Trouble With Lichen – John Wyndham

What if you discovered a means of making people live for 250 years? What if that means came from a specific lichen that was in seriously short supply? And what if that supply was a lake close to the China/Russia border?

It’s a great set-up, and for the first two thirds of the tale I was gripped despite some horribly reactionary undertones. Sadly, the final part of the book descends horribly into a cack-handed attempt at social satire.