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Dr David Audley & Colonel Jack Butler #9
Tomorrow's Ghost
Investigating the personal life and military career of a British colonel under consideration for a top-secret promotion, Frances Fitzgibbon and Paul Mitchell uncover suspicious and perhaps murderous circumstances surrounding his wife's disappearance
256 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1979
14 people are currently reading
59 people want to read
About the author
Anthony Price
25 books39 followersBorn in Hertfordshire in 1928, Price was educated at King's School, Canterbury, and Oxford. His long career in journalism culminated in the Editorship of the Oxford Times. His literary thrillers earned comparisons to the best of Graham Greene, Ernest Hemingway, and Robert Goddard.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
April 20, 2019
Not as good as most in the series. No trademark history lesson to speak of, except maybe a little tidbit on Armistice Day. Very little of the key characters. Had potential to address criticism of casual sexism in the series with a lead female agent, but then blew that by falling back on stereotype of giving her "intuition" as her special talent.
February 12, 2019
Good, but . . . It is NOT his best by any means
Decent yarn with a token nod to David Audrey. But there were times I thought chunks were missing. I read all these works by Anthony Price a couple of decades ago: I do not remember them as being so choppy.
Decent yarn with a token nod to David Audrey. But there were times I thought chunks were missing. I read all these works by Anthony Price a couple of decades ago: I do not remember them as being so choppy.
February 17, 2020
"Tomorrow's Ghost" breaks the mould of Price's other books. Its hero is a heroine, a woman.
That, in itself, is not a problem, but I'm not convinced that Mr Price is very good at getting into the mind of the opposite sex. Our heroine, Frances, seems to be quite obsessed by her having to take on a flirty persona (tellingly, "Marilyn") when we first meet her. She seems almost a little too obsessed by appearance and - or did I imagine it? - her ability to succeed in a "man's world". She is constantly analysing her own behaviour in a very annoying and (in terms of the story) intrusive way.
I wasn't liking this aspect of the story.
What made it worse, in my view, was that Frances' male counterpart was a highly confident, even bombastic character who was obviously destined for the top.
OK, it was the 70s... but the women I knew then were confident, self-assertive. They could stand up for themselves just as well as any man. The problem lay in the system, not in the women.
So, putting that aside... with difficulty, the rest of the story is actually quite good. Frances has to investigate a rather grey area in Colonel Butler's background and does so with the ability one would expect her to demonstrate. But in the end she has to call in the "macho" squad and takes a back seat...
So this book annoyed me a good deal. At times I felt like abandoning it. All that angst and lack of confidence. All that soul-searching. Irritating. And his cliche manner of writing about the female sex...
Until the end, and then everything slotted together like the last piece in a jigsaw and it became a super story...
But, you know, it didn't have to be a woman... Mr Price could have done it with a man with the same effect and none of the apparent "sexism".
That, in itself, is not a problem, but I'm not convinced that Mr Price is very good at getting into the mind of the opposite sex. Our heroine, Frances, seems to be quite obsessed by her having to take on a flirty persona (tellingly, "Marilyn") when we first meet her. She seems almost a little too obsessed by appearance and - or did I imagine it? - her ability to succeed in a "man's world". She is constantly analysing her own behaviour in a very annoying and (in terms of the story) intrusive way.
I wasn't liking this aspect of the story.
What made it worse, in my view, was that Frances' male counterpart was a highly confident, even bombastic character who was obviously destined for the top.
OK, it was the 70s... but the women I knew then were confident, self-assertive. They could stand up for themselves just as well as any man. The problem lay in the system, not in the women.
So, putting that aside... with difficulty, the rest of the story is actually quite good. Frances has to investigate a rather grey area in Colonel Butler's background and does so with the ability one would expect her to demonstrate. But in the end she has to call in the "macho" squad and takes a back seat...
So this book annoyed me a good deal. At times I felt like abandoning it. All that angst and lack of confidence. All that soul-searching. Irritating. And his cliche manner of writing about the female sex...
Until the end, and then everything slotted together like the last piece in a jigsaw and it became a super story...
But, you know, it didn't have to be a woman... Mr Price could have done it with a man with the same effect and none of the apparent "sexism".
March 25, 2019
Solid character-centered mystery where the protagonist, a 28-year-old woman in the British Intelligence service is tasked to discover the truth about a General who's up for a major promotion. Or is she? Is she actually expected to just clear him of a decade-old murder, or maybe just to cast enough doubt to get him thrown out? This is the problem with spy stuff: Nobody's ever on the up-and-up.
My one issue, and I'll confess it's mine and not the books, is this: You know how at the end of the mystery when the detective wraps everything up? Spells it out for you? Done poorly or if you figured it out a lot earlier, it can even feel a little condescending, like "Duh...". But it leaves no doubt as to what happened. Yeah, I'm still not sure what happened here. I think I know who did it and how that played into the larger story but not any of the details.
Which again, to be fair, isn't really the point. Spy stories are about the convoluted plot lines and hidden motives. And for our heroine, putting the whole thing together in a world where she's probably being greatly underestimated is really her victory.
I felt that aspect of the book held up well, this 28-year-old widow trying to make her way in the chauvinistic spy world of 1978. She is frequently condescended to, often put in uncomfortable situations, and a romantic target for many of the men, young and old (and in one case, the daughters of a widower). Sometimes she can use this to her advantage, but when she's caught up in an helpful mindset, it's never for very long. She's not really warm or charming but you end up liking her nonetheless. That's good writing.
My one issue, and I'll confess it's mine and not the books, is this: You know how at the end of the mystery when the detective wraps everything up? Spells it out for you? Done poorly or if you figured it out a lot earlier, it can even feel a little condescending, like "Duh...". But it leaves no doubt as to what happened. Yeah, I'm still not sure what happened here. I think I know who did it and how that played into the larger story but not any of the details.
Which again, to be fair, isn't really the point. Spy stories are about the convoluted plot lines and hidden motives. And for our heroine, putting the whole thing together in a world where she's probably being greatly underestimated is really her victory.
I felt that aspect of the book held up well, this 28-year-old widow trying to make her way in the chauvinistic spy world of 1978. She is frequently condescended to, often put in uncomfortable situations, and a romantic target for many of the men, young and old (and in one case, the daughters of a widower). Sometimes she can use this to her advantage, but when she's caught up in an helpful mindset, it's never for very long. She's not really warm or charming but you end up liking her nonetheless. That's good writing.
December 20, 2019
This is Anthony Price finding his feet in the spy thriller genre and decided to bring two of his of his younger characters Frances Fitzgibbon and Paul Mitchell. With Audley in America, both had been assigned to dig some dirt of his colleague Colonel Butler to stop him getting promoted where he would have access to to top secret material. As usual with Anthony Price there are plenty of twists and turns as they realise they have been used. The last third lifts up the pace to a nerve tingling finale, proving how underated Price was in the genre. Well worth reading for anybody wanting something special
December 4, 2025
Anthony Price is a thinking person’s betterment to John Le Carre
The David Audley books succeed where George Smiley stops. Of all the Anthony Price spy/murders (all 19 of them), this is the best. No question! Follow the convoluted windings as doomed France’s Fitzgibbon solves the mystery and fatally saves the day.
The David Audley books succeed where George Smiley stops. Of all the Anthony Price spy/murders (all 19 of them), this is the best. No question! Follow the convoluted windings as doomed France’s Fitzgibbon solves the mystery and fatally saves the day.
September 17, 2017
One of Anthony Price's series of spy novels set in a fictional MI5. Gripping thriller with a twist. Somewhat similar to Le Carre.
January 7, 2022
Less Audley, some Butler. Engrossing and brought characters through from WWII. I appreciated the contemplation on being manipulated and who to trust.
February 3, 2016
Update: I originally read this in April of 2012, and wasn't terribly enamored of it (only a two star rating then) but upon rereading, in a more tranquil period, I've come to rather like it. Part of that wariness remains, though in fairness, I need to read some of Price's earlier books, to get better acquainted with Butler and Audley.
I will confess that I'm still not entirely sure WHY the chief protagonist, Frances, was being sent pillar to post thusly, other than Butler, the man whom she was investigating, was:
a) under suspicion in the disappearance of his wife nine years before, because husbands always are and
b) now up for a promotion to an incredibly high though not top position in an incredibly secretive British government agency.
But then I always rather felt that way about le Carré's books! Which is not surprising.
That said, I do appreciate, and I cannot express fully how important this is to me, Price does clearly telegraph both the reason why Butler could not possibly have been involved in his wife's disappearance and the identity of the person who dies in the book's last pages. And that's all I'm going to say here, just in case there's someone who gets whiny about spoilers, even in books thirty-five years old.
Tomorrow's Ghost is part of Anthony Price's "David Audley" series, and as such might be better enjoyed if you've read the previous (and subsequent) book. While all the novels involve Audley and/or Butler, they're from the perspective of different primary characters, so keeping strictly to the publication order may matter less than with same-protagonist series, but for those unfamiliar with older espionage novel writing style, starting at the beginning might well be advisable. This is the first I've heard of Anthony Price, much less read any of his books; he quit writing over twenty years ago, so perhaps it's not surprising he's' not much in the news/publisher's crosshairs these days. Frankly, I'm not quite sure what to make of this book, and so am even less sure what else to suggest to fans of Price. John le Carré is the closest I can think of, in the sense of books about legitimate though undercover intelligence agencies, with connections (and opposite numbers) in other countries, whose activities are not entirely explained by the author. Perhaps not surprising, as Price mentions being influenced somewhat by le Carré.
(originally from my blog: http://josephinereadersadvisory.wordp...
I will confess that I'm still not entirely sure WHY the chief protagonist, Frances, was being sent pillar to post thusly, other than Butler, the man whom she was investigating, was:
a) under suspicion in the disappearance of his wife nine years before, because husbands always are and
b) now up for a promotion to an incredibly high though not top position in an incredibly secretive British government agency.
But then I always rather felt that way about le Carré's books! Which is not surprising.
That said, I do appreciate, and I cannot express fully how important this is to me, Price does clearly telegraph both the reason why Butler could not possibly have been involved in his wife's disappearance and the identity of the person who dies in the book's last pages. And that's all I'm going to say here, just in case there's someone who gets whiny about spoilers, even in books thirty-five years old.
Tomorrow's Ghost is part of Anthony Price's "David Audley" series, and as such might be better enjoyed if you've read the previous (and subsequent) book. While all the novels involve Audley and/or Butler, they're from the perspective of different primary characters, so keeping strictly to the publication order may matter less than with same-protagonist series, but for those unfamiliar with older espionage novel writing style, starting at the beginning might well be advisable. This is the first I've heard of Anthony Price, much less read any of his books; he quit writing over twenty years ago, so perhaps it's not surprising he's' not much in the news/publisher's crosshairs these days. Frankly, I'm not quite sure what to make of this book, and so am even less sure what else to suggest to fans of Price. John le Carré is the closest I can think of, in the sense of books about legitimate though undercover intelligence agencies, with connections (and opposite numbers) in other countries, whose activities are not entirely explained by the author. Perhaps not surprising, as Price mentions being influenced somewhat by le Carré.
(originally from my blog: http://josephinereadersadvisory.wordp...
July 1, 2024
This one is 3.5 stars, rounded up. It loses a bit because the plot isn't as tight as most of the others. I'm also not thrilled with the idea that Frances's superpower is the stereotypically feminine one of intuition. Still prime Price, though.
March 26, 2010
Interesting book in Price's loosely tied series that deal with espionage, history and archeology. If you like his combination, try and find others in the series.
October 5, 2013
After a brief hiatus, we are back into the 1970s, again giving us more back story for the established characters, particularly Colonel Butler, a interesting mixture of detective story and espionage.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews