Dirt

A compulsive, searing political thriller set on a kibbutz in Northern Israel, where the discovery of the body of an Israeli-Arab worker sets off a devastating chain of events... `A first-class political thriller´ Steve Cavanagh `A bitingly sharp, pacy thriller. Devilishly good. I inhaled it´ Freya Berry `A powerful political thriller that brims with authentic detail. Clever, compulsive and achingly atmospheric´ Kia Abdullah --------------------- This is no utopia... 1996. Northern Israel. Lola leaves an unhappy home life in England for the fabled utopian life of a kibbutz, but this heavily guarded farming community on the Arab-Israeli border isn't the idyll it seems, and tensions are festering. Hundreds of miles away, in the Jerusalem offices of the International Tribune newspaper, all eyes are on Israel's response to a spate of rocket attacks from Lebanon, until cub reporter Jonny Murphy gets a tip from a mysterious source that sends him straight into the danger zone. When the body of an Arab worker is discovered in the dirt of the kibbutz chicken house, it triggers a series of events that puts Lola and the whole community in jeopardy, and Jonny begins to uncover a series of secrets that put everything at risk, as he begins to realise just how far some people will go to belong... --------------------- `A fantastic page-turner and an intriguing look at a complex and dangerous world. Sarah Sultoon creates intelligent, memorable characters and fascinating stories´ Holly Watt `A powerhouse writer´ Jo Spain `An extraordinary piece of writing from a political thriller writer at the very top of her game´ Victoria Selman `Brilliant and gripping´ S J Watson `An immersive and evocative political thriller that thrust me into a unique, razor-edged world, with a plot filled with tension and complexity´ Philippa East `Sarah Sultoon draws on her time spent as a journalist in the Middle East to bring northern Israel, its people, its beauty, and its complexities to life in vibrant colour in this twisting whodunnit...´ Antony Dunford `A compelling thriller that weaves a complex tale ... escalating to a shocking finale´ Eve Smith `Unsettling, riveting, gets under your skin´ Peter Hain Praise for Sarah Sultoon: **Longlisted for the John Creasey (New Blood) Dagger** **WINNER of the Crime Fiction Lover Debut Thriller Award** `A brave and thought-provoking debut novel´ Adam Hamdy `A taut and thought-provoking book that's all the more unnerving for how much it echoes the headlines in real life´ CultureFly `A tense thriller, a remarkable debut, heartbreaking, but ultimately this is a story of resilience and survival´ NB Magazine `A powerful, compelling read´ Fanny Blake `A powerful story of the brutality of front-line journalism. Authentic, provocative and terrifyingly relevant´ Will Carver

Sarah Sultoon is a journalist and writer, whose work as an international news executive at CNN has taken her all over the world, from the seats of power in both Westminster and Washington to the frontlines of Iraq and Afghanistan. She has extensive experience in conflict zones, winning three Peabody awards for her work on the war in Syria, an Emmy for her contribution to the coverage of Europe's migrant crisis in 2015, and a number of Royal Television Society gongs. As passionate about fiction as nonfiction, she recently completed a Masters of Studies in Creative Writing at the University of Cambridge, adding to an undergraduate language degree in French and Spanish, and Masters of Philosophy in History, Film and Television. When not reading or writing she can usually be found somewhere outside, either running, swimming or throwing a ball for her three children and dog while she imagines what might happen if.....