She of MI5 who no doubt has many a story to tell and obviously must do so as fiction. This is the start of a series starring one Liz Carlyle, naturally enough of MI5. So the secret service background must be authentic, it is certainly exceedingly convincing and the plot to trace an “invisible”, a terrorist who is an ethnic native of the target country is first rate. There are not a lot of these intelligent, cracking good spy novels around at the moment so pounce on it while you can. The next in the series comes in hardback in July.

Comparison: Gerald Seymour, John Le Carré, Frederick Forsyth.
Similar this month: Michael Dobbs, Simon Kernick.

Synopsis

For MI5 Intelligence Officer Liz Carlyle the nagging complications of her private life are quickly forgotten at Monday’s Counter-Terrorist meeting. An invisible may have entered mainland Britain.

An ‘invisible’ – a terrorist who is an ethnic native of the target country, who can cross its borders unchecked and move about unnoticed – is the ultimate nightmare.

For Liz this signals the start of an operation that will test her to the limit. Who or what is the target? Where and who is the invisible? With each passing hour the danger increases. But as she desperately sifts the incoming intelligence and analyses the reports from her agents she finally realises that it is her ability to get inside her enemy’s head that is the only hope of averting disaster.

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About the Author

Dame Stella Rimington joined the Security Service (MI5) in 1968. During her career she worked in all the main fields of the Service: counter-subversion, counter-espionage and counter-terrorism. She was appointed Director General in 1992, the first woman to hold the post. She has written her autobiography and five Liz Carlyle novels. She lives in London and Norfolk. More books by this author Author 'Like for Like' recommendation