What are real spies like? Some, like beautiful Mata Hari, are every bit as glamorous as famous fictional agents such as James Bond. But, as you'll see, spies often live shadowy double lives, risking imprisonment, torture and execution for a chance to change history.
A former senior editor with Usborne Publishing, Paul Dowswell is now a full-time author. He has written many non-fiction titles, two of which were shortlisted for the Blue Peter Book Award. Powder Monkey, his first novel, was published to huge critical acclaim and was the first book in his wonderful Sam Witchall trilogy. Paul lives in Wolverhampton with his family.
Ernest Shackleton (18741922) was a junior officer under Robert Falcon Scott during the 19011904 expedition to the South Pole. His expedition on the whaler Nimrodin 1907 earned him a knighthood.Fergus Fleming is the author of Killing Dragons: The Conquest of the Alps, Ninety Degrees North: The Quest for the North Pole, and Barrows Boys.
