A younger brother enters the world by means of a full-body blood transfusion only to be welcomed into a Docklands family within the grip of the Blitz, doodlebugs and rationing.

The two siblings emerge from bombed out Paradise Street to take on a London world of dramatic change in the decades ahead. Both wanted to break free and, as their sensational lives unfolded, Ray and Phil harboured a shocking secret.

Would blood be thicker than water?

The scenes from the book, complete with 12 illustrations, take the reader from the Pool of London and Soho to exotic locations in Asia, Africa and Australia, back to picturesque English villages in a suspense-filled narrative.

If you have endured the twentieth and witnessed the twenty-first century so far, there will be many common themes in the book that you have experienced, but maybe not as scintillating as the lives of the Bristowes of Bermondsey.

About The Author

Gavin was born and brought up alongside the Thames in SE1 and SW15. Today he resides and enjoys life in Penselwood, Somerset.

In between, he was an apprentice professional footballer at Chelsea FC and graduated from both Durham and Oxford Universities. After a flirtation with Millfield School as a tutor, he took to the sport of hockey full time enjoying a playing career of 10 years with England teams, including as Captain.

He is perhaps most well known as a head coach of international teams taking the national teams of England, the USA and South Africa to World Cups and Olympic Games.

He formed his own sports consultancy for synthetic turf, coaching aids and video technologies for teachers, coaches and national associations in all five continents.

Gavin has penned three previous books before advancing to write his first novel, Rhesus Positive, which was part inspired by living a more leisurely lifestyle amongst the genial folk of Somerset.

Editor: the opinions presented in this article are those of the individual assigned to review this particular book. They do not represent the views of The Hockey Museum.

Purchasing

Rhesus Positive is on sale via Amazon Books.

ISBN 978 0993526626

Gavin’s three other books (The Hockey Dynamic: Examining the Forces That Shaped the Modern Game; That Ain’t Hockey – More a Way of Life; and Hockey in the Blood) are available from THM’s shop – please make an enquiry through our website contact form (select “THM Shop”).