After a career in academia, Yorkshire-based writer Nick Boreham decided to get back to something he enjoyed as a child – crime stories. He’d always wanted to write his own book, and enrolled on a master’s degree in creative writing. However, it wasn’t until he went on jury service on a high-profile murder trial that inspiration bit. Being involved in a real-life courtroom drama gave him the impetus and ideas to write his own novel and in November 2023, he published Jurymen May Dine – a book featuring Tony Quirke, an everyday guy who serves on a jury and gets drawn into the case he witnesses.
Everyone who’s read Jurymen May Dine has enjoyed it – for the characters, the story, the mystery and its originality. We’ve invited Nick to join us on the site to find out more about his debut crime novel, his inspiration and what’s next…
What are crime fiction lovers going to love about Jurymen May Dine?
If they’re partial to a complex murder mystery with a fast-paced plot and 180-degree twists and turns, I hope they’ll find Jurymen May Dine to their liking. The novel starts as a whodunnit, then moves into thriller territory as amateur investigator Tony Quirke gets into danger and has to take huge risks — there’s action and suspense in the mix as well. And I hope readers will be impressed by the ingenious way Tony solves the mystery in the end.
Who is your protagonist Tony Quirke, how did you develop him and what’s he like?
Tony’s the sort of person you see travelling to work on the London Underground and don’t pay much attention to – 30-something, nothing-special job in the City, interested in beer and rugby. He’s an unassuming sort of guy, an everyman. But his life takes an unexpected turn when he’s called for jury duty on a murder trial. Unhappy with his fellow jurors’ decision that the defendant is guilty, Tony joins the convicted man’s sister in a bid to prove him innocent. He has an almost exaggerated sense of justice. But it’s a course of action that’s going to turn his rather nondescript life upside down.
Who or what is he up against?
The murdered man left behind a life of contradictions and unanswered questions. When Tony starts investigating, he’s caught up in a web of lies, revenge and dangerous truths. He’s up against some unsavoury characters who’ll do anything to prevent him getting to the heart of the matter. Without realising it, Tony has stumbled into the middle of a gangland vendetta. Before long he’s fighting for his life and wondering which side of the law he’s really on.
Tell us about some of the other characters and how you created them?
Tony’s call to action is the convicted man’s sister, Janet. He sees her grief as a reflection of his own troubled past, and this brings out the more compassionate side of his nature. But Janet’s motivations remain shrouded in mystery, and tensions develop between them as Tony struggles to prove her brother innocent. Another powerful influence is Tony’s friend Phil, a successful writer. At Phil’s insistence, they hatch a plan to pursue a book deal based on the information Tony is uncovering about the murder. However, this partnership complicates Tony’s mission, as his quest for the truth becomes compromised by self-interest and the investigation starts to unravel around him.
Legal thrillers are sometimes dry and formulaic – how have you challenged that notion?
Although the story begins in a courtroom, it isn’t restricted to the trial and Tony’s disagreement with the rest of the jury. It’s about what happened in the community where the murder took place – the story behind the story that’s presented in court, if you will. Tony is operating in a sphere where legal procedures count for nothing. What matters is the ability to spot a good liar. And the ability to dodge bullets.
Tell us about the East London setting and how you’ve depicted it?
The plot unfolds on the desolate shores of the Thames estuary, between the Dartford Crossing and the container port at Tilbury. In the words of one of the characters, ‘mists rolling in from the sea, foghorns echoing along the muddy foreshore and a horrible murder — it’s Dickensian’. There are also key scenes in the East End of London and the pretty little villages of rural mid-Essex. It’s a part of the country where I spent a significant part of my life. I love the vastness of the estuary, the flatness of the landscape and the awesome skyscapes. It’s always been a special place to me. But as Tony discovers, London gangland has pushed its sinister tentacles out as far out as this, so he can expect drive-by shootings and revenge assassinations as a matter of course.
What are the main themes you wanted to explore and why?
The background to the story is a presumed miscarriage of justice. Having served as a juror myself, I was aware how difficult it is for a jury to agree a verdict when all the evidence is circumstantial. Although I hope that readers will enjoy the twists and turns of the plot for their own sake, I wanted to explore the nature of justice and how that can be obtained when juries are untrained in the nuances of the law. Also what happens when potential witnesses go to great lengths to protect their secrets because of the personal costs of exposing them.
Which other crime authors and books have inspired you, and what are you reading at the moment?
I’ve always admired the two American noir masterpieces by James M Cain, Double Indemnity and The Postman Always Rings Twice. Then there’s our own Ted Lewis, who gave a huge boost to BritNoir in the 1970s with Jack’s Return Home, AKA Get Carter. That’s how I’d love to write. At present, I’m reading an incredibly brilliant crime novel, Louise Welsh’s To the Dogs. Like most of her books, it’s set in the Glasgow underworld. The plotting is masterful and the atmosphere chilling.
What’s next for you and/or Tony Quirke?
I’m working on a follow-up to Jurymen. It’s another murder mystery, set deep in the Essex countryside. Some of Tony’s enemies survived the first book, so he’ll have to watch his back.
Use the buttons below to order yourself a copy of Jurymen May Dine, or follow these links: Waterstones, Troubador.
