White knight/black swan - David Gemmell

David Gemmell was the UK's number one fantasy and historical novelist until his death in 2006. A regular Sunday Times bestseller and international sensation, his legacy lives on through his novels and his influence on the fantasy genre.
White Knight Black Swan was Gemmell's only published crime novel, released under the pseudonym Ross Harding. Building on the world Gemmell saw around him while working as a local journalist in eighties London, it shows a way of life now long gone.
'Bimbo' Jardine is a special man - a giant with a heart of gold, generous to his friends, feared by his enemies. His job is to collect money for Reardon, the local gangster, but everyone in this patch of South London knows him to be an honourable man, despite his capability for violence.But when Bimbo stops a homophobic attack, and then takes on the man who ordered it, he sets himself on a collision course with his own boss. Reardon cannot be seen to back down. Bimbo believes he did the right thing and won't step away.
And when the two men clash, other lives will be at risk.