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Charles Pol #3
Dead Secret
Charles Pol is at the heart of another international conspiracy… Perfect for fans of Len Deighton, John Le Carré, Tom Clancy and Ian Fleming.
Would you put your life on the line to expose a top-secret conspiracy…?
While researching a government coverup over an oil spill just off the coast of Italy, reporter Tom Hawn stumbles upon a heart-shattering rumour.
He is told that the same corrupt oil company – ABCO, the America-Britannic Consortium – could have collaborated with Nazi Germany during the Second World War.
But the day after Hawn gets the tip-off, the man who told him it is murdered…
Hawn is in way over his head, but he knows he can’t let this deadly secret go.
He bumps into ex-secret agent, Charles Pol and before he knows it he’s dragged into a deadly game of cat and mouse.
Is there truth behind the rumour? Did the British and American oil company betray their own side to help Germany during the war?
And can Tom Hawn survive long enough to expose them…?
DEAD SECRET is the fifth classic terrorist adventure novel in the Charles Pol espionage thriller action-packed international thrillers, full of twists and turns.
'the natural successor to Ian Fleming' - Books and Bookmen
THE CHARLES POL ESPIONAGE THRILLER SERIES
Book Barbouze
Book The Tale of the Lazy Dog
Book Gentleman Traitor
Book Shah-Mak
Book Dead Secret
Book Holy of Holies
Would you put your life on the line to expose a top-secret conspiracy…?
While researching a government coverup over an oil spill just off the coast of Italy, reporter Tom Hawn stumbles upon a heart-shattering rumour.
He is told that the same corrupt oil company – ABCO, the America-Britannic Consortium – could have collaborated with Nazi Germany during the Second World War.
But the day after Hawn gets the tip-off, the man who told him it is murdered…
Hawn is in way over his head, but he knows he can’t let this deadly secret go.
He bumps into ex-secret agent, Charles Pol and before he knows it he’s dragged into a deadly game of cat and mouse.
Is there truth behind the rumour? Did the British and American oil company betray their own side to help Germany during the war?
And can Tom Hawn survive long enough to expose them…?
DEAD SECRET is the fifth classic terrorist adventure novel in the Charles Pol espionage thriller action-packed international thrillers, full of twists and turns.
'the natural successor to Ian Fleming' - Books and Bookmen
THE CHARLES POL ESPIONAGE THRILLER SERIES
Book Barbouze
Book The Tale of the Lazy Dog
Book Gentleman Traitor
Book Shah-Mak
Book Dead Secret
Book Holy of Holies
- GenresFiction
Paperback
First published January 1, 1980
About the author
Alan Williams
252 books9 followersAlan Emlyn Williams was a journalist and foreign correspondent, reporting from notable hotspots worldwide including Hungary in 1956, Algeria, Vietnam and Northern Ireland. In 1962 he started writing thrillers which brought him the accolade "the natural heir to Ian Fleming" but it was his well-researched spy stories such as The Beria Papers and Gentleman Traitor (which featured real life traitor Kim Philby) which brought him international success.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
March 8, 2016
Originally posted at Book of Bogan
I’m not saying that it was dead boring, but there was a lot of reading in this book.
Dead Secret is the story of a pair of journalists who are chasing down a secret from the second world war, which has been hidden by the perpetrators from the world. Along the way they meet dark and mysterious characters with shady pasts, who sit them down and give them a good talking to.
I was hoping for something akin to The Odessa File by Frederick Forsyth, in terms of a healthy balance between outright action and tension, and investigative journalism, and digging into uncovered secrets. Unlike The Odessa File, the big mystery is about US corporate collaboration with the Nazis to keep them supplied with oil.
Not the most interesting and engaging of topics. Frankly I would have been happier if this dead secret stayed dead, rather than be resurrected for the sake of a lackluster book.Nazis are bad, corporate collaborators are bad, everyone is bad. Let’s sit down and explain in intricate detail what happened over a glass of (insert alcohol of choice here).
At the end of the day it was just… okay.
I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
I’m not saying that it was dead boring, but there was a lot of reading in this book.
Dead Secret is the story of a pair of journalists who are chasing down a secret from the second world war, which has been hidden by the perpetrators from the world. Along the way they meet dark and mysterious characters with shady pasts, who sit them down and give them a good talking to.
I was hoping for something akin to The Odessa File by Frederick Forsyth, in terms of a healthy balance between outright action and tension, and investigative journalism, and digging into uncovered secrets. Unlike The Odessa File, the big mystery is about US corporate collaboration with the Nazis to keep them supplied with oil.
Not the most interesting and engaging of topics. Frankly I would have been happier if this dead secret stayed dead, rather than be resurrected for the sake of a lackluster book.Nazis are bad, corporate collaborators are bad, everyone is bad. Let’s sit down and explain in intricate detail what happened over a glass of (insert alcohol of choice here).
At the end of the day it was just… okay.
I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
April 14, 2016
Not Alan Williams' best
A dark secret of collaboration by Allied oil companies from World War 2 is investigated by a journalist and his girlfriend Various obnoxious and mysterious characters are interviewed and various scrapes are experienced.
I’ve enjoyed some of Williams’ other novels, but found this slow and somewhat of a slog. Somewhat diverting, but not his best.
A dark secret of collaboration by Allied oil companies from World War 2 is investigated by a journalist and his girlfriend Various obnoxious and mysterious characters are interviewed and various scrapes are experienced.
I’ve enjoyed some of Williams’ other novels, but found this slow and somewhat of a slog. Somewhat diverting, but not his best.
November 30, 2019
A mammoth, if sometimes uneven, achievement. When I liked a poem, I *really* liked it.
November 28, 2024
Journalist Tom Hawn is sucked into an old man's raving about a conspiracy. It's all about Allied/Western oil companies who purposely misdirected oil to Nazi Germany during World War II. Hawn and his girlfriend, Anna Admiral, then begin a search/chase/escape all over Europe, from Venice to London, on to France and Spain, then to Istanbul, and finally to Berlin and over the border into East Germany. The story itself is so entertaining and enthralling that I really didn't care about the conspiracy itself. What Williams uncovers about how governments, spy agencies, retired agents, and multinational corporations work captures me much more readily than worrying about the end result of the conspiracy.
Once again, Charles Pol is behind the scenes, pulling the strings on two relatively inexperienced people. Tom and Anna don't really know what they're getting into. And Tom is a hothead, like many of Williams's protagonists it seems, who continually makes his situation worse through not being able to control his emotions. I've never really felt any sympathy for Williams's protagonists, but their condition is what is so fascinating. But back to Charles Pol. When I first encountered him during this series, Pol was irritating and sort of dislikeable. By the time of Dead Secret, however, I've come to hate him. The next book in the series, Holy of Holies, is the last of the Pol series and, as far as I can find, Williams's last novel, although he lived another forty years, dying only in 2020 at age 84. Why he stopped writing these excellent spy novels over the last half of his life is as much a mystery as anything else. At any rate, I hope Williams kills off Pol in a really nasty way in that book.
Once again, Charles Pol is behind the scenes, pulling the strings on two relatively inexperienced people. Tom and Anna don't really know what they're getting into. And Tom is a hothead, like many of Williams's protagonists it seems, who continually makes his situation worse through not being able to control his emotions. I've never really felt any sympathy for Williams's protagonists, but their condition is what is so fascinating. But back to Charles Pol. When I first encountered him during this series, Pol was irritating and sort of dislikeable. By the time of Dead Secret, however, I've come to hate him. The next book in the series, Holy of Holies, is the last of the Pol series and, as far as I can find, Williams's last novel, although he lived another forty years, dying only in 2020 at age 84. Why he stopped writing these excellent spy novels over the last half of his life is as much a mystery as anything else. At any rate, I hope Williams kills off Pol in a really nasty way in that book.
January 7, 2026
This is another in the ‘Charles Pol ‘series. In this, a journalist entertains the question of why when given the shortages of oil in the second world war, the Germans had no problem keeping the war going. Did the Nazis have an agreement with a large western corporation to supply oil illegally? Journalist Hawn and his companion get this tip off and follow the trail from person to person noting that people who they talk to give them another lead to follow but then die soon after. A great story but one of the lesser ‘Pols’ in my opinion. The clarification comes in the last couple of chapters and might have worked better had it come out slowly during the story. Without that we just get a repetitive formula that leaves the reader wanting. Not the best, but I am hooked on Alan Williams’ espionage thrillers.
March 12, 2016
“Dead Secret” eBook was published in 2016 (the paper version was first published in 1981) and was written by Alan Williams (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_Wi...). Mr. Williams published 11 novels.
I received a galley of this novel for review through https://www.netgalley.com. I categorize this Thriller novel as ‘PG’ because it contains scenes of Violence and Mature Situations. This novel is set in various countries in Europe. The primary character is Tom Hawn, a British journalist.
The story takes place in the late 1970s or early 1980s. Hawn begins to investigate where the Nazis had obtained their oil supply during the final months of World War II. He believes there is a tie with one of the now largest western oil companies ABCO. He and girlfriend Anna Admiral dig into the records. They find, and follow a series of clues that lead them across Europe. They learn a little more with each interview of the men who had been connected to the Nazis. As they proceed, many of their contacts soon turn up dead. Hawn and Admiral often run into danger, whether from ABCO or other parties is not always clear.
The 8.5 hours I spent with this 288 page novel were enjoyable, though it did get a little slow. There was not a lot of ‘edge-of’your-seat’ type of action, but more intrigue. Even though the book was written more than 30 years ago it was still a reasonable read. I did have some problems with the primary character Hawn. For being an experienced reported who had worked in many dangerous places around the world, he seemed rather reckless and inept. I also found the conclusion of the novel less than satisfying. I give this novel a 3.5 (rounded up to a 4) out of 5.
Further book reviews I have written can be accessed at http://johnpurvis.wordpress.com/blog/.
I received a galley of this novel for review through https://www.netgalley.com. I categorize this Thriller novel as ‘PG’ because it contains scenes of Violence and Mature Situations. This novel is set in various countries in Europe. The primary character is Tom Hawn, a British journalist.
The story takes place in the late 1970s or early 1980s. Hawn begins to investigate where the Nazis had obtained their oil supply during the final months of World War II. He believes there is a tie with one of the now largest western oil companies ABCO. He and girlfriend Anna Admiral dig into the records. They find, and follow a series of clues that lead them across Europe. They learn a little more with each interview of the men who had been connected to the Nazis. As they proceed, many of their contacts soon turn up dead. Hawn and Admiral often run into danger, whether from ABCO or other parties is not always clear.
The 8.5 hours I spent with this 288 page novel were enjoyable, though it did get a little slow. There was not a lot of ‘edge-of’your-seat’ type of action, but more intrigue. Even though the book was written more than 30 years ago it was still a reasonable read. I did have some problems with the primary character Hawn. For being an experienced reported who had worked in many dangerous places around the world, he seemed rather reckless and inept. I also found the conclusion of the novel less than satisfying. I give this novel a 3.5 (rounded up to a 4) out of 5.
Further book reviews I have written can be accessed at http://johnpurvis.wordpress.com/blog/.
April 16, 2016
Who supplied oil to keep the Nazi machine going for four years?
A petroleum company called ABCO - America - Britannic Consortium, was rumoured to have been involved.
Many years later Hawn, a newspaper reporter sets out on a perilous journey along with his girlfriend Anna, to investigate.
A disturbing, exciting story of murder and deception which will keep you guessing until the very last chapter.
I was given a digital copy of this story by the publisher Endeavour via Netgalley in return for an honest unbiased review.
A petroleum company called ABCO - America - Britannic Consortium, was rumoured to have been involved.
Many years later Hawn, a newspaper reporter sets out on a perilous journey along with his girlfriend Anna, to investigate.
A disturbing, exciting story of murder and deception which will keep you guessing until the very last chapter.
I was given a digital copy of this story by the publisher Endeavour via Netgalley in return for an honest unbiased review.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews