Edmund Trothe is an agent with MI-5.
The series about the life of Trothe is a unique journey of a man going from being a routine, somewhat boring Civil Servant to becoming an adviser to government leaders, connected with MI-5, to a player in the oil business, to a man out for revenge against those who took everything from him.
As it starts, Trothe is a Civil Servant working for the Foreign Office. His most exciting day-to-day business is dealing with representatives from other countries competing with his. In that regard he is good at his job but hardly exceptional. He does his job well but without fanfare; essentially very much a gray man that people may see but never notice. At the same time, Trothe is an agent for MI-5, working at keeping the security of the nation safe, using his other government post as a cover. Since he is so plain and ordinary and truly unremarkable, efficient without being obsequious, he gathers loads on intel without anyone really noticing he is around.
Throughout the series, the life of Trothe is going to take some bumps and some knocks and make changes like few other series. This man in his late 40's who seems to others rather plain and frankly boring, with a loving wife and two children now just out the door, is going to see a much unhappier aspect to life as he learns of his wife's affair and her participation in a swindle that will cost him everything. His post with the government will get a major shake-up even as he learns that his wife has learned of his many dalliances over the years. And that is just at the beginning.
But while his personal life is taking these beatings, and then correcting itself only to be hit again from other directions, his work as an agent must continue.