William A. Prater was educated at Esher and sang with Esher Parish Church choir until his fourteenth year. Marking time with a variety of jobs until old enough, he signed with the Regular Army (REME) in 1948. The young soldier saw service in Hong Kong - where he won a tournament championship as a lightweight, and served with the 1st Commonwealth Division during the Korean War. Returning to civilian life in 1961, he joined a nationally-known pre-cast concrete manufacturer and in 1966 became works manager at one of their factories in Cheshire. He later joined a building company as an administrator and his appointment to general manager followed in 1975. He is a keen photographer and a licensed radio amateur, making friends around the world in places as far away as Australia and New Zealand. After retiring, Bill resurrected his love of writing and eventually published his psychological thriller, The Flyleaf Killer; adopting a totally different genre for his fantasy adventure, The Key to Skandos. If you enjoy reading something out of the ordinary, this might well be the book for you.It certainly was for reader Peter Halsall, who says: 5.0 out of 5 stars Wow what a good book, 9 Jan 2015This book is well written and is a fantasy. It reads very well, the story is easy to follow and although aimed at children it is good for any age. The characters are all plausible and even the 'animals' seem to come alive within the story. As you progress through the book the story gathers momentum. One of the best books I have read in a long time. Well done.Read more about this authorRead less about this author