Born into a communist family which he describes as a cult, Mark Edmonds went on to study at the International Communist School in Moscow.

His father, Lloyd, had fought against the army of the Spanish fascist, Gen. Francisco Franco, who launched a civil war in Spain against the popularly elected Republican government. But Mark chose to not live as a red rebel on the fringes of society. Instead, he went out into the real world while keeping some of his inherited rebelliousness.

He worked as a taxi driver in Melbourne and as a rookie journalist on a Communist party newspaper. He was a photographer, bookshop owner, and community radio program presenter. He ultimately achieved his dream career as a mechanical design engineer, becoming a high-flying engineering project manager and family man. Eventually, he earned the nickname hit man for protecting his employer's financial interests against the manipulations of a bullying construction site manager.

Join the author as he looks back at how he escaped a political cult, the people he's met and loved, and those he's crossed swords with along the way.