Left, Right, and Centre

Paul Silverlight, a major figure on the far right of Britain's political stage, is murdered after a sensitive Pentagon document on nuclear policy is leaked to a British newspaper. The leak precipitates nuclear warfare in the Middle East, and while the world waits to see if the bombing will escalate, an inquisitive journalist and a weary Special Branch detective delve into the Silverlight case. Suspects abound: the deceased politician's sister is a leader in the peace movement; a rejected lover is the daughter of the Left's leading spokesman. Silverlight's connections to the CIA are traced via a war-games institute in Princeton, then backtracked to a venerable Cambridge don. Brandon, author of The Dollar Princesses, shows a deft hand at plotting and a fine ear for characterization in this thoroughly satisfying espionage mystery. (March 3)