About this item
Set on the eve of the First World War, across oceans and continents, steamliners and cross-country trains, David Downing's complex and thrilling new espionage novel takes us all the way back to the dawn of that most fascinating of 20th century characters - the spy.It is 1913, and those who follow the news closely can see the world is teetering on the brink of war. Jack McColl, a Scottish car salesman with an uncanny ear for languages, has always hoped to make a job for himself as a spy. As his sales calls take him from city to great city - Hong Kong to Shanghai to San Francisco to New York - he moonlights collecting intelligence for His Majesty's Secret Service, but British espionage is in its infancy and Jack has nothing but a shoestring budget and the very tenuous protection of a boss in far-away London.
About the Author
David Downing is a professor of English at Indiana University of Pennsylvania.