NEWS

Posted on 17 October, 2025

The sequel to Quantum of Menace has been announced. Q will return in 2026 in the second in Vaseem Khan’s series set in the 007 universe. Packed with sharp humour, puzzling mysteries, adrenaline-pumping scenes and a colourful cast of characters, The Man With The Golden Compass takes us back to Q’s world in the market-town of Wickstone.

Fresh from successfully reinvestigating his childhood friend’s mysterious death, Q is hired as a civilian contractor by the police in his sleepy hometown to look into the unsolved murder of tech millionaire turned online antique dealer, Laurence Noble. Six months ago, Noble was tortured and killed, a circular object made of gold and inscribed with mysterious runes found in his pocket.

‘He’s come to Q’s hometown, bought a massive stately home, and then he’s been gruesomely murdered! The police discover him, and on his body they find a small, round disc coated in gold with Nordic runes — and that allows Q to get involved.’

As Q investigates, he finds himself dragged into a chilling conspiracy where past and present meet in a way he could not possibly have imagined.

The new book takes us further into Q’s life and introduces a Khan’s ‘favourite character in the series’ so far. ‘That is Q’s father, Mortimer Boothroyd. He’s a retired historian who Q has not spoken to for three decades for a reason that’s revealed in the book, and he’s just as prickly and just as acerbic as Q… so when the pair of them meet, sparks fly!’

The Man With the Golden Compass is set to be published in October 2026.