Boysie Oakes had been in some bizarre situations during his illustrious career, but nothing had quite prepared him for the events surrounding the Styles kidnap. Here he was in a Russian forest, dressed in the costume of an acrobat, accompanied - inevitably - by his acid boss, Mostyn, and by Rex Upsdale (a somewhat jumpy spy novelist) and the delectable Hester Havisham, a shapely photographer. Escapes and escapades in tanks and helicopter, and the exploits of an outrageous group calling themselves the International Travelling Circus were just a part of this extraordinary adventure. And the eternally incompetent and feckless Boysie needed a particularly strong grip on his cool when the shooting began...