In 1930's Malta, Robert Reardon, the son of a naval officer, discovers the grave of a Royal Marine Private, one of the last men to be hung at the yardarm of his ship.The boy grows up amid rumours and suspicions regarding the execution and vows to find the facts. Years later, Rob, now a married man, learns of an inheritance from a long deceased grandmother. Although meagre, her possessions include tantalising and shocking clues as to the truth behind the hanging.Rob and his wife Jane gradually uncover more than a century of conspiracy, cover up and governmental deceit. In Ireland the Good Friday Agreement has been signed and Power Sharing talks are in hand. Dark forces are deployed against the couple to prevent them exposing the truth.Alan Markland was born in Lancashire, England. As a young man he set out to sea. He is widely travelled and has lived and worked at one time or another in all the world's major continents as well as in some of its more remote islands. Retired from the sea, Alan returned to Lancashire where he continues to travel, this time overland and often by unconventional means: Bush taxis in West Africa, up the Niger in a canoe. He is particularly interested in American literature including Eudora Welty, Jack London, and Ernest Hemingway. Alan has recently published a collection of short stories called Plate Pies. The Reel of the Hanged One is the author's first novel. He is currently working on another one loosely based on his adventures at sea and overland.Publisher's website: http://sbpra.com/AlanMarkland