Durante una visita a un antiguo compañero de las SAS, en Italia, Ben Hope se distrae un momento al volante, y por poco atropella a un niño. Este encuentro fortuito hará que, sin saberlo, se encamine a la misión más letal que haya vivido nunca.
La implicación de Ben con la familia del chico irá a más cuando sea testigo de su brutal asesinato durante el robo en una galería. Un dibujo de Goya, aparente menor, parece ser el principal objetivo tras tan violento atraco. En manos de Ben está descubrir la verdad oculta tras esa obra. Injustamente acusado de asesinato y viéndose obligado a huir, deberá llegar al centro de la conspiración de la Medusa Negra mientras aún tenga oportunidad…

Let's not pretend this is the best Ben Hope book. Unusually for this series the McGuffin is weak and of little intrinsic interest. And there is a pointless sub-plot which is left hanging. At least it's brief. Also, at one point a character is described as having different coloured pupils. I think we can be fairly sure Mariani means irises. There are lots of little mistakes like that.

Despite these problems this is a fun read. Very fast paced. There's a scene where the goodie cuts the baddie's fingers off with an axe and quips “That'll save you money on guitar lessons”. And it's for moments like that that we read these books with such pleasure. ( )

If you love Scott Mariani's Ben Hope series, you'll love this one too. Action, adventure, danger, treasure maps, missing treasures, historical references, it's all there. More compelling than some of his previous works, it's well worth the read. I personally feel it could have done without some of the romantic entanglement aspects to the story, but that's just me.

Also, a word about the "Ben Hope universe" - others have said that it's not necessary to read them in order, and strictly speaking that's true in the sense that each book is a self-contained story.
However, Mariani does tend to reference earlier incidents in all of his books. Thus, reading them in order allows you to understand those references - this, along with the deeper understanding of the Ben Hope psyche, provides a greater reading experience in my opinion. ( )

Yet another great page turner from Scott Mariani. Ben hope has a habit of turning up in the wrong place at the right time, this time at a party to which he was invited by the mother of a boy whose life he had saved. Bad news for the bad man! ( )

SUMMARY: Some secrets should stay buried'? web of deceit ' and Ben Hope is caught in the mayhem. . .Whilst visiting a former SAS comrade in Italy, a distracted Ben nearly runs over a young boy ' and unwittingly walks into his deadliest mission yet.Ben's involvement with the boy's family runs deeper as he witnesses their brutal murder at a gallery robbery. A seemingly worthless Goya sketch was the principal target in the bloodbath heist. Now it's up to Ben to find out the truth behind the elusive painting.Wrongly accused of murder and forced to go on the run, he must get to the heart of the conspiracy while he still has the chance. . .