Body Charge (20th Century)

'Sharpish in dialogue, slick in characterization . . . made with sympathy and imagination.' - Times Literary Supplement

'A very lively and entertaining novel.' - Sunday Times

'Flows along at an entertaining speed.' - Guardian

'Honest and unusual.' - Spectator

'A fast-moving romp.' - Observer

Thirty-year-old Franko Baxter has an uncomplicated life. He shares a flat with his Gran and works for a shady unlicensed minicab company, a job he likes because it gives him plenty of free time for his true passion: playing football. But things start to get more complicated when Franko gets involved with three of his passengers: Shuggy, a conceited young football star, Zak, a dropout on the dole with a nymphomaniac wife and three kids, and Joff Howard, a bisexual BBC producer. His life begins to get progressively crazier, but the biggest surprise is yet to come. Suddenly Franko finds himself entangled in a police investigation into the murder of a gay man - a mystery that will lead to some shocking revelations about his new friends . . . and himself.

Best known for his nonfiction, including his biography of the Beatles and his journalism and sports writing, Hunter Davies reveals his considerable talent as a novelist in Body Charge (1972). A clever mix of camp comedy and mystery thriller, Body Charge returns to print for the first time in forty years in this edition, which features a new introduction by the author.