Adam Colclough lives and works in the West Midlands, he writes regularly for a number of websites, one day he will get round to writing a book for someone else to review.
Former SAS officer Ben Hope receives an invitation to a reunion at his old Oxford college; even he couldn’t encounter trouble in such a cloistered environment, or could he?
Settled in his former rooms Hope meets Nick Hawthorne, an old friend now a famous classical musician and the owner of a rare original Bach score. When Nick is murdered and the manuscript stolen Hope embarks on a hunt across Europe for an artefact that has brought danger to all of its previous owners. The people who hold it now, are ready to kill - to turn it into cash.
Scott Mariani is perhaps, the best working exponent of the classic chase thriller. His invention in finding a fresh McGuffin with each outing is a gift, and on the strength of this latest outing for Hope he shows no sign of flagging.
However high concept the plot; Mariani always manages to root his thrillers in some dark realities. This time, the backdrop is the cultural kleptomania of the Nazis and the brutal fiefdoms built by crime barons in some of the wilder parts of Eastern Europe.
The action comes thick and fast and is choreographed with Mariani’s trademark skill and authenticity. Ben Hope is the model of a modern action hero, a crack shot able to split heads with the best of them, but with a more thoughtful side to his nature to boot.
This is another slickly crafted adventure from the modern master of mayhem in a series that continues to go from strength to strength.
