The Fourth Richard Karelius Adventure
May, 1810. Amidst the turmoil of the Peninsular War, a travelling theatre lies encamped near Salamanca. Behind its colourful façade lurks Eugenio Cavagnari, centre of a poison web of espionage extending throughout Spain. Whilst behind him stands the shadowy figure of His Excellency Joseph Fouché, head of the French High Police, aided and abetted by his henchman, the appalling Henri de St Clair, and the enigmatic Amerindian assassin the self-styled Remuet, whose very name is an anagram for Death.
Yet there are those who seek to cross His Excellency’s schemes: Richard Karelius, English soldier-spy with the King’s German Legion, himself an enigma – a dreamer obliged to play the part of a man of action; Columbine, the gypsy girl in love with him; and spy-catcher Jacques Thiercelin of the Army of Portugal, fiercely loyal to Napoleon, yet in many ways having more in common with his enemy Karelius than with his own devious allies of the High Police.
Treachery, romance and murder lead to a dénouement unforeseen even by the master of intrigue who set affairs in motion: His Excellency.