FROM THE SUNDAY TIMES NUMBER ONE BESTSELLING AUTHOR ''A master storyteller'' Observer Summer 1914. A world on the brink of catastrophe.In London, 26-year-old Venetia Stanley - aristocratic, clever, bored, reckless - is having a love affair with the Prime Minister, H. H. Asquith, a man more than twice her age. He writes to her obsessively, sharing the most sensitive matters of state.As Asquith reluctantly leads the country into war with Germany, a young intelligence officer is assigned to investigate a leak of top secret documents - and suddenly what was a sexual intrigue becomes a matter of national security that will alter the course of political history.Seamlessly weaving fact and fiction in a way that no writer does better, Precipice is the thrilling new novel from Robert Harris.''The king of the page-turning thriller'' i Paper''Harris''s cleverness, judgment and eye for detail are second to none'' Sunday Times''Harris writes with a skill and ingenuity that few other novelists can match'' Financial Times''Harris is a master of historical fiction, a compelling author who brings to life the recent and ancient past'' TLS