Chris Darnell

The Contract Chris Darnell

STANTON'S BACK! ONCE AGAIN HE MUST EXACT JUSTIFIABLE VENGEANCE ON THOSE WHO THREATEN HIS MISSION. BUT HE'S A MASTER OF HIS BLACK CRAFT... The British Prime Minister is alerted to a potentially damaging situation in southern Africa. It is October 1989, the power politics of the region are volatile and Mrs Thatcher feels compelled to act. Plucked from his desk in Headquarters Special Forces, Paul Stanton is sent on a deniable mission to South Africa to sort out the situation. But his task may be compromised by his personal loyalties: his old Gurkha friend, Danny Dalloway, is in Mozambique delivering a security contract. Stanton discovers a web of murder and corruption in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Mozambique, focused on the illegal trade in diamonds, and involving government officials, mercenaries and, to his total surprise, an old adversary from Northern Ireland and Berlin - Major Richard de Castenet. Aided by two of his trusty SAS comrades, Stanton must find out who the true villains are and deal with them. But to make matters worse, there are rebel forces on the rampage in Mozambique, putting the lives of many people and the success of Dalloway's contract under threat. The Contract is the third thriller in the Paul Stanton series. What they say about Paul Stanton and The Return"A credible yet deeply compelling character, Stanton's perilous venture across forsaken territories takes the reader from Northern Ireland to West Berlin. With fanatical enemies camouflaged in the darkness, it is hard to know where the plot will next take us. Entwining fact and fiction...the narrative dissects an essential period of British military history whilst also capturing the courageous and demonic faces of man. Raw, terrifying and utterly enthralling."Bernard Cornwell says: "A novel of brutal authenticity, unflinching realism and compelling story-telling. An enormously impressive debut and I look forward to more of Paul Stanton's exploits!" Patrick Mercer says: "The Return is a gripping read in the best tradition of the military thriller...a heart-stopping story of bravery and betrayal."