The Information Officer

By: Mark Mills

Narrated by: Robin Sachs

The Mediterranean island of Malta, still a British colony, is a strategic lynchpin under siege--literally the most bombed patch of earth on the planet. Max Chadwick is an officer with the British Ministry of Information and is thus charged with keeping morale high against all odds. If the Maltese bow under the weight of the daily assaults, the tide of the war could turn. Max spends his time with the military's top brass and the beautiful deputy editor of Il Berqa, the Maltese paper. And despite his better judgment, he has fallen for the wife of an influential and well regarded naval officer.

When the body of a beautiful young Maltese woman arrives at the morgue, the medical officer suspects she is the victim of something--or someone--more sinister than an air strike. It seems a serial killer is on the island using the war as a cloak for his crimes. The officer instinctually calls Max when he pries a shoulder tab with the British Naval insignia from the dead girl's hand.

Forced to keep his investigation from both the military and the press, Max sets out to unravel the mystery and unmask the killer. He realizes he is in over his head when the Lieutenant Governor's Office intervenes and insists Max end his investigation. Max can't help but wonder if they are random attacks or whether the killer has sophisticated political motives. What he discovers is far more disturbing than he ever could have anticipated and sets in motion a dangerous course of events that challenges Max's loyalties and endangers his closest friends.

©2009 Mark Mills (P)2010 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

For anyone who loved Casablanca, this is an unforgettable tale of love and murder set against the backdrop of the siege of Malta in 1942, from the author of the acclaimed national bestseller Amagansett.
"The Information Officer is a good thriller, a stunning book about human beings surviving under extreme circumstances, an eye-opener for anyone who didn't know the 'Malta story,' and a master-class in fluent storytelling. Yes, it's that good." (Mike Ripley, EuroCrime)

Sober, solid, satisfying

Mills is an accomplished author with an engaging style. This book grabs you from the start and keeps you interested until the last word.

Not to be missed

Mills explores evil within the mind of a serial killer and within the forces that resisted Germany at the WWII gateway to Europe, the island of Malta.
Max, the unlikely hero detective, is the master spinner of unpleasant information. The killer is also a spinner of information, the type that cripples defenses and allegiances.
This is a masterpiece on every level: superior fiction, interesting history, well-drawn characters, an involving plot, an everyman hero and the most chilling of villains.
The reader is also excellent.

Don't bother

Dreary beginning..and not much promise for it getting any better. Forced. Overdone. Try something else.