The Shepherd File

by Conrad Voss Bark

“Exciting” – The Daily Telegraph A dead man is found floating in the Thames after having a few drinks. Pretty clear case of accidental drowning, or suicide…right? Except this man was an agent for MI5. The dead man’s notes lead to a beautiful Russian secret agent. Inspector William Holmes is on the case, who discovers someone is weaponizing a recreational drug. Just a few ounces of LSD can spike an entire reservoir, sending millions of people into hysteria. But who is behind it? And why? What secrets will he find in The Shepard Files? Praise for The Shepherd “Great gorgeous galloping thriller-stuff” - The Sun “Exciting” – The Daily Telegraph “Breathless” – The Oxford Mail “Gripping” - The Manchester Evening News Conrad Voss Bark was born in 1913 in the Cottingham, East Riding of Yorkshire. He started out as a chocolate maker, but eventually got a job as a journalist for the Hampstead News and the Golders Green Gazette. He remained a journalist for the rest of his life, even going to work for the BBC in the 1950s. He began writing poetry and short stories before the Second World War and had several novels published, includingThe Shepherd File, The Second Red Dragon and See The Living Crocodiles. He travelled widely both as a reporter and a tourist and worked for the BBC as a Parliamentary Correspondent. He was best known for his series of Mr. Holmes detective novels, but he was also quite knowledgeable of fly fishing, writing several non-fiction books on the subject. Endeavour Press is the UK's leading independent digital publisher. For more information on our titles please sign up to our newsletter at www.endeavourpress.com. Each week you will receive updates on free and discounted ebooks. Follow us on @EndeavourPress and on Facebook via We are always interested in hearing from our readers. Endeavour Press believes that the future is now.

Hardcover

First published January 1, 1966

Reviews

[Faouzia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would like to thank NetGalley and the Publishers for this free copy of "The Shepherd File".

A dead MI5 agent, Scotland-yard, soviet agents, untraceable drugs, and even a small love story. A good mix of ingredient to make a very good book, and it was really a good one.
The story was very interesting.

It starts when the body of Peter Shepherd was discovered floating in the Thames. The real problem was that Shepherd was an MI5 agent, and he was last seen alive in a meeting with a beautiful Russian agent.
and as Mr Holmes was assisting Scotland yard with the investigation, they came across a lot of unexpected and worrying information.

I liked how the story developed, and the character of Mr Holmes was very interesting and fascinating.

I would recommend it to my friends :)

[April Morris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another thrift store gem--the cover of this paperback, published in 1966, proclaims "This Year's Number One Spy Thriller!!" And I believe it. This was good. A dead man is fished out of the Thames, and it turns out he's MI5. Autopsy points to suicide or accidental drowning while drunk, but Shepherd's friends and colleagues think not.

While the police and the foreign service investigate Shepherd's activity prior to his death, they discover a plot by African revolutionaries to use LSD to screw with British troops. What I found really interesting was the revelation of China's push into Africa even then, to foment communist revolution and exploit African resources. I thought that was a more recent thing, but looks like China has had Africa in its sights for decades.

Started a bit slow, but it really built into some crazy, heart-pounding action by the end.

[Dr Susan Turner · Rating 3 out of 5]

Somewhat dated (and gendered) but well-written tangled web of lives with a sort of Foreign Office 'hero' Mr Holmes (even) more important than detective Morrison. Trails and red herrings from Soviet Russia to Africa but action in the southern counties of England. Easy to read.

[John Purvis · Rating 4 out of 5]

“The Shepherd File” eBook was published in 2016 (original paper version published in 1966) and was written by Conrad Voss Bark (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conrad_...). Mr. Bark published 10 novels.

I received a galley of this novel for review through https://www.netgalley.com. I categorize this novel as ‘PG’ because it contains scenes of Violence. This Mystery / Thriller is set in England. The exact time is unclear, but it looks to be mid 20th century.

The main character is W. Holmes, an advisor on security to the Prime Minister. The body of an MI5 agent, Shepherd, is pulled from the Thames. He had been on loan to the Foreign Office to investigate an odd chemical plant in the Libyan desert. He returned abruptly to England, met with a beautiful Russian agent, then turns up dead.

Holmes investigates and discovers that the chemical operation is producing LSD, but towards what end he is not sure. Most in the British government think that the agent had simply been seduced by the Russian woman. They want to write him off as a traitor, or at least a man with poor judgement.

Holmes continues to dig and fears that there is a bigger threat to England and world peace. Holmes takes a few risks to seek the evidence he feels sure is just out of his reach.

I spent 4.5 hours with this short 174 page novel and enjoyed it. The Holmes is not Sherlock, but he seems like a modern version. You could tell from the story that it was older, but for the most part it still reads well. I give this novel a 4.4 (rounded down to a 4) out of 5.

Further book reviews I have written can be accessed at http://johnpurvis.wordpress.com/blog/.

[Robert Romberger · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Shepherd File

This was a classic spy/mystery novel with a very British flair. While there were a few typos that probably came from the update of the original version, they didn't detract from the story. Overall it's a great read.

[Carolyn Boyle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a thoroughly enjoyable, good old-fashioned spy thriller with a nice twist on the usual cold war scenarios. Well written and easy to read.

[Peggy Pleasant · Rating 3 out of 5]

A spy mystery novel that I truly enjoyed. It was entertaining but a mystery that you kept thinking you had it figured out and then you found another clue. A British novel with spies, both British and Russian