A brilliant, eye-opening espionage thriller by a former special forces officer ''now at the forefront of spy writing''

''Edward Wilson seems poised to inherit the mantle of John le Carré'' Irish Independent

''More George Smiley than James Bond, Catesby will delight those readers looking for less blood and more intelligence in their spy thrillers'' Publishers Weekly

April, 1982. The British prime minister and the Argentine president are both clinging to power.

Downing Street, having ignored alarm bells coming from the South Atlantic, finds itself in a full-blown crisis when Argentina invades the remote and forgotten British territory of the Falklands Islands.

Catesby is dispatched urgently to prevent Argentina from obtaining more lethal Exocet missiles, by fair means or foul. From Patagonia to Paris, from Chevening to the White House, he plays a deadly game of diplomatic cat and mouse, determined to avert the loss of life.

The clock is ticking. Diplomats and statesmen race for a last-minute settlement while the weapons of war are primed and aimed.

''Absolutely fascinating'' Literary Review

''Gets nearer to the truth of what happened in the Falklands War than any of the standard histories. Highly recommended'' Clive Ponting

''A classic of the genre . . . as good as espionage thriller writing gets'' NB Magazine

''A stunning and ingenious book'' Crime Review

Praise for Edward Wilson:

''Stylistically sophisticated . . . Wilson knows how to hold the reader''s attention'' W.G. Sebald

''A reader is really privileged to come across something like this'' Alan Sillitoe

''All too often, amid the glitzy gadgetry of the spy thriller, all the fast cars and sexual adventures, we lose sight of the essential seriousness of what is at stake. John le Carré reminds us, often, and so does Edward Wilson'' Independent