The Flowers of the Forest(1980) was the second of Joseph Hone's quartet of 'Peter Marlow' spy novels, all now reissued as Faber Finds. It is an idyllic setting: the sunlit forest sweeping down to the valley, the heather loud with bees. But one hive stands dismantled and a man has vanished - Lindsay Phillips, section head in the Secret Service. Marlow thinks he has left the world of espionage behind, but unexpected pressures lead him to take up the search for Phillips - whereupon he is caught up in a web of violence and intrigue. 'This is the best thriller I've found in years, perhaps the best I remember... The weaving of the story is so close, so tight, that no image, no hint is ever wasted.' Isabel Quigly, Financial Times 'A pleasure to read.' Times Literary Supplement