Devil’s Helmet is the fifth book in The Island Connection series. My brief story description reads, “Colonel Peter Challinor threatens to wipe out hundreds, possibly thousands, of residents on the Isle of Man using the most toxic nerve agent ever synthesized. The hunt is on to find him and stop him, but time is short and there are plenty of places to hide. Hugh Bottomley arrives from the Ministry of Defence in London to help out where he can. But Sparky knows Bottomley’s past, and it is one that Bottomley wouldn’t like the public to be made aware of. Meanwhile, house-to-house enquiries turn up more than a toxic nerve agent, and the arrival of Rolien van der Laan does nothing to simplify an increasingly complex situation. It’s bound to end in tears.”

Devil’s Helmet concept

The concept of Devil’s Helmet is simple. What would happen if somebody were to use some of his own country’s population to test a biological weapon? Of course, nobody is going to be stupid enough to do that when they themselves could become contaminated. So the Isle of Man was the perfect location for General Sir Harold Barlow. An island with a population of 85,000 where the biological hazard could be contained simply by the geographical nature of being surrounded by sea. Sound far fetched? Think again, the Russians were said to have done exactly this many years ago.

Devil’s Helmet sub plot

The main plot is clear but in Devil’s Helmet we also see the return of Rolien van der Laan, who we first met in Walking on Water. Rolien is trying to track down her old flame, Hjalmar, but Hjalmar is more interested in staying below the radar. Having ‘borrowed’ some money from a London mob, he is unaware that ‘The Vicar’ (a psychopathic contract killer) is on his heels.

Have fun reading this thriller. There’s action, there’s skullduggery and there’s romance. It has it all!