Jack Higgins lived in Belfast till the age of twelve. Leaving school at fifteen, he spent three years with the Royal Horse Guards, and was later a teacher and university lecturer. His thirty-sixth novel, The Eagle Has Landed (1975), turned him into an international bestselling author, and his novels have since sold over 250 million copies and been translated into sixty languages. Many have been made into successful films. He died in 2022, at his home in Jersey, surrounded by his family.

'First class!packed with action, atmosphere and ingenuity' Belfast Telegraph 'Hightly topical!highly inventive' Evening Standard 'Among the greats of the high--adventure storytellers' Evening News