The Gilded Seal (53 page)

the whole team at Curtis Brown in London, who have done

such a fantastic job in looking out for me over the past few

years.

Thank you also to my editor Wayne Brookes, who I value

not only for his editorial skill and unshakeable faith in me,

but also for his boundless enthusiasm, which is a constant

source of energy and hope. My thanks of course also go to

Amanda Ridout and the rest of the team at Harper Collins in

the sales, editorial, marketing and creative departments that

Wayne pesters so effectively on my behalf, and who have

continued to work wonders for me.

For their help in researching this novel I would like to ac-

knowledge the Queensbury Estate (Drumlanrig Castle) in

Scotland, Apsley House (Wellington Museum) in London,

the Musée du Louvre in Paris, El Museo Napoleónico de La

Habana in Cuba and the staff of the Claremont Riding Acad-

emy in New York City.

As ever, many people helped in the original conception

and writing of this novel, but special thanks go to my family,

Ann, Bob and Joanna Twining and Roy, Claire and Sarah

Toft for their guidance and support. Many others have also

4 0 3 ac k n ow l e d g m e n t s

helped in the (painful!) editing process, most particularly

Anne O’Brien, Jeremy Green, and Jeremy Walton.

Victoria, Amelia and now Jemima—I know that the writ-

ing is tough on all of us at times, but you especially. Thank

you.

London, June 2007

About the Author

JAMES TWINING

graduated from Oxford University with a first-class degree in French

literature. After a brief career in investment banking, he set up his

own business and was eventually named one of the eight “Best of

Young British” Entrepreneurs in the
New Statesman.
Married and

living in London, James is the author of two previous novels featuring

Tom Kirk,
The Double Eagle
and
The Black Sun.

For more on James Twining,

please visit
www.JamesTwining.com

Visit www.AuthorTracker.com for exclusive information on your

favorite HarperCollins author.

PRAISE FO
R

THE WORK OF JAMES TWINING

THE DOUBLE EAGLE

“Meet Tom Kirk, hero of the nimble global romp

The Double Eagle
and heir to the throne

of the twisty international thriller,

a seat that has belonged to Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan

for more than two decades.”

Cleveland Plain Dealer

“Twining’s obvious research pays off

as we are treated to a compelling fusion

of real historical events and modern thrills. . . .

Kirk [is] an action hero as adroit and charismatic

as Clive Cussler’s Dar Pitt.”

Library Journal

“Twining lunges into the thriller genre

with this globe-trotting adventure . . .

[and] writes with enthusiasm,

giving us meaty characters and

a story that fairly stampedes along.”

Booklist

THE BLACK SUN

“There’s something for thriller fans of all types

in James Twining’s second novel . . .

The Black Sun
never loses speed—

all the way to the story’s culmination

in an abandoned mine in Austria . . .

The chapters are short and to the point,

and always end with some satisfying drama . . .

The Black Sun
is pure, unadulterated fun.”

USA Today

“The author follows
The Double Eagle
(2005)

with this equally entertaining sequel. . . .

Fast paced and exciting,

with a bigger-than-life villain,

a conflicted hero, and a solid payoff:

What more does a thriller need?”

Booklist

“If you want a damned good, traditional,

commercial thriller . . . then Twining is just the ticket.”

Telegraph
(London)

“Once again, Twining offers

a tremendously well-researched and

exciting adventure that delves into the secret orders

of the Nazi hierarchy and traces the history and lore

of Nazi plunder. This work takes readers

on a journey full of twists and surprises as Kirk races

to find Russia’s legendary Amber Room.”

Library Journal

“If you enjoyed James Twining’s action-packed

art-theft thriller
The Double Eagle
,

you’re sure to get a similar charge

from its sequel,
The Black Sun
.”

Chicago Tribune

“A story that harks back to the Nazis,

Hitler, and a legendary treasure.

What more could you want?

If there’s a better thriller this year,

I would like to see it.”

Jack Higgins,

bestselling author of
The Eagle Has Landed

By James Twining

The Gilded Seal

The Black Sun

The Double Eagle

Copyright

This book is a work of fiction. The characters,

incidents, and dialogue are drawn from the author’s

imagination and are not to be construed as real.

Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living

or dead, is entirely coincidental.

THE GILDED SEAL. Copyright © James Twining

2007. All rights reserved under International and

Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By

payment of the required fees, you have been

granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to

access and read the text of this e-book on-screen.

No part of this text may be reproduced,

transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse

engineered, or stored in or introduced into any

information storage and retrieval system, in any

form or by any means, whether electronic or

mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented,

without the express written permission of

HarperCollins e-books.

Adobe Acrobat eBook Reader May 2009

ISBN 978-0-06-187848-0

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

About the Publisher

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http://www.harpercollinsebooks.com

• Title Page
  
• Dedication Page
  
• Epigraph Page
  
• Contents
  
  • Historical Background
    
  • Prologue
    
  • Part One
    
    • Chapter One
      
    • Chapter Two
      
    • Chapter Three
      
    • Chapter Four
      
    • Chapter Five
      
    • Chapter Six
      
    • Chapter Seven
      
    • Chapter Eight
      
    • Chapter Nine
      
    • Chapter Ten
      
    • Chapter Eleven
      
    • Chapter Twelve
      
    • Chapter Thirteen
      
    • Chapter Fourteen
      
    • Chapter Fifteen
      
    • Chapter Sixteen
      
    • Chapter Seventeen
      
    • Chapter Eighteen
      
  • Part Two
    
    • Chapter Nineteen
      
    • Chapter Twenty
      
    • Chapter Twenty-One
      
    • Chapter Twenty-Two
      
    • Chapter Twenty-Three
      
    • Chapter Twenty-Four
      
    • Chapter Twenty-Five
      
    • Chapter Twenty-Six
      
    • Chapter Twenty-Seven
      
    • Chapter Twenty-Eight
      
    • Chapter Twenty-Nine
      
    • Chapter Thirty
      
    • Chapter Thirty-One
      
    • Chapter Thirty-Two
      
    • Chapter Thirty-Three
      
    • Chapter Thirty-Four
      
    • Chapter Thirty-Five
      
    • Chapter Thirty-Six
      
    • Chapter Thirty-Seven
      
    • Chapter Thirty-Eight
      
    • Chapter Thirty-Nine
      
    • Chapter Forty
      
    • Chapter Forty-One
      
    • Chapter Forty-Two
      
    • Chapter Forty-Three
      
    • Chapter Forty-Four
      
    • Chapter Forty-Five
      
    • Chapter Forty-Six
      
    • Chapter Forty-Seven
      
    • Chapter Forty-Eight
      
    • Chapter Forty-Nine
      
    • Chapter Fifty
      
  • Part Three
    
    • Chapter Fifty-One
      
    • Chapter Fifty-Two
      
    • Chapter Fifty-Three
      
    • Chapter Fifty-Four
      
    • Chapter Fifty-Five
      
    • Chapter Fifty-Six
      
    • Chapter Fifty-Seven
      
    • Chapter Fifty-Eight
      
    • Chapter Fifty-Nine
      
    • Chapter Sixty
      
    • Chapter Sixty-One
      
    • Chapter Sixty-Two
      
    • Chapter Sixty-Three
      
    • Chapter Sixty-Four
      
    • Chapter Sixty-Five
      
    • Chapter Sixty-Six
      
    • Chapter Sixty-Seven
      
    • Chapter Sixty-Eight
      
    • Chapter Sixty-Nine
      
    • Chapter Seventy
      
    • Chapter Seventy-One
      
    • Chapter Seventy-Two
      
    • Chapter Seventy-Three
      
    • Chapter Seventy-Four
      
    • Chapter Seventy-Five
      
    • Chapter Seventy-Six
      
    • Chapter Seventy-Seven
      
    • Chapter Seventy-Eight
      
    • Chapter Seventy-Nine
      
    • Chapter Eighty
      
    • Chapter Eighty-One
      
    • Chapter Eighty-Two
      
    • Chapter Eighty-Three
      
    • Chapter Eighty-Four
      
    • Chapter Eighty-Five
      
    • Chapter Eighty-Six
      
    • Chapter Eighty-Seven
      
    • Chapter Eighty-Eight
      
    • Chapter Eighty-Nine
      
  • Epilogue
    
  • Note from the Author
    
  • Acknowledgments
    
  • About the Author
    
  • Praise
    
  • By James Twining
    
  • Copyright Notice
    
  • About the Publisher