The moment I heard how McAra died I should have walked away. I can see that now The narrator of Robert Harris s gripping new novel is a professional ghostwriter cynical, mercenary, and with a nice line in deadpan humour. Accustomed to working with fading rock stars and minor celebrities, he jumps at the chance to ghost the memoirs of Britain s former prime minister, especially as it means flying to the American resort of Martha s Vineyard in the middle of winter and finishing the book in the seclusion of a luxurious house. But it doesn t take him long to realise he has made a terrible mistake. His predecessor on the project died in circumstances that were distinctly suspicious, and the ex-prime minister turns out to be a man with secrets in his past that are returning to haunt him secrets with the power to kill.