A devilishly good read...

Eve Seymour was born in West Bromwich and spent most of her early years in the surrounding area. She was brought up by her father and brothers. Now married with five children, she began writing in her spare time. Previous writing credits include a number of short stories for the BBC. Whilst researching her novels she has spent a lot of time with the local police, including simulated training exercises with the firearms team.

The Mephisto Threat is the second book in the Paul Tallis series, following on from The Last Exile.

No job? No family? Few friends? MI5 wants you.

Paul Tallis was a police officer who shot a suspected terrorist in a Birmingham shopping centre, acting on poor intelligence. With his career over, Tallis left the elite firearms unit utterly disillusioned. A year later, he was approached by a shadowy figure working for MI5. After his first mission was largely successful, Tallis is on a new job in Istanbul, where he meets up with an old friend, crime journalist Garry Morello.

Tallis learns of a link between international terrorism and organised crime back home. On the run from the Turkish authorities, he escapes back to England to pass on his information and receive a new mission to go undercover and infiltrate the inner circle of a local crime lord who may know more about terror attacks being planned in Britain. Is he all he seems?

This was a very good book which moves along at a very good pace. It starts quickly and doesn't let up. There are plenty of shadowy government types, CIA spooks, undercover agents, double agents, bent police and gangland villains along the way. The obvious comparisons are with Ludlum and Forysthe, with a slightly more modern plotline. As the cover hints, there are elements of Bond and Bourne, but without all the fantastical gadgets and crazy stunts of those two well known fictional characters. Tallis is vulnerable, he can be harmed and he does feel pain.

Recommended for thriller and conspiracy fans everywhere - a fast paced read that will bring Seymour to the attention of many more people.