If you are fond of spy novels and films, you’ll find much to enjoy in Paddy Hayes’ biography of Daphne Park, Queen of Spies. Park was born into poverty in Tanganyika in 1921, and later became the most senior female executive of the Special Intelligence Service, aka MI6.
Park’s journey from Africa to the upper echelons of the British establishment is a fascinating one — with tours through the Special Operations Executive which conducted intelligence operations in occupied Europe during World War 2 — and Park herself is an intriguing character.
There is much that many readers will find unethical and morally repugnant, such as Park’s role in the murder of the Congo’s first elected prime minister, Patrice Lumumba, and her relationship with Margaret Thatcher. Hayes does an excellent job of explaining how the clandestine services work, and Queen of Spies shines much-needed light on the darkest corners of political intrigue.