Although his back up characters, whilst excellent, in the book may not be much help when physical help is needed.

With both author and hero getting on in the years, it's time to bow out, and that's just what they do.Being someone who has read and listened to all the previous books in this series, I am more than disappointed with this effort.

Let’s face it, f you’re going to read this sort of book, all the better that it has the authenticity of being written by someone who’s actually been there and done it. If this is, indeed, the last Nick Stone book, the author has rewarded his readers with a very tepid end. The central character in all the books is Nick Stone, a tough ex-SAS operative working as a 'K' on deniable operations for British Intelligence. McNab's subsequent thrillers, Crisis Four, Firewall, Last Light , Liberation Day , Dark Winter , Deep Black and Aggressor have all gone on to sell equally well.The story just never seemed to get going , the plot was weak and predictable with long passages of dialogue and very little action. Started off as a good read but fell off in my eyes when he reached the settlement where Mary ‘was being held’.