John Wilcox – författare

1884. Queen Victoria''s hero General Gordon is under siege. Hoards of Dervish warriors, loyal to the Mahdi, the Sudanese warlord and Messiah, are baying for British blood. With a small army and diminishing supplies, Gordon fears Khartoum will fall.Ex-captain and one-time subaltern Simon Fonthill is summoned to Cairo on a vital mission. He must enter the heavily guarded city undetected and make contact with Gordon ahead of the relief force. Together with comrade ''352'' Jenkins, Fonthill makes the treacherous journey across the Nile. But when they''re captured by a sadistic Dervish patrol, it seems hope of a British victory is all but lost. Can Fonthill and Jenkins survive interrogation and save Khartoum . . . ?

In 1879 the redcoats of the British Army are universally regarded as the finest fighting force in the world. Among them is Lieutenant Simon Fonthill, dispatched to South Africa with much to prove: for Colonel Covington, his former Commanding Officer, has slanderously branded him a coward. In the Cape, tension is high. The Zulus, an independent nation of magnificently militant tribesmen, threaten the colonial government''s vision of a united South Africa. And Simon has been chosen for a particularly dangerous mission: to travel deep into Zululand to discover the intentions of the king. Simon encounters violence and imprisonment before he is faced with his greatest challenge. Escaping from the massacre at the Battle of Isandlwana, he must warn the tiny garrison at Rorke''s Drift of the threat posed by advancing Zulu impis. He has a chance to prove Covington a liar, but he may pay the ultimate price...

It''s 1880, and the atmosphere is explosive in the South African province of the Transvaal. The discovery of diamonds has bred greed and violence, while British forces contend with murderous bePedi tribesmen and subversive Boer farmers.Former army captain Simon Fonthill has had his fill of conflict. But when he hears an old friend has been kidnapped by diamond smugglers, he and his servant ''352'' Jenkins embark on a rescue mission. Yet this is only the beginning. For when the acclaimed General Wolseley decides to lead his column against the bePedi stronghold, Fonthill and Jenkins once again find themselves marching to war...

It is 1881, and General George Pomeroy-Colley, commander of the British forces in Natal, is planning to stamp out a rebellion. He is convinced the Transvaal Boers can pose no serious threat, but he needs reliable information. He calls on former army captain Simon Fonthill.A veteran of the recent Zulu and Sekukuni campaigns, Fonthill knows to never underestimate the enemy. He and his servant, ''352'' Jenkins, agree to carry out a covert diplomatic assignment. But the greatest test is yet to come. As the two armies converge on the heights of Majuba Hill, Fonthill and Jenkins are first into the fray. If they are to break the enemy, Colley''s men must hold the summit at all costs...

1882. Lieutenant General Sir Garnet Wolseley is under pressure. News of an uprising against the British powers in Egypt has reached London, and he must react decisively and forcefully. But there is little time to assemble an army and, for his campaign to succeed, he needs someone on the ground to assess the movements and strength of the Egyptian rebels. Fresh from a scouting mission in South Africa, former army captain Simon Fonthill is kicking his heels in Brecon. When the request from Wolseley comes, Fonthill and his servant, ''352'' Jenkins, accept the assignment, fully aware of the dangers they will face in hostile terrain without back-up. But they could never have foreseen the bloodshed that awaits them in the desert at Tel el Kebir...