Andrew Cook, a historian and former Foreign Affairs/Defence specialist, has conducted a massive international research project with the assistance of colleagues in 14 countries and with privileged access to over 2000 previously closed or unpublished documents, including those from British and foreign intelligence agencies.

Uniquely, the author has also managed to trace many of the relatives of those who play a key part in Reilly's story. Their testimony and co-operation have helped knit together the missing piece in the jigsaw of Reilly's life.

This book fills a huge gap in the literature on Reilly, providing a significant amount of new primary evidence which focuses on his personal life as the key to cutting through the mystery and misinformation which still surrounds him. Moreover, this is not arcane information, of interest only to intelligence specialists, but fresh material which will bring Reilly alive to the general reader. The book...

• Reveals for the first time evidence suggesting Reilly's true identity, parentage and place of birth
   
• Presents a detailed account of his early life and career before he joined the Secret Intelligence Service (more commonly known today as MI6)
   
• Reveals the truth about Reilly's disappearance and death in 1925 and the identity of a close former colleague in SIS circles whose collaboration with the Russians aided his entrapment
   
• Uses new, independent and expert photographic analysis of the pictures of Reilly's corpse to ascertain their authenticity