There is more adventure and less mystery in this than in some of Goddard's other books, but the result is engrossing, storytelling of a very high order
Observer
Cliffhanging entertainment... Goddard unwinds his plots like a conjurer
Guardian
The master of the triple double-cross
The Times
Hypnotising
Daily Mail
A master storyteller
Sunday Independent
One of Britain's finest thriller writers
Time Out
A compelling storyteller of our time
Sunday Telegraph
January, 1721. London is reeling from the effects of the greatest financial scandal of the age - the collapse of the South Sea Bubble. William Spandrel, a penniless mapmaker, is offered a discharge of his debts by Sir Theodore Janssen, a director of the South Sea Company, on one condition: he must secretly convey an important package to Amsterdam.
The package safely delivered, Spandrel barely survives an attempt on his life, only to discover the recipient has been murdered, and Spandrel is the prime suspect. Spandrel quickly realises that he has become a pawn in several people's games - British Government agents, and others, are on his trail, believing that the mysterious package contains secrets that could spark a revolution in England.
Spandrel's only chance of survival is to recover the package and place its contents in the right hands. But what are the contents and whose exactly are the right hands?