The Balkan Escape Ebook

As a favor to enigmatic billionaire Henrik Thorvaldsen, Cassiopeia Vitt treks into Bulgaria's Rila mountains in search of a buried stash of exceedingly rare artifacts from a bygone civilization: the ancient tomb of a Thracian king. But when her presence is discovered by a shadowy group of Russians secretly mining the area, she needs a way out. Who to trust becomes the question, and her life depends on choosing the right option.

Steve Berry’s bestselling thrillers have mesmerized suspense fans around the world, but his novels alone can’t contain all the exciting exploits of death-defying agent Cotton Malone and his smart, sexy sidekick, Cassiopeia Vitt. Catch all the action between the blockbusters in this trio of suspenseful short stories that capture Cotton and Cassiopeia at their history-hunting, heart-stopping best. Read them as prequels to Cotton’s full-length epics or stunning stand-alone adventures. Either way, this eBook bundle packs all the punch adrenaline junkies have come to expect from the bold imagination of Steve Berry. “In Malone, Berry has created a classic, complex hero.”—USA Today THE BALKAN ESCAPE Prequel to The Emperor’s Tomb As a favor to enigmatic billionaire Henrik Thorvaldsen, Cassiopeia Vitt treks into Bulgaria’s Rila mountains in search of a buried stash of exceedingly rare artifacts from a bygone civilization: the ancient tomb of a Thracian king. But when her presence is discovered by a shadowy group of Russians secretly mining the area, she needs a way out. Whom can I trust? becomes the question, and her life depends on making the right decision. THE DEVIL’S GOLD Prequel to The Jefferson Key For eight years he’s been plotting, waiting, scheming to kill Federal agents Christopher Combs and Cotton Malone, whom he blames for the loss of his career. But as rogue agent Jonathan Wyatt prepares for a final confrontation in a remote South American village, he makes a discovery that stretches back to the horrors of World War II, to the astounding secret of a child’s birth, to Martin Bormann and Eva Braun—and to a fortune in lost gold. THE ADMIRAL’S MARK Prequel to The Columbus Affair Cotton Malone never cared for the shady dealings of his brother-in-law, Scott Brown. But after Scott dies while scuba diving, Malone heads to Haiti where he learns that, beneath the crystal clear waters, his brother-in-law had found the sunken wreckage of the Santa Maria, the fabled flagship of Christopher Columbus. Setting out to piece together what happened, Malone quickly realizes that he’s not the only man there with questions—and that he’ll have to fight just to get out of Haiti alive.

Conflict and war, but most of all overwhelming despair are driving massive numbers of mostly young people from the Middle East and North Africa, Central Africa, Ukraine and Central Asia to leave their homes for Europe in search of safety. What do they need most in order to lead their lives in peace and security? How can opportunities for a meaningful and secure future in their countries of origin be improved? How can the EU-acting in concert with its principles-support these people in their search for freedom, self determination and well-being? The book will contain a collection of essays, ideally from authors from different countries, and in particular, from the countries of origin of refugees. In these essays, authors are supposed to analyse the individual crisis regions at Europe’s front door and make concrete and practice-oriented proposals to improve and/or change the situation there.

When Flory's ancestors are forced to leave Spain during the time of the Spanish Inquisition, they take with them their two most precious possessions—the key to their old house and the Ladino language. When Flory flees Europe during World War II to begin a new life in the United States, she carries Ladino with her, along with her other precious possessions—her harmoniku and her music. But what of the key? Discover the story of Ladino singer Flory Jagoda.

In this original eBook novella by the New York Times bestselling author of The King’s Deception, globetrotting intelligence agent Cotton Malone is lured into dangerous intrigue surrounding the world’s most famous royals—and uncovers a murderous conspiracy of terrorists and traitors, all born from an ancient tale of Saxon history. “In Malone, [Steve] Berry has created a classic, complex hero.”—USA Today In England to participate in the trial of suspected international terrorists, Justice Department agent Cotton Malone is mysteriously summoned to an audience with the Queen of England. A cryptic call has warned of looming danger to the ailing queen’s son and grandson—the next two heirs in line for the throne. And when the source of that ominous information, a notorious tabloid publisher, dies mysteriously, the royal family has reason to fear a genuine conspiracy. But they also suspect that the enemy lies within—and no one at Buckingham Palace, or even the nation’s own Secret Intelligence Service, can be trusted. Now it’s up to Malone to discover the truth. Matching wits with a power-mad politician and a vicious royal blue blood, he must race against time through the streets of London to the forbidden reaches of Iceland, all to stop a monstrous plot to seize the monarchy—one that stretches back to the time of Arthur. Praise for Steve Berry and his Cotton Malone series “Malone, a hero with a personal stake in the proceedings, is a welcome respite from the cold, calculating superspies who litter the genre.”—Entertainment Weekly “Steve Berry gets better and better with each new book.”—The Huffington Post “Savvy readers . . . cannot go wrong with Cotton Malone.”—Library Journal “Berry raises this genre’s stakes.”—The New York Times “I love this guy.”—#1 New York Times bestselling author Lee Child

Greece, 1940. In the port city of Salonika, with its wharves and brothels, dark alleys and Turkish mansions, a tense political drama is being played out. As Adolf Hitler plans to invade the Balkans, spies begin to circle—and Costa Zannis, a senior police official, must deal with them all. He is soon in the game, working to secure an escape route for fugitives from Nazi Berlin that is protected by German lawyers, Balkan detectives, and Hungarian gangsters—and hunted by the Gestapo. Meanwhile, as war threatens, the erotic life of the city grows passionate. For Zannis, that means a British expatriate who owns the local ballet academy, a woman from the dark side of Salonika society, and the wife of a shipping magnate. With extraordinary historical detail and a superb cast of characters, Spies of the Balkans is a stunning novel about a man who risks everything to fight back against the world’s evil.

From New York Times bestseller Steve Berry, The Patriot Threat finds Cotton Malone racing to stop a rogue ex-KGB agent plotting revenge against the US

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER Includes exclusive bonus material Former Justice Department operative Cotton Malone has received an anonymous note carrying an unfamiliar Web address. Logging on, he’s shocked to see Cassiopeia Vitt, a woman who’s saved his life more than once, being tortured at the hands of a mysterious man who has a single demand: Bring me the artifact she’s asked you to keep safe. The only problem is, Malone doesn’t have a clue what the man is talking about, since Cassiopeia has left nothing with him. So begins Malone’s most harrowing adventure to date—one that offers up astounding historical revelations, pits him against a ruthless ancient brotherhood, and sends him from Denmark to Belgium to Vietnam then on to one of the greatest archaeological sites in the world: the tomb of China’s First Emperor, guarded by an underground army of terra-cotta warriors, which has inexplicably remained sealed for more than two thousand years—its mysteries about to be revealed. DON’T MISS A SNEAK PEEK OF STEVE BERRY’S NEW NOVEL, THE JEFFERSON KEY, IN THE BACK OF THE BOOK.

It was in Cetinje in August, 1900, that I first picked up a thread of the Balkan tangle, little thinking how deeply enmeshed I should later become, and still less how this tangle would ultimately affect the whole world. Chance, or the Fates, took me Near Eastward. Completely exhausted by constant attendance on an invalid relative, the future stretched before me as endless years of grey monotony, and escape seemed hopeless. The doctor who insisted upon my having two months' holiday every year was kinder than he knew. "Take them in quite a new place," he said. "Get right away no matter where, so long as the change is complete."