The Author’s Note from Robert Harris’ latest historical thriller, PRECIPICE, contains some eye-opening details about what you will be reading. Harris states that all of the letters and correspondence contained within the novel are real and taken directly from the originals. He also indicates that every character is real with the exception of intelligence officer Paul Deemer.

This really sets the stage for a work of political and social intrigue that is also fueled by more than a little forbidden romance during the early days of World War I. It is 1914 in London, and Prime Minister H. H. Asquith is literally watching his country at the precipice of both a civil war in Ireland and a world war. The latter was sparked by the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand and his wife in Sarajevo, pitting Serbia against Austria. Germany is backing Austria, and the allies against them immediately consist of Russia and France. Britain wants to “wait and see,” to quote a phrase that Asquith made famous, but their hand soon may be forced by internal and external pressures.

"The suspense comes from waiting to see what Deemer and military intelligence will do when they eventually have all the correspondence between Asquith and Venetia. The results are public record, but that does not take away from the enjoyment of reading another masterwork of historical fiction from the great Robert Harris."

There are two other characters of great prominence in PRECIPICE. The first is Venetia Stanley, the 26-year-old daughter of Sir Edward Stanley and a member of an eclectic group of wealthy young people. The other is the aforementioned Paul Deemer, who is investigating the deaths of two members of Venetia’s crew, “The Coterie,” who leapt from a steamship during a birthday party on the water and subsequently drowned. Venetia did not attend this gathering as she claimed she wasn’t feeling well, which was all a ruse to have another late-night rendezvous with Asquith.

As much as Asquith wants to stay out of the war due to the country’s economic straits, not to mention the tens of thousands of soldiers who need to be trained for a war initially predicted to last three years, the responses of the ultimatums made between Austria and Serbia do not go well. Once Britain is forced to get involved, the need for military intelligence to flush out German spies and sympathizers becomes crucial. As a result, Deemer is promoted into this small, specialized group where he begins hunting down potential spies and then focuses on government correspondence, which may be at risk of interception by the enemy.

This will put Deemer directly on the path of Asquith and Venetia, whose exchange of information that only those in the cabinet could know puts them under much scrutiny. It also will threaten Asquith and his job directly. However, his obsession with Venetia, despite being married with grown children, knows no bounds. The best parts of the novel are the letters back and forth, especially since they are all completely authentic. Asquith’s own cabinet supporters grow concerned when they see him attempting to have a clandestine visit with Venetia while she and her family are vacationing in Penrhos instead of focusing on the war effort.

The suspense comes from waiting to see what Deemer and military intelligence will do when they eventually have all the correspondence between Asquith and Venetia. The results are public record, but that does not take away from the enjoyment of reading another masterwork of historical fiction from the great Robert Harris.