The year is 1923. Sir Richard Hannay witnesses a murder on the ski slopes of Switzerland, but the local police seem intent on ignoring the crime. The fianc#65533;e of the murdered man tracks Hannay down bearing a ring engraved with mysterious runes, left to her by her dead fianc#65533;. She begs him to help find the killer. Hannay is sent undercover on a mission to Europe to uncover the meaning of the ring. It soon emerges that a plot with terrible consequences is being hatched. The murder was just one piece of the puzzle, and Hannay suspects that his old nemesis, Otto von Schwabing, is pulling the strings behind the scenes. As he gets closer to unravelling the mystery, he finds himself in mortal peril. All around him, political unrest boils just beneath the surface as post-WWI Germany struggles to deal with its new, crushing poverty. An enigmatic, dangerous leader is gaining traction in the south of Germany. Will Hannay crack the code before the conspirators seize power? Or will a bloody coup plunge Europe into another war? 'The Crucible' is a brilliant new Richard Hannay thriller, bringing the hero of 'The Thirty-Nine Steps' back to life in a new adventure. Matt Lynn's thrillers have been widely praised: 'A near-perfect thriller...he wraps a big idea inside an all action plot' - Sunday Express. 'A rattling yarn in the best traditions of the classic thriller.' - The Times. 'Brilliant, realistic and riveting; blistering front-line action' - Chris Ryan 'This is a fast-paced and well-told tale of derring-do that guarantees entertainment.' - City AM Matt Lynn is a writer and journalist. Endeavour Press is the UK's leading independent digital publisher.