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Clive Egleton has written almost thirty books including CRY HAVOC. Peter Ashton is now department head of the Eastern European desk. This advancement was not his first choice. He would rather remain in the field; however, he approaches this job with the knowledge that he can handle anything thrown at him. This attitude is good because SIS has been facing its share of recent trouble. Someone has been stealing top-secret information as well as causing general confusion. While on vacation, one of SIS’ senior agents, Jill Sheridan is drugged and participates in a pornographic home video. A terrorist group, who wants vital information about operations as well as other SIS agents, is now blackmailing her. Sheridan will not allow anything to stand in the way of her climbing to the top and uses her connections to maintain her position at SIS. Even though she has been compromised, possible personal gain far outweighs any possible danger to others. It is obvious that Ashton and Sheridan do not agree on anything nor do they get along. Since Ashton is no longer an active field agent, he is forced to rely on Will Landon to investigate Sheridan's claims. With the clock ticking down, Ashton must protect SIS and Britain's population from terrorists' threats both real and imaginary. Like most spy novels, CRY HAVOC is primarily driven by the need for power and ambition. Jill Sheridan is a prime example of this drive. She does not allow her "escapade" in a porn flick to prevent her from maintaining her job. In fact, rather than resign, she attempts to use this blackmail attempt as a way to infiltrate the terrorist group. Although there is nothing normally wrong with ambition, it does overshadow any ounce of human character she might have had. It is difficult to feel sympathy for her character and her trials. Even Peter Ashton is not free from ambition. Although he does not want job advancement the way Sheridan does, he does want Sheridan to be realistic and responsible for her actions. He is also incredibly ambition in relationship to his job – he wants to protect Britain from terrorists. Terrorists, of course, want power for their country or cause and like Sheridan will allow nothing to stand in their way. Clive Egleton has captured the feel of a spy novel while giving it a British twist. CRY HAVOC was more interesting and more developed than many of the books by Egleton's American counterparts; yet probably lesser known. As Egleton continues to prove, his place in the genre of spy thrillers is richly deserved.
Reviewed by Sarah Dudley, August 2003
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