An ex-MI6 agent is out to rescue a woman from his past who was kidnaped by the mob in this thriller from the CWA Steel Dagger Award–winning author of Firefly . On a deserted road in Calabria, Greek aid worker Anastasia Cristakos is driving to visit one of the new refugee centers funded by billionaire Denis Hisami—whom she has recently married. She slows down to greet two African migrants she recognizes. Only too late does she realize they are not her friends. This is an ambush.  Hours later, Anastasia wakes up on a container ship, powering eastwards across the Mediterranean. She's been abducted as bait to get to her husband. Denis has explosive information that his Mafia enemies have already killed for—and would be willing to kill for again. To find and rescue his wife, Denis turns to former MI6 agent Paul Samson. There's only one snag. Paul was, and probably still is, in love with Anastasia. "Porter handles every aspect of the complicated plot . . . with keen intelligence and compassion. Thriller readers looking for plenty of action, excellent writing, and credible, convincing characters will be rewarded." — Publishers Weekly Praise for White Hot Silence : “Compelling… The appeal and force of White Hot Silence springs from its convincing depiction of settings and characters, its palpable tension, and the enduring bond between Samson and Anastasia.”— Wall Street Journal “Henry Porter is one of our most accomplished thriller writers. As a Fleet Street veteran with an eye for news, he mixes current affairs with precisely engineered storytelling and complex, rounded characters. Firefly , his previous novel, set in the refugee crisis, was highly praised and set a high bar. White Hot Silence meets it…The climax of the book, on the bridge at Narva, the border between Russia and Estonia is nail-biting, with a poignant, Casablanca-style twist at the end. Anastasia is no passive victim, but also drives the story forward. Thriller writing at its best.” — Financial Times “[An] intricate tale of international financial skullduggery…Porter handles every aspect of the complicated plot, including the labyrinthine financial and political developments and the romantic triangle involving Anastasia, Denis, and Paul, with keen intelligence and compassion. Thriller readers looking for plenty of action, excellent writing, and credible, convincing characters will be rewarded.” — Publishers Weekly “A sequel to last year’s ripped-from-the-headlines Firefly …This frighteningly realistic political thriller will draw readers comfortable with the darker side of the genre.” — Booklist “Nine out of ten journalists who write thrillers on the side should stick to their day job, but among the few who do it superbly is Henry Porter…Porter, who for many years served as the London editor of Vanity Fair, is a whiz at both character and plot, and White Hot Silence can enthrall even those who have not yet read its predecessor.”— Air Mail “White Hot Silence by Henry Porter reunites the characters from his excellent comeback novel Firefly in another mad chase across Europe.”— Sunday Times (UK) Praise for Henry Porter: “[Porter’s] best book yet… Firefly is its own magnificent hybrid: partly a young adult adventure in the tradition of Huckleberry Finn and Harry Potter ; partly a le Carré-esque study of an outsider spy ambivalent about the messy business of espionage; and partly fictionalised journalism, and an impressive rendition of the mass flight from the Middle East that was clearly heavily researched and observed on the ground…it’s possible to imagine it challenging for the Orwell prize for political writing, such is the power of its depiction of the migrant exodus. Full of poignant scenes and mesmeric action sequences, it may be the first novel to do justice to the phenomenon’s epic scale.” –The Times (UK), on Firefly "With its vivid portrait of the flood of refugees moving west from Macedonia, Serbia and Turkey, the book could not be more timely, and Porter’s sympathy for the dispossessed is as cogent here as his skill at sustaining narrative tension." —Barry Forshaw, The Guardian , on Firefly “Splendid … tension is high throughout. Precocious 13-year-old Syrian Naji is an appealing, intelligent hero.” –The Times (UK), on Firefly “Porter can be trusted to know exactly how much sentimentality, how much action and how much inside information will make the perfect mixture. He is also a wizard with words. A very good thriller.” –Literary Review, on Firefly “A welcome return . . . Firefly seems ripped from the headlines and is both timely and terrific.” —Mick Herron, CWA Gold Dagger Award-winning author of Dead Lions , on Firefly “A classic chase thriller with an on-the-scenes look at the Syrian refugee crisis—it doesn’t get more contemporary than this.” —Joseph Kanon, Edgar-winning author of Los Alamos and Defectors, on Firefly “Firefly proves once again that Porter is both his own man and the proud carrier of the flag first u