A few weeks after D-Day, the German army in the West is retreating, with the British and the Americans in hot pursuit. But Major O'Conor, ex-liaison officer with the Yugoslav Partisans, is conducting his own private war. As he leads his hand-picked team of ruthless fighters deep behind enemy lines, it becomes clear that he regards French Resistance units and British Intelligence agents as more dangerous to his mission than the Germans.

So it is unfortunate for him that two interpreters attached to his task force happen to be Second-Lieutenant Audley and Corporal Butler, already revealing the cunning and resourcefulness that, in earlier novels, has taken them to the very top of their field.

Major O'Conor's startling objective remains unknown to everyone except himself until the final pages - where a shattering surprise lies in store.

Anthony Price was born in England in 1928. He became a captain in the British Army before studying at Oxford University, and then became a journalist on the Westminster Press and Oxford Times. Price is the author of 19 novels featuring Dr David Audley and Colonel Jack Butler, which focus on a group of counter-intelligence agents.

Approximately 20 years elapse between the first and last novel in the series, and most of the plots are connected with one or more important events in military history. The first three novels were adapted into a six-part BBC TV drama in the 1980s, and The Labyrinth Makers (for which he won a CWA Silver Dagger) and Other Paths to Glory have both been produced as BBC radio dramas.