldiers, whores, puritans, parliamentarians, mummers and Winkle Nelly, the disgusting scavenger of London Bridge. Anticipating the picaresque world of Tom Jones, Joseph Andrews and Moll Flanders, The Work of The Devil is a 130,000 word adventure full of the sounds, sights and smells of a crowded city bursting with life and ready to explode into revolution.