Clown Town cover art

Clown Town

Slough House, Book 9

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Clown Town

By: Mick Herron
Narrated by: Sean Barrett
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About this listen

 The brand new Slough House thriller from the #1 bestseller Mick Herron

SUNDAY TIMES, THRILLER OF THE YEAR
GUARDIAN, CRIME BOOK OF THE YEAR
DAILY TELEGRAPH, BOOK OF THE YEAR
TLS, BOOK OF THE YEAR
THE SPECTATOR, BOOK OF THE YEAR

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'Mick Herron is our best and most topical spy writer' Ian Rankin

'Clown Town is a masterpiece' India Knight, Sunday Times

'An authentic megastar of the genre' Sam Leith, Guardian

'No one can rival Mick Herron' The Times

'A superb thriller' The Spectator

'Masterly' Times Literary Supplement, books of the year

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Spies lie. They betray. It's what they do.

Slow horse River Cartwright is waiting to be passed fit for work. With time to kill, and with his grandfather - a legendary former spy - long dead, River investigates the secrets of the old man's library, and a mysteriously missing book.

Regent's Park's First Desk, Diana Taverner, doesn't appreciate threats. So when those involved in a covert operation during the height of the Troubles threaten to expose the ugly side of state security, Taverner turns blackmail into opportunity.

Over at Slough House, the repository for failed spies, Catherine Standish just wants everyone to play nice. But as far as Jackson Lamb is concerned, the slow horses should all be at their desks.

Because when Taverner starts plotting mischief people get hurt, and Lamb has no plans to send in the clowns. On the other hand, if the clowns ignore his instructions and fool around, any harm that befalls them is hardly his fault.

But they're his clowns. And if they don't all come home, there'll be a reckoning.


*Mick Herron's Clown Town was a Sunday Times Number Four bestseller in hardback in the second week of September 2025©2025 Mick Herron Crime Thrillers Espionage Mystery Political Spies & Politics Suspense Thriller & Suspense

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Critic reviews

Masterly
Clown Town is a masterpiece (India Knight)
Over the last decade this series of novels about a community of cashiered spies has made the transition from "well-kept secret" to "household name". Herron is now an authentic megastar of the genre . . . It's Herron's line-by-line writing that really makes [the books] stand out. Has there been a more magnificently bossy narrative voice since Dickens? Or one more in love with the baroque flourish? (Sam Leith)
No one can rival Mick Herron . . . the series is increasingly acquiring a seriousness of heart that befits Herron's achievement
Funny, thrilling and shot through with real anger at the state of the nation
This isn't just a superb thriller about dysfunctional spooks. In these dark days, there are not many novels of any sort that make you laugh aloud. But this is one of them
Intricate plots of simmering tension, an intelligence service that hums with mundanity and mendacity, and X-rated dialogue delivering character assassination with every withering riposte. . . a series that continues to reinvigorate the spy fiction genre
Laced with Herron's mordant wit and whip-crack dialogue . . . Herron knits the threads together with his familiar verve
The jokes are as good as ever, the writing is glorious, the plot is deviously clever and the glimpses of real history add a layer of seriousness to the story . . . superb novel
A fabulous, funny book with a delicious sting in the tail
A twisty, comic tale centred on a covert operation from the heigh of the Northern Ireland Troubles
Herron at his masterly best, a stylish page-turner . . . the tales of the Slow Horses have matched the muddle, shoddiness and loss of status of post-Brexit Britain
Herron again blends satire with politics and page-turning pacing
Mick Herron has that rare gift of being able to write exquisitely and hilariously while keeping us on the edge of our seats. An IRA double agent and a corrupt politician are central to this story while Diana Taverner and Jackson Lamb slug it out once again. Thoroughly enjoyable, I now have a whole new bunch of insults to add to my collection (Liz Nugent, author of STRANGE SALLY DIAMOND)
Pure class: thrilling, funny and moving. By now it's obvious that the Slough House novels are not just suspenseful, laugh-out-loud entertainments, not just literary marvels, but important too, essential stories of the state of the UK in the twenty first century (Simon Mason, author of A VOICE IN THE NIGHT)
Clown Town is an absolute belter. No one is better than Mick at loading exactly the right words and taking aim at the egos and idiocies in Westminster and further afield. More satisfying than a squirty flower in the face of your least favourite politician (Sarah Hilary, author of SHARP GLASS)
All stars
Most relevant
You'll need to adjust your phone's equaliser, because, as others have said, the narration is too husky to really enjoy. The narration moves from one chapter to another without any pause. I haven't seen a physical copy, but surely it wasn't chapterless! My enjoyment was totally spoiled. This needs a new recording

The bad sound quality and lack of chapter breaks really spoil this book

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Why would you publish an audiobook in two four hour sections!? Give us chapters for Pete’s sake!

Chapter Breaks!

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Worth the wait - I was counting down the days,in fact. Deep characterisafion, superb flashes of humour, some sorrow & surprises, plots & counterplots to satisfy. But worried about the narration/narrator. Early on, I was worried about the health of the unbeatable Sean Barratt, as it seemed he was slurring his words. The voice of Jackson Lamb seemed strikingly different at the start. Happily sound quality improved and I wondered (& hoped) if it was simply a technical issue. The ending has left me wondering and, of course, wanting more!

Tears for the Clowns (& some fears)

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Terrible sound quality. Sean Barrett's usually so good but this time sounds like he's just come back from the dentist; everything narrated in a lisping, menacing whisper which really detracted from the enjoyment as well as meaning I missed large sections of dialogue. The closing credits were the only bit that was actually clear. Very disappointing.

Another great outing for the slow horses and really nicely written, as ever.

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Some of Jackson Lamb’s lines are laugh-out-loud funny and Herron’s shredding of politicians is very amusing. Good to revisit familiar characters even though their numbers are gradually depleting…

More acerbic wit and intricate storytelling

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