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Berlin Exchange
A captured US spy plane pilot is being traded for a senior KGB agent - a strangely unequal exchange that British spycatcher Joe Shapiro had persuaded them to make. However, Shapiro has more than a professional interest in the case.
240 pages, Hardcover
First published June 1, 1987
9 people are currently reading
45 people want to read
About the author
Ted Allbeury
168 books43 followers1917 - 2005. Also wrote under the pseudonyms Richard Butler and Patrick Kelly.
Ted Allbeury was a lieutenant-colonel in the Intelligence Corps during World War II, and later a successful executive in the fields of marketing, advertising and radio. He began his writing career in the early 1970s and became well known for his espionage novels, but also published one highly-praised general novel, THE CHOICE, and a short story collection, OTHER KINDS OF TREASON. His novels have been published in twenty-three languages, including Russian. He died on 4th December 2005.
See also: http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/2006/j...
and
http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/a/t...
Ted Allbeury was a lieutenant-colonel in the Intelligence Corps during World War II, and later a successful executive in the fields of marketing, advertising and radio. He began his writing career in the early 1970s and became well known for his espionage novels, but also published one highly-praised general novel, THE CHOICE, and a short story collection, OTHER KINDS OF TREASON. His novels have been published in twenty-three languages, including Russian. He died on 4th December 2005.
See also: http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/2006/j...
and
http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/a/t...
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
November 19, 2017
If you'd like to know something of the history of Soviet spies in Britain during the 1950's and 1960's, this fact/fiction book is a good place to start. Ted Allbeury stretches his story over 5 decades, beginning with a tale of two committed Bolsheviks and their part in the Russian Revolution and takes the reader through to the arrest of Gordon Lonsdale and the Krogers who formed the Portland Spy Ring.
Also featured is the exchange of Soviet superspy Rudolf Abel for American U-2 pilot Francis Gary Powers. Allbeury provides an alternative story for the real reasons why Powers was exchanged for Abel in this fascinating spy novel.
Allbeury was a senior officer in Britain's Intelligence Corps during World War II so he knows his subject well.
Also featured is the exchange of Soviet superspy Rudolf Abel for American U-2 pilot Francis Gary Powers. Allbeury provides an alternative story for the real reasons why Powers was exchanged for Abel in this fascinating spy novel.
Allbeury was a senior officer in Britain's Intelligence Corps during World War II so he knows his subject well.
December 6, 2017
Onvan : The Crossing - Nevisande : Ted Allbeury - ISBN : 450487725 - ISBN13 : 9780450487729 - Saal e Chap : 1987
April 4, 2025
"The Crossing" is a slow moving Cold War spy novel that blends fact and fiction into a tale covering several decades that feels very real. It's the story of Brit and American spy catchers tracking down networks of Russian spies with backstories of the key players and alternative takes on events in history, for example the shooting down of Francis Gary Powers over the USSR and his subsequent "trade" back to the US, that seem credible.
The Crossing moves slowly in the beginning and characters are developed over long periods, but it's all woven together properly and comes together at the conclusion. Ted Allbeury, who passed away years ago but who I recently "discovered", is a master of this type of story and The Crossing is a fine example. If you're interested in Cold War espionage, you should check him out.
The Crossing moves slowly in the beginning and characters are developed over long periods, but it's all woven together properly and comes together at the conclusion. Ted Allbeury, who passed away years ago but who I recently "discovered", is a master of this type of story and The Crossing is a fine example. If you're interested in Cold War espionage, you should check him out.
October 5, 2022
Superb Cold War Spy Novel
A masterful job of laying out pieces of a puzzle and slowly snapping them into place. Give the book 160 pages before passing judgement. You won't regret it. One of the better efforts at realistic portrayal of intelligence agency spymasters. Some nice human touches. A unique achievement--a narrative style that reads like a nonfiction spy documentary but achieves the emotional impact of top quality literary fiction.
A masterful job of laying out pieces of a puzzle and slowly snapping them into place. Give the book 160 pages before passing judgement. You won't regret it. One of the better efforts at realistic portrayal of intelligence agency spymasters. Some nice human touches. A unique achievement--a narrative style that reads like a nonfiction spy documentary but achieves the emotional impact of top quality literary fiction.
October 5, 2017
An excellent Cold War thriller layered upon the factual personnel exchange across the "Bridge of Spies" in 1962. The seeming imbalance of the situation is justified by an imaginative and plausible back story. The plethora of characters introduced during the first 84 pages could confuse a stupid person. I made notes.
June 4, 2017
Very convincing spy novel, on a par with Deighton and the early le Carre novels.
August 2, 2017
... absolutely FANTASTIC !!!!
October 30, 2017
A credible development of a half revealed real event
Colonel Abel was exchanged for a mere pilot, Gary Powers. Ted Allbuery comes up with a very credible alternative history.
Colonel Abel was exchanged for a mere pilot, Gary Powers. Ted Allbuery comes up with a very credible alternative history.
April 21, 2019
A riveting complexed espionage story by one of the best spy writers to have come out of Britain. In terms of plot twists, At his best, Allbeury is every bit as good as Le Carre, Deighton and Seymour and his character developments are as good as Graham Greene's. A throughly enthralling fictional account of a historical occurrence with all the twists and turns that you come to expect from Allbeury. Arguably, one of his most complex novels, but easy enough to read and understand the main storyline.
A riveting story that includes a huge amount of characters in the first fifty pages that, if you're like me, it's worth writing them down on a bit of paper to help the memory. Either that or you'll need a very good memory. Usually, Allbeury has character's that come and go in the story, but in this one most of these character's are important to remember because some have various passports in various names that keep popping up when they're not expected. In terms of the story itself, Allbuery leaves the reader wondering if there is any connection between the young English sailor, named Josef, who found himself aligned with the bolsheviks in Russia only to flee back to west AND another main character, master spy catcher Joe Shapiro, in 1960? Well, you'll have to read all the story right to the end to find out. There doesn't seem to be a clear connection (if any at all) because the story starts off about describing Josef but it soon shifts to the cold war days of the 1950's and 60's. Then, for the next fifty or so pages, Allbeury blows the reader out of the water with a plethora of character's that have numerous names and aliases that leaves the reader gasping. Some of these character's include: Zargorsky, Emil Goldfus aka Martin Collins, Molody and Harry Houghton, Ethel Gee (Houghton's partner), Lonsdale, Maguire-Barton and the Kroger's too. You'll also find Grushko, Hayhanen, Rudolph Abel, Mr. Gordon, Kretski, Phoenix as well as lawyers, judges and even some more secret service personnel not already mentioned. Woooow! Emil Goldfus aka Martin Collins is an interesting character because he re-appears yet again as another person very late in the story much to the utter bewilderment of this reader. As usual, there's a whole bunch of spy teams in the story ranging from the SIS (Secret Intelligence Service) who are English, to the KGB who are Russian and, of course, the CIA who are American. Some characters you will find are found guilty of treason and sentenced to twenty five years in gaol while others are traded in deals like cattle at a stock-yard. Some find themselves in Canada, the US, Berlin, Moscow and even in the Gulag in Siberia.
It's one of those stories the you won't be able to put down. At a meer 233 pages, it's an action packed story that lands an almighty punch and captivated this reader immeasurably! There's the main story about people trading secrets to the Russians and getting caught, but there are a couple of other minor plot lines in it as well. The most significant other plot line is, of course, the trade between the Russians and the English at the end of the story. This reader remembers this novel for its' very complicated story line and the rather extravagant use of characters in it. This reader ending up reading it three times! So, if you only reader one Ted Allbeury novel, let it be this one! Perhaps, you'll only have to read it once to understand it! Five Stars for this fabulous story!
Ted Allbeury wrote a staggering 42 novels and wrote under two other pen names ~ Richard Butler and Patrick Kelly as well. Here are 28 read’s from Allbeury, all rated accordingly:
THE GOOD (Four to Five Stars): ‘The Lantern Network’, ’Shadow of a Doubt’, ’A Wilderness of Mirrors', 'A Time Without Shadows' aka 'The Rules of the Game', 'The Only Good German' aka ‘Mission Berlin’, 'The Dangerous Edge', ‘Palomino Blonde’ aka 'Omega- minus', 'The Lonely Margins', ’The Crossing' aka ‘The Berlin Exchange’, 'Seeds of Treason', 'Other Kinds of Treason', 'Special Forces' aka 'Moscow Quadrille', the feel good, 'The Girl From Addis', 'Pay Any Price' and the rather exceptional, and this person's favourite, 'The Line-Crosser' (published in 1993).
THE AVERAGE (Two or Three Stars): 'Show Me a Hero', 'No Place to Hide' aka ‘Hostage’, ‘The Reckoning’, ’The Twentieth Day of January’ a.k.a. ‘Cold Tactics’, 'The Reaper' aka 'The Stalking Angel' and ‘Deep Purple’.
THE UGLY (One or two stars): It’s, however, probably best to stay away from: ‘Aid and Comfort’, ‘The Assets' aka “Due Process’, 'The Secret Whispers’, 'The Alpha List', ’Consequences of Fear' aka ‘Smokescreen’ and ’The Spirit of Liberty'. He also wrote, ’The Choice' which is not espionage and this reader thought (even though it was critically acclaimed) not a good one.
A riveting story that includes a huge amount of characters in the first fifty pages that, if you're like me, it's worth writing them down on a bit of paper to help the memory. Either that or you'll need a very good memory. Usually, Allbeury has character's that come and go in the story, but in this one most of these character's are important to remember because some have various passports in various names that keep popping up when they're not expected. In terms of the story itself, Allbuery leaves the reader wondering if there is any connection between the young English sailor, named Josef, who found himself aligned with the bolsheviks in Russia only to flee back to west AND another main character, master spy catcher Joe Shapiro, in 1960? Well, you'll have to read all the story right to the end to find out. There doesn't seem to be a clear connection (if any at all) because the story starts off about describing Josef but it soon shifts to the cold war days of the 1950's and 60's. Then, for the next fifty or so pages, Allbeury blows the reader out of the water with a plethora of character's that have numerous names and aliases that leaves the reader gasping. Some of these character's include: Zargorsky, Emil Goldfus aka Martin Collins, Molody and Harry Houghton, Ethel Gee (Houghton's partner), Lonsdale, Maguire-Barton and the Kroger's too. You'll also find Grushko, Hayhanen, Rudolph Abel, Mr. Gordon, Kretski, Phoenix as well as lawyers, judges and even some more secret service personnel not already mentioned. Woooow! Emil Goldfus aka Martin Collins is an interesting character because he re-appears yet again as another person very late in the story much to the utter bewilderment of this reader. As usual, there's a whole bunch of spy teams in the story ranging from the SIS (Secret Intelligence Service) who are English, to the KGB who are Russian and, of course, the CIA who are American. Some characters you will find are found guilty of treason and sentenced to twenty five years in gaol while others are traded in deals like cattle at a stock-yard. Some find themselves in Canada, the US, Berlin, Moscow and even in the Gulag in Siberia.
It's one of those stories the you won't be able to put down. At a meer 233 pages, it's an action packed story that lands an almighty punch and captivated this reader immeasurably! There's the main story about people trading secrets to the Russians and getting caught, but there are a couple of other minor plot lines in it as well. The most significant other plot line is, of course, the trade between the Russians and the English at the end of the story. This reader remembers this novel for its' very complicated story line and the rather extravagant use of characters in it. This reader ending up reading it three times! So, if you only reader one Ted Allbeury novel, let it be this one! Perhaps, you'll only have to read it once to understand it! Five Stars for this fabulous story!
Ted Allbeury wrote a staggering 42 novels and wrote under two other pen names ~ Richard Butler and Patrick Kelly as well. Here are 28 read’s from Allbeury, all rated accordingly:
THE GOOD (Four to Five Stars): ‘The Lantern Network’, ’Shadow of a Doubt’, ’A Wilderness of Mirrors', 'A Time Without Shadows' aka 'The Rules of the Game', 'The Only Good German' aka ‘Mission Berlin’, 'The Dangerous Edge', ‘Palomino Blonde’ aka 'Omega- minus', 'The Lonely Margins', ’The Crossing' aka ‘The Berlin Exchange’, 'Seeds of Treason', 'Other Kinds of Treason', 'Special Forces' aka 'Moscow Quadrille', the feel good, 'The Girl From Addis', 'Pay Any Price' and the rather exceptional, and this person's favourite, 'The Line-Crosser' (published in 1993).
THE AVERAGE (Two or Three Stars): 'Show Me a Hero', 'No Place to Hide' aka ‘Hostage’, ‘The Reckoning’, ’The Twentieth Day of January’ a.k.a. ‘Cold Tactics’, 'The Reaper' aka 'The Stalking Angel' and ‘Deep Purple’.
THE UGLY (One or two stars): It’s, however, probably best to stay away from: ‘Aid and Comfort’, ‘The Assets' aka “Due Process’, 'The Secret Whispers’, 'The Alpha List', ’Consequences of Fear' aka ‘Smokescreen’ and ’The Spirit of Liberty'. He also wrote, ’The Choice' which is not espionage and this reader thought (even though it was critically acclaimed) not a good one.
December 7, 2012
A classic spy novel dealing with a once-impassioned Russian revolutionary turned British spy which includes all the wonderful spy genre suspense. Political chess moves mesh into personal vendettas in this fun and fast moving story.
July 31, 2019
Great book, almost a history of espionage during the Cold War.
September 18, 2014
For anyone who is hooked on the FX series "The Americans," you need to read this book.
November 2, 2015
Absolutely rivetting.... uses the Gary Powers-Rudolf Abel-Lonsdale story to great effect in fashioning a multi-layered tale of espionage, betrayal, and redemption...
April 26, 2017
Having read some reviews of Ted Allbeury's other works on this site that suggested his writing was out of date I went into this book some trepidation. However, I needed not to have worried. I love a spy thriller, particularly john le carre and this is very much reminiscent of his early works. It's set in the cold war and starts by setting out all the characters individually and then ties them all together later. The writing is fresh, detailed, yet human and really puts you right into 1950's espionage. If you like a spy thriller particularly those by Le Carre, I would highly recommend this.
Read
March 26, 2018good read altho took a lot of concentration as lots of characters..,library,★★★★
December 19, 2018
I came to discover Ted Allbeury quite late, and as a junkie of espionage novels I felt this was a shame so I'm trying to catch up. Ted Allbeury was an extremely prolific writer, he produced an incredibly high number of novels, he came to writing up to 3-4 books a year and he had to adopt two aka's to help carry the weight of such vast production. In the end, Allbeury's work was buried under such over-production, which I’m still digging into to find the good, the bad and the ugly.
So far I stumbled into a couple of good (The Twelfth Day In January and Shadow Of A Doubt) and even a very good (Seeds Of Treason), while you can skip most of the rest without losing much.
As for The Crossing, it is a somewhat fragmented story; there is a lot of background setting which takes more than half the book, with multiple stories apparently disconnected being started up and happening at different times between 1917 and 1957. There are also way too many characters introduced into the story (most of which with double if not triple identity, so I let you imagine the task of keeping track of them). So, in a word, the story lacks a narrative epicentre and a lead character; as it often happens in these cases, you end up not connecting with either of them.
The story is a blend of fiction and actual facts; what I did not particularly liked is that some of the real events have been twisted and reported in a different way from how they happened - nit sure why.
The finale partly redeems the above faults, as it is reserves a nice enough surprise, resolving most of the lose end; shame that this comes so late in the book.
So far I stumbled into a couple of good (The Twelfth Day In January and Shadow Of A Doubt) and even a very good (Seeds Of Treason), while you can skip most of the rest without losing much.
As for The Crossing, it is a somewhat fragmented story; there is a lot of background setting which takes more than half the book, with multiple stories apparently disconnected being started up and happening at different times between 1917 and 1957. There are also way too many characters introduced into the story (most of which with double if not triple identity, so I let you imagine the task of keeping track of them). So, in a word, the story lacks a narrative epicentre and a lead character; as it often happens in these cases, you end up not connecting with either of them.
The story is a blend of fiction and actual facts; what I did not particularly liked is that some of the real events have been twisted and reported in a different way from how they happened - nit sure why.
The finale partly redeems the above faults, as it is reserves a nice enough surprise, resolving most of the lose end; shame that this comes so late in the book.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews