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London Falling

A Mysterious Death in a Gilded City and a Family’s Search for Truth

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London Falling

By: Patrick Radden Keefe
Narrated by: Patrick Radden Keefe
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About this listen

A riveting blend of true crime, social history, and investigative journalism written and read by one of the most decorated non-fiction authors working today, Patrick Radden Keefe.

From the Baillie Gifford Prize-winning and Sunday Times bestselling author of Empire of Pain and Say Nothing comes a riveting story of wealth, violence and deceit at the heart of a glittering city.

In 2019, a London teenager, Zac Brettler, fell to his death from a luxury apartment building on the banks of the Thames. On a desperate quest to understand how their son had died, his grieving parents made a terrible discovery: Zac had been leading a fantasy life, posing as the son of a wealthy Russian oligarch.

Patrick Radden Keefe follows Zac’s parents on a dark journey to find out what brought him to the balcony that night – and how a teenager’s life of make-believe drew him into the city’s terrifying underworld.

'Gripping, rigorous, smart . . . breathtaking' - Jon Ronson

'A phenomenal book that will stay in your soul long after the last page . . . it captures how easily a life can go wrong in the shadows of a city bankrolled by billionaires' - Emily Maitlis

'More addictive than any box set, London Falling will break your heart, instil you with cold rage, and make you see London in a completely new light' - Sathnam Sanghera

 Abductions, Kidnapping & Missing Persons Con Artists, Hoaxes & Deceptions Editors Select Organized Crime Politics & Government True Crime Exciting England Inspiring

Critic reviews

Gripping, rigorous and smart, London Falling takes a terrible mystery with an extraordinary cast of characters and somehow manages to make it perfectly encapsulate the weirdness of how London has mutated these past decades . . . breathtaking (Jon Ronson)
I've barely left the house since starting Patrick Radden Keefe’s superbly gripping London Falling . . . it will become a defining book of our time (Johanna Thomas-Corr, chief literary critic, The Times and Sunday Times)
A compulsive tale of money, lies and avoidable tragedy . . . a scrupulously researched work of narrative nonfiction . . . London Falling, grimly absorbing from start to finish, opens a window on to a world of financial dirty work and Walter Mitty-like fantasies of aspirational wealth (Ian Thomson)
Keefe's mastery of timing makes this investigation a page-turner . . . we are fortunate to have him pounding the pavement to expose real-life darkness . . . in London Falling, the Brettlers' private story points to a larger one of a city changed by money . . . like all of Keefe’s work, the book makes for propulsive reading (Mia Levitin)
A masterclass of evidence-chasing, narrative clarity and authorial empathy . . . unputdownable (Martin Vander Weyer)
As this dark book makes clear, the city’s “glitzy, mercenary, aspirational culture” allows grifters and gangsters to thrive
Mesmerizing. More addictive than any box set, this book will break your heart, instil you with cold rage, and make you see London in a completely new light (Sathnam Sanghera)
Patrick Radden Keefe has done it again - a phenomenal book that will stay in your soul long after the last page. London Falling is a tale of money and fantasy, fear and deception - that leads a deeply loved teenager to his death. Haunting, harrowing, and rich with empathy - it captures how easily a life can go wrong in the shadows of a city bankrolled by billionaires. A grieving parent’s questions go unanswered; a vital clue is met with an official shrug. And the crimes of the capital are swallowed up beneath a gleaming corporate veneer. This is a chilling story - told with humanity, curiosity and quiet outrage. It’s one that simply will not let you go. Put the phone to airplane mode, turn on the out-of-office: I guarantee you won’t want to be disturbed (Emily Maitlis)
[Keefe] has a real gift for storytelling, an ability to unfurl the narrative in a way that is completely engrossing (Louis Theroux)
All stars
Most relevant
I love PRK, even more so when he narrates. I’m halfway through and so far I think this is his best. Completely compelling from the start

Gripping from the start

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Extraordinarily gripping and well-researched - I binged this book in two days. Patrick Radden Keefe has a spectacular knack for weaving together seemingly unconnected threads that illuminate the history of London and British society as well as bringing to life the tragic mystery at the book’s heart. You have the sense of important minutiae as well as the wider tapestry - no stone is left unturned. Refreshing in an age of polemics and hot takes is the author’s scrupulous use of primary sources and sense of balance, fairness and sensitivity. Fantastic.

Brilliant

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