We are hooked on the Apple TV+ drama, Slow Horses, and can't wait for the new series. The sixth series of the espionage drama sees the return of our favourite characters – including the lacklustre boss we love to hate, Jackson Lamb (Gary Oldman), and River (Jack Lowden), as they go on the run after a high-stakes revenge plot targets past and present Slough House agents.
Before you inevitably get a Slow Horses-shaped hole in your evenings when the new series finishes, we recommend losing yourself in a spy thriller with similar themes. Think: fast-paced plots, a ramshackle group working together and former spies desperate to prove themselves. The following are our top recommendations…
Books like Slow Horses
A Spy Alone by Charles Beaumont
Cynical former spy Simon Sharman is making a living in the private sector when he is asked to investigate the finances of a mysterious Russian oligarch. He is puzzled by his findings, including regular, unexplained trips to Oxford and payments from an offshore account that suddenly dry up. Everyone has heard of the Cambridge spy ring of the ‘50s, but could there have been a similar operation in Oxford? Simon is determined to find out.
Slow Horses by Mick Herron
Of course, no list of books for fans of Slow Horses would be complete without mention of the book that originally inspired the TV series. In Mick Herron’s first book in the celebrated series, we are introduced to Slough House, the unofficial dumping ground for former spies who have made career-ending mistakes. But when a young man is kidnapped and held hostage, the team prove they are ready to be back at the centre of the action.
