London Fields characters

Also known as Sam

Appears from the start

An American writer living in London while terminally ill and unable to produce the book he believes should complete his career. He exchanges apartments with the successful novelist Mark Asprey and begins recording the lives of three people he meets nearby, treating their approaching collision as the material he has been missing.

Appears from the start

A thirty-four-year-old Londoner who says she has known since childhood that she will be murdered on her thirty-fifth birthday. She also believes she has identified the place and the likely men involved. Controlled, observant, and expert at presenting a different self to each person, she becomes the center of Samson's unwritten novel.

Appears from the start

A petty criminal, habitual cheat, and obsessive darts player who lives through schemes, pornography, and constant small betrayals. He dreams of reaching a major televised darts final while his debts and impulsiveness keep him tied to harsher men.

Appears from the start

A wealthy, courteous married man whose sheltered life has left him emotionally unprepared for Nicola. He is devoted to ideals of tenderness and refinement and quickly imagines that his meeting with her offers an escape from his troubled household.

Appears from the start

The successful English novelist whose London flat Samson occupies through an apartment exchange. Although absent for much of the immediate action, his reputation, possessions, and example of effortless literary success continually shadow Samson's attempt to write.

First appears in chapter 3

Guy's wife and the mother of Marmaduke. Exhausted by a child whose violence dominates the household, she and Guy have become trapped in separate forms of helplessness.

First appears in chapter 3

The young son of Guy and Hope Clinch. Exceptionally aggressive and difficult to control, he turns family life into a succession of crises and embodies the disorder Guy hopes to escape.

First appears in chapter 2

Keith's wife, who bears the practical and emotional costs of his lies, absences, and criminal ambitions. She cares for their daughter while recognizing far more of Keith's conduct than he admits.

First appears in chapter 2

The young daughter of Keith and Kath Talent. Her vulnerability and need for care stand in contrast to Keith's self-absorption and the adult deceptions surrounding the family.

First appears in chapter 5

A criminal associate and rival in Keith's world of betting, debt, and manipulated contests. He understands Keith's weaknesses and is prepared to profit from them.