The Ripple Effect by Dominic Holland

Finally got hold of a copy of this book as I've been meaning to read it for ages after reading rave reviews about it. The author started as a stand-up comic and as you'd expect 'The Ripple Effect' is very funny. The basic plot starts when a bakery supervisor misses out some jam in a doughnut which in turn starts of a series (or 'ripple') of events, all of which are linked into the fate of the local football club, Middleton FC. In the current climate of football club's financial plight this is a very timely book and although written in a light hearted style it features many true life characters such as the money mad agent, the star footballer with an over inflated ego and the corrupt businessmen plotting to buy the football club and then sell the ground to a property developer. You could argue these are stereotypical characters but they (sadly in many cases) do exist in the real world.
It is written in a very readable style and of the 'hooks' of the book is how each character's life gets tracked back to the doughnuts with the missing jam! You don't have to be a football fan to enjoy this book and I would heartily recommend it as an ideal holiday/travel to work read. Holland has written one other book so far, 'Only In America', which is a comedy/romance and again has had good reviews.