Uttered by the abusive father of a nine-year-old girl, that phrase ended Jack s career as a police negotiator and has been haunting him ever since. Now that he is a struggling private detective, those words return with a vengeance when he inherits a mansion and some terrifying information. Apparently Jack s soul was sold at birth, and a devil will come to claim it on his thirty-third birthday just weeks away. It s a hard pill to swallow, given that Jack doesn t believe in hell (heaven, either). But when people close to him start to die, he is forced to consider that real evil may be at work, and if he doesn t find a way out, he ll be damned to hell for eternity.Dripping with brooding intensity, unrelenting suspense, and surprising wit, United Kingdom thriller master Stephen Leather s first book in the Nightingale series is a riveting, heart-stopping mystery with extraordinary range and power. Authentic...tersely written...exciting stuff with plenty of heart-palpitating action gingered up by mystery and intrigue... Daily Mail Leather is in the top rank of thriller writers. Jack Higgins, New York Times bestselling author