the fifth outing in the jonas forbes saga is set in western europe during the summer months of 1958. In july 1958 king feisal of iraq was assassinated and the uk foreign office have discovered his cousin, prince abdullah, is in danger. they hire jonas forbes to escort the prince from rome to london. it's not going to be an easy task and jonas comes to describe his charge as 'the awkward package'. the prince is a spoilt bully wallowing in 'la dolce vita' and with no intention of changing his ways. almost from the start prince abdullah hates jonas but very soon comes to fear him once he's seen his escort in action. by road and rail jonas and his charge use deception and violence to try and escape the contract placed on the prince's life with the mafia. but they fail and the threat crosses the italian border with them – especially as the mafia are prepared to sub-contract their task to the unione corse and even to a london-based gang to prevent jonas crossing the english channel with his charge.at no time and in no place can jonas feel free from danger,. the prince, however, becomes attached to sandra, a mysterious blonde who challenges the control of his suspicious escort. vanessa clarke, the girl friday of Jonas, is summoned from london to switzerland to help out but is quickly rejected by prince abdullah who is ready to complain about his guardians to anyone who'll listen. will the prince survive the journey – or perhaps even a frustrated jonas will throw him out of the train?based on historical research, this is a fast-paced thriller set against the background of roads and railways of western europe over fifty years ago.