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Humphrey Hawksley

Goodreads Author

Born

in Woodbridge, The United Kingdom

Website

http://www.humphreyhawksley.com/

Twitter

@HumphreyHawk

Genre

Thriller, Military Fiction, Fiction

Member Since

October 2008

URL

https://www.goodreads.com/humphreyhawksley

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Humphrey is an award-winning author, podcaster and journalist whose assignments with the BBC have taken him to crises all over the world. The three books in his future history series -- Dragonstrike, Dragonfire and The Third World War -- have been praised as authentic, catastrophic scenarios which begin with a Chinese strike in the South China Sea. His Rake Ozenna espionage thriller series is set in the Arctic and High North, beginning with Man on Ice and a Russian invasion of the Alaskan island of Little Diomede. Rake is an island native and a special forces veteran with the Alaska National Guard. The late, great Nelson de Mille applauded Rake as being smart and tough, 'and we’re glad to have him on our side.' Humphrey's non-fiction work i ...more

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What are you currently working on?

Humphrey Hawksley I am structuring the third in the Rake Ozenna series www.manonice.co.uk and working on the promotion of the paperback of MAN ON ICE and the forthcomin…moreI am structuring the third in the Rake Ozenna series www.manonice.co.uk and working on the promotion of the paperback of MAN ON ICE and the forthcoming hardback of MAN ON EDGE. Developments in Asia also keep me busy with a articles about China, Taiwan and Hong Kong www.humphreyhawksley.com/journalism (less)

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Where did you get the idea for your most recent book?

Humphrey Hawksley Back in 2014, when Russia was enmeshing Ukraine in a new civil war, I opened an old Times Atlas that I keep in my study to find an interesting place t…moreBack in 2014, when Russia was enmeshing Ukraine in a new civil war, I opened an old Times Atlas that I keep in my study to find an interesting place to go, one that could tell the story of rising U.S.-Russian tension, but not where everyone else was traveling.

My eyes drifted over dog-eared pages of the atlas until they settled far away on the Bering Strait where Russia and America actually shared a border, where former vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin was mocked when she said Americans could see Russia from Alaska.

In the middle of the Bering Strait are two islands, barely two miles apart. One, Big Diomede, hosts a Russian military base. The other, Little Diomede, is a settlement of less than hundred Eskimo villagers, living in one of the most remote and hostile environments of the world. Without doubt, this had to be my destination.

From the air, as the helicopter descended through fog, these rival islands appeared like sentinels keeping vigil over a vast, empty expanse. On the ground, stilted buildings clung to a steep hillside washed with a blue-gray hue contrasted by the helipad’s orange windsock, stretched horizontal in a fierce wind. I worked with a talented Indian video photographer www.poulomibasu.com and because of bad weather we stayed more than a week, every morning getting up and, just like Sarah Palin had described, seeing Russia from Alaska.

Astonishingly, this frontier between two superpowers was unmarked, no border posts, no buoys in the water, no national flags on either island; on Little Diomede, no state troopers, no police, no government presence and, when the helicopter flew off, no way of leaving.

Across the water on the ridges of Big Diomede we could see Russian military watch towers. This was far too special to leave to a single BBC report. It begged for a thriller because the only one I knew that touched on this border was Lionel Davidson’s brilliant Kolymsky Heights published in 1994.

What would happen, I asked myself, if the Russians crossed over and put up their flag. From that I created Rake Ozenna of the Alaska National Guard, a tough native of Little Diomede and his kick-ass fiancé, trauma surgeon Dr Carrie Walker, raising another question as to whether things would ever quiet down enough, both around and between them, to make the relationship work.

The book is Man on Ice was released in paperback in October and its sequel with many of the sam characters is due out in the UK November 29th and North America March 1st 2020. (less)

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Humphrey Hawksley’s books

Average rating: 3.96 · 2,467 ratings · 274 reviews · 27 distinct works • Similar authors

	MAN ON ICE an action-packed, high-octane thriller 4.13 avg rating — 497 ratings — 9 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Third World War 3.80 avg rating — 493 ratings — published 2003 — 10 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Dragon Fire: The Realistic and Gripping Novel of the Next War 3.86 avg rating — 314 ratings — 9 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Asian Waters: The Struggle Over the South China Sea and the Strategy of Chinese Expansion 4.01 avg rating — 206 ratings — published 2018 — 16 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Man on Edge (Rake Ozenna Thriller #2) 4.31 avg rating — 193 ratings — published 2007 — 8 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	MAN ON FIRE an action-packed, high-octane thriller 4.30 avg rating — 171 ratings — published 2021 — 5 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Democracy Kills 3.81 avg rating — 101 ratings — published 2009 — 6 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	ICE ISLANDS an action-packed, high-octane thriller 4.61 avg rating — 71 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Ice Islands (Rake Ozenna Thriller #4) 4.34 avg rating — 62 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Red Spirit 3.37 avg rating — 52 ratings — published 2001 — 7 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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Humphrey Hawksley's Blog

Voices of Fleet Street

Join our panel of journalists as they take a joyous trip down memory lane to the heyday of Fleet Street. BBC foreign correspondent Humphrey Hawksley has reported on crises all over the world. Emma Lee-Potter is a journalist and novelist who wrote for the Evening Standard and Sunday Express in the 1980s and 1990s. Shekhar Bhatia has worked for The Observer, Sunday Mirror, Daily Express and Evening

Series by Humphrey Hawksley

Rake Ozenna Thriller (4 books)
by

Humphrey Hawksley (Goodreads Author)

4.21 avg rating — 918 ratings

An Agent Kat Polinski Thriller (1 book)
by

Humphrey Hawksley (Goodreads Author)

4.29 avg rating — 199 ratings

Humphrey is Currently Reading

Humphrey Hawksley is currently reading

GENOCIDE : Personal Stories, Big Questions (BIG STORY Book 1)

by Heidi Kingstone

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Jul 05, 2025 03:39AM

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In Too Deep (Jack Reacher #29)

by Lee Child (Goodreads Author)

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Jun 15, 2025 04:03PM

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Autocracy, Inc: The Dictators Who Want to Run the World

by Anne Applebaum

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Mar 20, 2025 10:28AM

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Humphrey’s Recent Updates

Humphrey Hawksley wrote a new blog post Voices of Fleet Street Join our panel of journalists as they take a joyous trip down memory lane to the heyday of Fleet Street. BBC foreign correspondent Humphrey Hawksley h Read more of this blog post »
Apr 20, 2026 05:42AM · like
Humphrey Hawksley rated a book it was amazing The Blackhouse (Lewis Trilogy, #1) by Peter May (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Atmospheric, vivid, Deeply transports you into the harsh island community of the Outer Hebrides with compelling and fraught murder mystery. The scenes of landscape and weather are stunning.
Mar 15, 2026 10:28PM · like · see review
Humphrey Hawksley is currently reading GENOCIDE : Personal Stories, Big Questions (BIG STORY Book 1) by Heidi Kingstone	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jul 05, 2025 03:39AM · like
Humphrey Hawksley made a comment on Beverly’s review of Dragon Strike " This review is not about Dragon Strike. "
Jul 01, 2025 02:48PM · see review
Humphrey Hawksley is currently reading In Too Deep (Jack Reacher #29) by Lee Child (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jun 15, 2025 04:03PM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of In Too Deep by Lee Child. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — In Too Deep by Lee Child <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Humphrey Hawksley is currently reading Autocracy, Inc: The Dictators Who Want to Run the World by Anne Applebaum	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Mar 20, 2025 10:28AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Autocracy, Inc by Anne Applebaum. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Autocracy, Inc by Anne Applebaum <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Humphrey Hawksley rated a book it was amazing The Master and His Emissary: The Divided Brain and the Making of the Western World by Iain McGilchrist (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Mar 13, 2025 01:40AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Master and His Emissary by Iain McGilchrist. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Master and His Emissary by Iain McGilchrist <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Humphrey Hawksley rated a book really liked it Gabriel's Moon by William Boyd	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Feb 15, 2025 11:22AM · 1 like · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Gabriel's Moon by William Boyd. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Gabriel's Moon by William Boyd <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Humphrey Hawksley is currently reading The Last Days of Budapest: Spies, Nazis, Rescuers and Resistance, 1940–1945 by Adam LeBor	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
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Humphrey Hawksley is currently reading The Janus Stone (Ruth Galloway, #2) by Elly Griffiths (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
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Quotes by Humphrey Hawksley (?)

“He fidgeted with cufflink.”
― Humphrey Hawksley, MAN ON FIRE an action-packed, high-octane thriller

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“But military rule destroys the imagination of the people. Science, arts, the ingredients of a great civilization cannot flourish from the barrel of a gun.”
― Humphrey Hawksley, The Third World War: A Terrifying Novel of Global Conflict

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Topics Mentioning This Author

topics	posts	views	last activity
Free Kindle Ebooks: FREE Engaging Spy Thriller- Friends and Enemies	1	9	Jul 31, 2013 04:12AM
English Translati...: * Finland	101	655	Apr 08, 2018 11:30AM