John Preston - The Dig

A behind-the-scenes look at the desperate, scandalous private life of a British MP and champion manipulator, and the history-making trial that exposed his dirty secrets to the world

As a Member of Parliament and Leader of the Liberal Party in the 1960s and 70s, Jeremy Thorpe’s bad behavior snuck under the radar for years. Police and politicians alike colluded to protect one of their own. But his homosexual affairs and harassment of past partners, as well as his propensity for lying and embezzlement, only escalated as he evaded punishment. Until a dark night on the moor with an ex-lover, a dog, and a hired gun led to consequences his charm and power couldn’t help him escape.

With the pacing and drama of a thriller, A Very English Scandal is an extraordinary story of hypocrisy, deceit, and betrayal at the heart of the British establishment.

OTHER PRESS www.​otherpress.​com

THE GLASS ROOM by Simon Mawer

A FINALIST FOR THE MAN BOOKER PRIZE A stunning portrait of a family trying to impose order and beauty on a world on the brink of chaos at the outbreak of World War II

“Achieves what all great novels must: the creation of an utterly absorbing world the reader can scarcely bear to leave. Exciting, profoundly affecting, and altogether wonderful.”

THE HONEYMOON by Dinitia Smith

Based on the life of George Eliot, famed author of Middlemarch , this captivating account of Eliot’s passions and tribulations explores the nature of love in its many guises

“Smith’s George Eliot is brilliant and bold — as you know she is — but Smith is equally daring and no less incisive. She is as worthy a successor to so formidable a writer as is Colm Tóibín to Henry James.”

HOW TO LIVE: A LIFE OF MONTAIGNE by Sarah Bakewell

WINNER OF THE 2010 NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD FOR BIOGRAPHY

A spirited and singular biography of Michel de Montaigne by way of the questions he posed and the answers he explored

“A biography in the form of a delightful conversation across the centuries.”

Copyright © John Preston, 2007

First published in the United Kingdom by Viking in 2007

Production editor: Yvonne E. Cárdenas

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from Other Press LLC, except in the case of brief quotations in reviews for inclusion in a magazine, newspaper, or broadcast. For information write to Other Press LLC, 267 Fifth Avenue, 6th Floor, New York, NY 10016. Or visit our Web site: www.​otherpress.​com

The Library of Congress has cataloged the printed edition as follows:

Names: Preston, John, 1953- author.

Title: The dig / John Preston.

Description: New York : Other Press, [2016] | © 2007

Identifiers: LCCN 2015039129| ISBN 9781590517802 (softcover : acid-free paper) | ISBN 978-1-59051-781-9 (ebook)

Subjects: LCSH: Excavations (Archaeology)—England—East Anglia—Fiction. | Landowners—England—East Anglia–Fiction. | Widows—England—East Anglia—Fiction. | Sutton Hoo Ship Burial (England)—Fiction. | BISAC: FICTION / Historical. | FICTION / Literary. | FICTION / Biographical. | GSAFD: Biographical fiction. | Historical fiction.

Classification: LCC PR6066.R43 D54 2016 | DDC 823/.914—dc23 LC record available at http://lccn.​loc.​gov/​20150​39129

Publisher’s Note:

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

v3.1