The First UK printing published by The Bodley Head, London in 1984. The BOOK is in near Fine condition. Publisher's original black cloth with silver lettering to the spine. The binding remains tight and square, minimally bumped to the top corners. The book has been signed (without dedication) in black ink by the author to the title page. There is a 3 cm diagonal line in black ink at the top of page 161 (also visible for a couple of millimetres at the top of page 163); the ink matches that of the author's signature, so may well have been an accident during the signing session (the book's otherwise near immaculate state would support this theory). The WRAPPER is complete and is in near Fine condition. The top outer right corner is a little rubbed, with some silver visible beneath the black and a tiny closed tear to the paper at the rear at the same spot. There are a few very light scratches visible to the silver portion of the front panel. The wrapper is notorious for being easily rubbed and damaged. This wrapper is in exceptional condition and is protected in a removable Brodart archival cover. This title was never reprinted or issued in a paperback format. In the author's own words : 'There are some okay things in it. The action scenes and some of the descriptions of London. But it's so far from what I went on to write that I think it was a distraction, a kind of throat-clearing'. A very attractive copy of the author's debut novel which is extremely scarce to find as a signed title in such collectible condition.