VOK 881 – London Falling by Patrick Radden Keefe
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What is “London Falling” and why has it become a bestseller in the UK?
Hey everyone, welcome to Vassals of Kingsgrave. My name is Bina 007 and today I'm joined by Michal. Hello, ink as rain over on the places. Yes, and we have decided to get together today to discuss an incredibly popular book, at least on this side of the Atlantic, called London Falling by the New Yorker writer Patrick Radden Keefe, who you may know from things like, oh, he did that Northern Ireland drama, didn't he? He did a really good book on the opioid crisis. He's a fantastic writer. In 2024, he wrote an extended article in The New Yorker, a bit of investigative journalism about a mysterious death in London that had taken place in 2019. He then turned it into a long-form book, which both Mikhail and I read.
It has spent many weeks in the top 10 best-selling hardback books in London, in England, I should say. Feels like everyone I know is reading it, has read it, is talking about it, has prompted a lot of discussion about what London was and is. um but we both i don't know maybe we start with lemon cake ratings why don't you tell me mccall and the listener how you heard about the book is it as big of a deal on that side of the atlantic and what you made of it reading it and by the way guys this is going to be very full of spoilers of the case of the book so if you don't want to know about the sad death of zach brettler uh please switch off now um go go do some digging or not but we we will be spoiler filled um over to you mccall
Yeah. So I read, um, my, my whole family read, um, say nothing, which was his book about the troubles. Um, my, and, and I didn't realize until pretty recently that that book did not do well in the UK and Ireland because it's, it's a smash over here. Like everyone loves it. And so I was, I was very, I found that really funny.
Yeah. Obviously the troubles, uh, very troubling bit of British part heritage. I just think that in America, there is a very different attitude towards that than there is here. We should do a podcast on that, though. We should.
Oh, absolutely. And I think that's 100% it. Because I think, like, from your perspective, you guys lived it or have lived in the aftermath of it. And we're just like, ooh. Irish people fighting, you know? And it's like, it kind of appeals to like that, like it's like modern British history with a lot of drama that we can kind of feel removed from. Although I felt a lot less removed after reading the book because it is excellent and very good at humanizing everyone involved, I think. And became a very good TV show.
Was it Disney, Hulu? I think so. I think that was very popular. Phenomenal cast. And that became very talked about here. And that's when people, I think, realized, oh, there was a book by this guy. So I think we came to it kind of the other way around, basically.
Yeah. Which makes sense because I can see being in the UK and being like, why do I need to read another book about the Troubles? And then finding out the real story of it. Incredible story. It's Crazy. But actually, it was on the set of that show of Say Nothing that Patrick Radden Keefe met a friend of the Brettlers who introduced him to the story. And he kind of goes into that later in the book. So I loved Say Nothing when I finally read it. I tend to be hesitant around nonfiction, but I watched the show first and then I read the book and I thought it was excellent. So I was excited for London Falling because, you know, new Patrick Radden Keefe, excellent. I was kind of in the mood for some nonfiction at the time.
And I think it is a very slick book. It's a very, like, Patrick Radden Keefe book where... you do sometimes wonder if he's sort of the main character in the story subconsciously. And it's well told. I think each individual chapter is very well told and well paced and interesting to read. As a whole, I felt that the book was kind of both too short and baggy. I had some issues with the way the information was relayed. But I do think it was very illuminating just about contemporary London society and... teenagers and you know the different places that wealth can come from in in the world at large and in london so yeah i mean i would probably give it about a three three and a half
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
What is “London Falling” and why has it become a bestseller in the UK?
0:15–6:35
2
How do the hosts describe their first impressions of the book and its storytelling style?
6:35–15:32
3
What is the true‑crime case at the heart of the book – who was Zach Brettler and how did he die?
15:32–22:08
4
Why do the hosts think the book’s focus on the parents’ perspective may be limiting?
22:08–28:48
5
How does the story illustrate the pressures of London’s elite school system and wealth culture?
28:48–36:21
6
What criticisms do the hosts have about the book’s structure and editorial choices?
36:21–42:54
7
How does “London Falling” reflect broader issues about London’s “butler economy” and political climate?
42:54–48:06
8
What final takeaways do the hosts give for listeners who want to explore the book or its New Yorker article?
48:06–54:00
Speakers
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