himself away from it all, relieve his chronic anxiety, calm his deep distrust of other people. Relax.
Espionage is the furthest thing from his mind.
As a young man, with everything still in front of him, he had spent time in Brazil. Now, forty years or more later, he decides to go back. He has money, no ties, and nothing to stay at home for. It seems a simple plan, easily fulfilled. Arrange an itinerary, book a one-way ticket, lock up the house, get to the airport.
Then the enigmatic Mr Smith pays a call.
Tourism gives way to intrigue. His plans become disrupted by projects that at first pander to his language skills but become increasingly perilous. Jones is flown around South America to destinations of another's choosing, instructed by a Project Controller - human or robot? - and catapulted into a new and very different existence. Espionage. Mystery. Intrigue.
Who is he really working for? What do they really want? And why? With no apparent experience of this new world, Jones is way out of his depth, and in mortal danger. Moody men in suits, shape-shifting female agents and spooks are suddenly his daily companions. Just how far do these people expect him to take things? And if he cooperates, will they ever bring him back from the edge?
Evolving from a retired teacher into a spy - repurposed - his character and daily habits change, and faint recollections of his distant past materialise.
Ronald Jones wanted to travel. He got far more than he had bargained for.
Dowson, Oliver: - Following a long business career building and managing companies in many countries around the world, Oliver has now turned my hand to being an author. His first book, a travelogue "There's no business like International Business" was published in Spring 2022, recounting some of the unlikely and entertaining experiences he had in my business travels. His second book is a novel, "The Repurposed Spy", and Oliver is already busy writing the sequel, provisionally titled "Spies on Safari".Oliver's Number One passion is travel, and he has travelled extensively in over 140 countries, both for pleasure and business. He is also an enthusiastic amateur cook, and continues to dabble in international business matters. Evidence of these passions runs through Oliver's books. Born in Lowestoft, the most easterly town in England, Oliver moved to London when he went to university, and has lived there ever since. He studied Mathematics at Imperial College, then had a variety of jobs through my 20s, with a common theme of international business. In the early 80s he co-founded EnTech, an energy management consultancy, and then over the next 30 years developed that into a small multi-national, the first and biggest specialist energy and environmental data management company, with offices in ten countries.Now semi-retired, Oliver also provides some pro-bono support to young upcoming business people, writes articles on topics of interest, hosts the Grow through International Expansion podcast series and relaxes through cooking and travelling.Married with one son, and, so far, two granddaughters, he lives between London and Oviedo Spain when he's not travelling further afield!
