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Dedication

for Sifu

Once known, forever loved, never forgotten

Discover the Series You Can’t Put Down …

‘A high level of realism … the action scenes come thick and fast. Like the father of the modern thriller, Frederick Forsyth, Mariani has a knack for embedding his plots in the fears and preoccupations of their time’

Shots Magazine

‘The plot was thrilling … but what is all the more thrilling is the fantastic way Mariani moulds historical events into his story’

Guardian

‘Scott Mariani is an ebook powerhouse’

The Bookseller

‘Hums with energy and pace … If you like your conspiracies twisty, your action bone-jarring, and your heroes impossibly dashing, then look no further. The Ben Hope series is exactly what you need’

Mark Dawson

‘Slick, serpentine, sharp, and very, very entertaining. If you’ve got a pulse, you’ll love Scott Mariani; if you haven’t, then maybe you crossed Ben Hope’

Simon Toyne

‘Hits thrilling, suspenseful notes … a rollickingly good way to spend some time in an easy chair’

USA Today

‘Mariani constructs the thriller with skill and intelligence, staging some good action scenes, and Hope is an appealing protagonist’

Kirkus Reviews

‘If you haven’t read any Mariani before but love fast-paced action with a historical reference, maybe this one won’t be your last’

LibraryThing

‘A breathtaking ride through England and Europe’

Suspense Magazine

‘This is my first Scott Mariani book … and I totally loved it. It goes on at a good pace, and for me Ben Hope was brilliant, the ultimate decent good guy that you are rooting for’

AlwaysReading.net

‘Scott Mariani writes fantastic thrillers. His series of Ben Hope books shows no sign of slowing down’

Ben Peyton, actor (Bridget Jones’s Diary, Band of Brothers, Nine Lives)

‘A really excellent series of books, and would make a wonderful television series as well!’

Breakaway Reviews

‘Scott Mariani seamlessly weaves the history and action together. His descriptive passages are highly visual, and no word is superfluous. The storyline flows from beginning to end; I couldn’t put it down’

Off the Shelf Books

PROLOGUE

Afghanistan, February 1989

Rigby Cahill paused on the steep, rocky slope to catch his breath, condensation billowing in great clouds from his rasping lungs. The icy mountain wind burned his cheeks raw and his hands felt numb. Pushing sixty years of age, he wondered if maybe he was getting too old for this kind of stuff.