Synopsis - Mark McCabe, a British 45-year-old Foreign Exchange trader unexpectedly finds himself reunited after 8 years with Brian Stowe, a former Special Forces buddy, now MI5 spook. Stowe enlists McCabe and his Singaporean assistant, the highly intelligent and very attractive Ying Lee, a 26-year-old trader, to help him uncover a suspected money-laundering plot within the very bank in which they both work. The money trails they uncover lead to a terrorist cell known to McCabe from his own murky past. The three protagonists quickly find themselves engaged in a deadly game of cat-and-mouse across Asia and the Middle East, uncovering the fraudulent work of a terrorist group linked to a Burmese drug cartel that is buying up large stakes in a British Bank with their dirty money. As the plot races along, questions are raised and loyalties become suspect. Who is this shadowy MI6 informer, the Rain Angel? And how is the British government involved? This is an up-to-date action packed page turner of a thriller. The author has obviously got first hand experience and knowledge of the financial industry and military operations and this comes through in his writing. Powell has managed to incorporate the recent global financial crisis with ongoing terrorist threats and created a thrilling read. The characters are believable and familiar with the influence of their real life counter parts as seen on any news channel in recent years easy to see. This association and compatability with real life 'characters' makes the story all the more believable as some of the responses of both Governments and Financial Institutions to the events in the book are similar to those the global public have seen and heard recently. The writing is easy to read and even with the complexities of the financial and trading systems systems, which are nicely explained and easy to understand even without much knowledge of how it all works (or in my case no knowledge), the story keeps it's momentum and pace throughout and doesn't get buried under too much detail. Even the moments building up to the action are tense as Powell gets us inside the head of the people involved so you feel the tension and anticipation building as they do. The flashbacks to various stages in the McCabe's life and his involvement in various covert operations with Stowe add depth to both his and Stowe's characters and gives the reader a better sense of who they were and who they are. And it explains a lot about the decisions and ultimate course of action they end up taking towards the end of the book. Speaking of which the book ends on a bit of a cliff hanger, that is brilliantly set up readyt for the next installment...of which I am waiting in impatient anticipation. Overall a superb first novel and a great start to a series that can only get better. If you like Andy McNab, you will like Mark Powell.