Gerald Hammond is the exception to the rule; an honourable spy, whose lofty principles have brought him nothing but loneliness and isolation. Catherine Schmidt is the stunning young daughter of an assassinated spymaster, whose murderous quest for vengeance has left her at the mercy of the infamous Head of Soviet State Security.

On a covert operation, in Soviet-occupied Germany, Hammond has no knowledge of the unseen forces that sponsor and oppose his mission. He only knows that he must somehow save her to save himself, but, as ever-more disturbing revelations come to light, begins to wonder which poses the greater threat; the enemy he runs from, or the friend he runs to?

Set against a factual background of government conspiracy, and one of the most audacious espionage coups in history, the Folks at Fifty-Eight is a beautifully-paced tale of seduction, betrayal, blackmail, and murder that blurs the boundaries between fact and fiction.

“I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It’s well-written, kept my interest, taught me some things, and dealt with a period of time and topic that are favorites. How could it get any better?” – Amazon Reviewer, 5 Stars

Michael Patrick Clark was born on The Fourth of July 1950.
He spent the first few years of his life in an orphanage, before adoption brought a new home and a change of name.
Michael joined the armed forces as a boy apprentice. He trained in telecommunications, and subsequently transferred to a specialist mobile-communications unit.
Over the ensuing years he travelled the world; living and working in environments as exotic, hostile, and diverse as the Libyan Desert, Europe, the Australian outback, South-East Asia, and Central and South America.
In the late seventies Michael moved into the high-tech industry. He worked predominantly on international consultancy, for U.S. based communications and computer manufacturers, but after twenty-five years in the industry, made the life-changing decision to move to Spain, with his wife Pamela, and write novels.
Since then he has completed the first and last parts of The Etzel Trilogy, The Folks at Fifty-Eight being the first. He has also written Flying with Cuckoos, an amusing and heart-warming account of his tortuous journey from the orphanage to Special Forces: due for publication later this year.