Lunch with the Author- Jamie Reid

About us

"Monsieur X"
The incredible story of the most audacious gambler in history.

On 15th May, Jamie Reid will be hosting a literary lunch at The Grange Hotel. Jamie won the William Hill Sports Book of the Year award for 'Doped' in 2013 closely followed by 'Blown'. The book, Monsieur X, is available to purchase on the day from Blackwell Leeds at a discounted price and you are encouraged to stay for a book signing after lunch.

This unique experience for all book lovers is available for only £29.50 per person. This includes an arrival drink, glass of wine or soft drink with lunch, 2 course lunch, with coffee petits fours (dietary alternatives are available).

Schedule:

* 12.00 - Arrival and gathering in The Library & Drawing Room

* 12.30 - Introductions with guest speaker Jamie Reid

* 1.00 - Lunch to be served

* 2.00 - Book signing

Lunch Menu:
Served with a glass of house wine or soft drink
***

Fillet of Sea Bass
Spinach and Shallot Potato Cake and Caviar Butter Sauce
or
Artichoke and King Oyster Mushroom Pithivier
Roast Pepper Pesto and Garlic Wilted Greens
***

Passion Fruit & Mango Jelly, Sicilian Lemon Sorbet

***
Coffee & Petits Fours
The Book:

Monsieur X is a dazzling tale of glamour, riches, violence and ultimately tragedy. Patrice des Moutis was a handsome, charming and well-educated Frenchman with an aristocratic family, a respectable insurance business, and a warm welcome in the smartest Parisian salons. He was also a compulsive gambler and illegal bookie.

Between the late 1950s and the early 1970s, des Moutis made a daring attempt to beat the French state-run betting system. His success so alarmed the authorities that they repeatedly changed the rules of betting in an effort to stop him. And so a battle of wills began, all played out on the front pages of the daily newspapers as the general public willed des Moutis on to ever-greater successes. He remained one step ahead of the state until finally the government criminalised his activities, driving him into the arms of the underworld. Eventually the net began to close, high-profile characters found themselves the target of the state's investigation, and people began turning up dead.

The Author:

Jamie Reid is the author of the non-fiction book Doped, the winner of the 2013 William Hill Sports Book of the Year Award. A life-long betting and racing enthusiast, he has been a regular contributor to the Financial Times supplement How To Spend It, and has also written for the Guardian and the Independent On Sunday as well as a wide range of magazines.

T&C's:

The books purchased on the day are payable directly to Blackwell Leeds. Full payment for the lunch is required at time of booking to the hotel.