The Year of the Scorpion

"Before taking up writing, Michael Hartland spent twenty years travelling widely in Europe and the Far East as a diplomat, then working in counter-terrorism and for the United Nations. He draws on this experience to describe the secret world of espionage with insight and great authenticity. His first book DOWN AMONG THE DEAD MEN was a bestseller and his ground-breaking series of espionage novels established him as one of the leading thriller writers in Britain and the United States. They have been translated into twenty-seven European languages and Japanese, adapted for BBC Radio-4 and television - and remain among the most fast-moving and gripping spy novels ever published. Michael has also made documentaries on espionage for television and BBC Radio-4; and written for The Times, Daily Telegraph and The Guardian. He and his family live in Devon, where he is working on a new project inspired by contemporary Islamic terrorism."