It looks like Tim, the world’s worst private detective, and Nick, his brainy kid brother, are in trouble again. They’re dead broke. But money is the least of their worries when a mysterious man bursts into their office and offers Tim a wad of cash for his coat. Minutes later, the stranger is dead and Nick and Tim are left to puzzle over his final words. What could he have meant by "suff bee suff-iss"? Or was it "south by southeast"? Neither one seems to make much sense, but the Diamond brothers will have to figure it out, and fast! Whoever killed the stranger is now after Nick and Tim!

Anthony Horowitz is perhaps the busiest writer in England. He has been writing since the age of eight, and professionally since the age of twenty. He writes in a comfortable shed in his garden for up to ten hours per day. In addition to the highly successful Alex Rider ongoing series of?books, he has also written episodes of several popular TV crime series, including?Poirot, Murder in Mind, Midsomer Murders, and Murder Most Horrid. He has written?the television series?Foyle's War, which aired in the United States, as well as?the libretto of a Broadway musical adapted from Dr. Seuss's book,?The 5,000 Fingers of Dr. T.?He penned the script for the film?The Gathering,?which?was released in 2003, starring Christina Ricci. Horowitz has also written the?Diamond Brothers?series.