I confess to being addicted to this series, which draws on some unusual sources for its inspiration, not least the works of Rider Haggard. There is a lot to enjoy in here, not least the setting, for as well as the stunning backdrop of Morocco, with its picturesque towns, there are the Atlas Mountains, home to the mysterious Berbers.

Then there is the rocky relationship between Jade and her mother, setting the stage for the book’s theme of mothers and daughters along with other family ties. Of course there is the plot too, replete with danger and intrigue as Jade has to guess who is behind it all and try and stay a jump ahead. More unusually, this series has its dash of the supernatural, somewhat in the way Rider Haggard’s books do but less obtrusively. This is more to the fore in this novel, which has Jade overhearing a conversation from the far past as well as... but I don’t want to spoil the story. If you don’t care for this type of thing I can assure you that it is not a large part of the story, and all of it can be put down to the imagination if you wish. So maybe there truly is something for everybody in here - one for the keeper shelf, and possibly for my Top Ten books of 2008.