Mersiha is fiercely protective of her new family. And when, on the eve of her sixteenth birthday, she discovers that two of her father's company shareholders have made him an offer he's not expected to refuse, she decides to help. Whatever the risk. And Mersiha has been trained to kill.

The consequences of her interference are lethal because she has unearthed a dangerous conspiracy and the shareholders want revenge.

Stephen Leather writes: The Birthday Girl was my second book to be set in and around Baltimore. It was an attempt to write a Grisham-type thriller - young girl pursued by bad guys. The ending takes place in Colarado, with the heroine being chased by Mafia-guys on snowmobiles. A bit far-fetched maybe, I guess I was thinking in movie terms.

I love the central character, Mersiha, and the fact that she was a killer at a young age before she started her new life in the States. In a way she's like the hero of The Chinaman, underestimated by the so-called hard men, until she reveals her true colours.



Reviews:
"Action and scalpel-sharp suspense." - Daily Telegraph


"Terrifying, fast-moving and exciting thriller." - Independent, Ireland

"A whirlwind of action, suspense and vivid excitement." - Irish Times