After hitching a ride south, Smiler finds his way to North Devon and the estate of the 'The Duchess' – a former fairground fortune-teller who now runs a farm. Here, he stays and tends to circus animals housed for the winter.
When a peregrine falcon, Fria, escapes, Smiler must search for ways of helping and recapturing the bird. In doing so, can he solve the problem that has kept him in hiding for so long?
Or does more trouble await?
Victor Canning was a prolific writer throughout his career, which began young: he had sold several short stories by the age of nineteen and his first novel, Mr Finchley Discovers His England (1934) was published when he was twenty-three. It proved to be a runaway bestseller. Canning also wrote for children: his trilogy The Runaways was adapted for US children’s television. Canning’s later thrillers were darker and more complex than his earlier work and received further critical acclaim.