The Swiss Spy

Spy Masters #2

by Alex Gerlis

"On the 20-minute drive to Lutry, the Alps rose high to his left, the lake sweeping below him to the right. That summed it up, he thought: caught between two powerful forces. Not unlike serving two masters."

It's not unusual for spies to have secrets, but Henry Hunter has more than most and after he is stopped by British Intelligence at Croydon airport on the eve of the Second World War, he finds he has even more. From Switzerland he embarks on a series of increasingly perilous missions into Nazi Germany, all the time having to cope with different identities and competing spymasters. In March 1941 in Berlin, haunted by a dark episode from his past, he makes a fateful decision, resulting in a dramatic journey to the Swiss frontier with a shocking outcome.

The Swiss Spy is set against the real-life backdrop of the top-secret Nazi plans to invade the Soviet Union. The story paints an authentic picture of life inside wartime Europe: the menacing atmosphere, the ever-present danger and the constant intrigue of the world of espionage.

The Swiss Spy is the follow-up novel to Alex Gerlis' highly acclaimed bestseller The Best of Our Spies.

Genres: Espionage, Fiction, Historical Fiction, Thriller, Mystery, Spy Thriller, Audiobook

448 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 31, 2015

About the author

Alex Gerlis was born in Grimsby, Lincolnshire, in 1955. He graduated with a degree in Law and Politics from Hull University in 1977 and, after working as a political researcher and journalist, joined the BBC in 1983 as a researcher on Panorama.

Over the next twenty years he worked on a number of BBC News and Current Affairs programmes, including making documentaries for The Money Programme and election programmes with David Dimbleby and Jeremy Paxman. He has also edited Breakfast News, the One o'Clock News, the Six o'Clock News and the Weekend News for the BBC. In August 1998 he was the BBC TV News duty editor on the day of the Omagh bomb in Northern Ireland, the coverage of which later won a Royal Television Society award. In September 2001 he was one of the BBC Newsroom team covering the attack on the Twin Towers. He has also worked for the BBC throughout Europe, the United States, the Middle East and in China, and from 2005 to March 2011 was Head of Training at the BBC College of Journalism – the body in charge of the training of the corporation's 7,500 journalists.

Alex's first novel was inspired by his work covering the 50th anniversary of D-Day from Normandy. He is married with two daughters and lives in west London.

Reviews

[Lewis Weinstein · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent spy novel, told from many interesting and provocative points of view. Wonderful descriptive scenes. Confusing at times, but that's what spy novels should be. Difficult decisions in a very dangerous game. The historical events (related to the German invasion of Russia) which underlay the story are well presented but not overdone.

[Andy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ambitious WWII spy novel that is OK but doesn't quite work. Not a page-turner like something by Follett, but also not at the level of Graham Greene or LeCarre for the more serious brooding psychological/political type of spy story.

[Gram · Rating 4 out of 5]

A tortuous spy thriller set during the late 1930's/early 1940's, with most of the action taking place in Switzerland and Germany. At the centre of the story is Henry Hunter, coerced into working for the British who in turn are attempting to warn the Soviet Union of the impending invasion by Nazi Germany. The action involves all types of people throughout Europe working for the British in a bid to pass on military plans for Operation Barbarossa. Initially, Hunter seems to be a hapless innocent caught up in events he cannot control, but he's really a Communist sleeper agent who reveals himself to be a decent man suffering guilt at a previous action he carried out for his Soviet handlers. The story gets bogged down halfway through as Henry is involved with Swiss banks' distasteful dealings with the Nazis and the British need for proof that the Nazi/Soviet Pact is about to be broken. Despite this, Gerlis manages to hold the reader's interest as this well-researched historical fact/fiction tale unfolds.

[Martin Reed · Rating 2 out of 5]

There's a lot going on in this novel and some interesting insights into the life behind enemy lines, but this book fell flat for me. I found the storytelling ponderous and a little fussy - there was considerable repetition of concepts and thoughts as they were experienced by the various characters. As a result, the book had a slightly simplistic feel, which was compounded by the protagonist being referred to throughout by his first name.

The plot was too predictable and followed a gently logical arch that didn't really lead to any satisfying twists. I have found other recent wartime thrillers, especially by the likes of Philip Kerr, more engaging and entertaining.

[Eric_W · Rating 4 out of 5]

Henry is on his way back to Switzerland from Britain. It’s 1939 and he’s stopped at the border before getting on his flight. Edgar, a member of the British Secret Service then blackmails him into spying for them. After some training he’s sent back to Switzerland through France where he is to wait for more instructions. In France, however, Henry circuitously and surreptitiously sneaks away briefly to meet with his Russian handlers. Turns out he’s a Russian spy and his handlers now think they control a double agent. But then we learn the British are fully aware of Henry’s relationship with the Russians. Add a Jewish woman and her daughter hiding from the Gestapo and the plot thickens beyond stew.

I love complicated spy thrillers.

[Drka · Rating 4 out of 5]

Terrific book, great read. 3.75 stars. Not quite as good as his previous 'The Best of our Spies' but still very enjoyable. The plot shifts from the collapse of France in 1940 in TBOOS to Switzerland/Germany just prior to the invasion of the Soviet Union by the Nazis. As before, impeccable research by the author who blends fact and fiction to produce a gripping thriller/spy story.

[Paul Manytravels · Rating 4 out of 5]

Author Alex Gerlis offers this tense tale of espionage during WW II. In it, the relationship between Germany and Switzerland becomes the basis of the spy operation the novel presents. The relationship depicted is based on the actual unsavory relationship of the war.
The central character, Henry Hunter aka Henri Hesse, operates between Switzerland and Germany as an agent for both the British and the Russians. The British send him on perilous missions to retrieve valuable documents and information which he also shares with the Russians. As a dual citizen of both Switzerland and Germany, he is ideal for the job and his personal characteristics make him quite good at it. The danger and intrigue of the work make him cautious, but the things he sees and must do make him vulnerable to his own human nature.
The novel is populated with a multitude of characters, but, as in all of Gerlis' spy adventures, there is a guide to the characters at the front of the book. That guide gives nothing away about the plot while also being helpful to the reader as he follows it.
The novel reads easily and the compelling nature of the plot engages the reader completely. Every incident seems authentic and credible despite the fact that most are the creations of Gerlis' wonderful artistic insights.
There are some scenes in the novel which are rather gruesome and detailed, but they are not gratuitous and are essential to the overall storyline of the book. Fortunately, these scenes are early in the novel and there are few of them.
This is the second spy novel by Gerlis that I've read and enjoyed. I do not think his novels are quite as good as the espionage novels of Alan Furst, but for lovers of this type of fiction, both authors offer worthwhile reads.

[David Lowther · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Swiss Spy is Alex Gerlis' second novel and builds on his outstanding debut The Best of Our Spies. Here the attention switches from D Day to the period leading up to the launching of Operation Barbarossa, the German invasion of the Soviet Union in June 1941.

The plot is complex and threatens to be, at times, confusing but it all falls beautifully into place at the end. The characters are, as in Gerlis' first novel, a subtle mixture of hopeless romantics and hard-bittern cynical pragmatists and this mix brings added tension to the narrative.

The action switches between London and various German and Swiss cities. Some of the passages are extremely exciting with, obviously, those set in Germany the most thrilling. There is one moment of shocking violence which reminds the reader that The Swiss Spy is not a Boys Own story but an espionage novel set during the most brutal conflict the world has known.

The author has researched thoroughly, particularly the streets of various European cities, some of which I'm familiar with. I repeat my assertion that Alex Gerlis must have seen the 1960 film Circle of Deception because his two novels so far have captured the hard-bitten cynicism and paranoia of that movie admirably.

The Swiss Spy is an outstanding espionage novel.

David Lowther. Author of The Blue Pencil, Liberating Belsen and Two Families at War. (All published by Sacristy Press)

[Jo-Ann Jones · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh. Henry Hunter is able to keep himself alive but gets other goodguys killed. What kind of a spy does that?? Incompetent ones. Gerlis created a character whose chief asset is obedience, but like a child at the check-out counter, he wants his lollipop when he wants it. This is a pretty big flaw for a spy. I think Gerlis has failed to write a "proper" spy novel.

[Doris M · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one will shock you, but perhaps it is closer to the truth in that rarified and exclusive world of espionage. Henri Hesse/Henry Hunter is the Swiss double spy being used to deceive the Russians into believing that Hitler is planning an invasion in spite of a non-aggression treaty with Germany. M16 had been tracking Henry since the early 1930's and are aware that he is an agent for a Russian spymaster. They also know that Henry has been involved in suspicious activity concerning his late aunt's estate; this is the hook MI6 uses to rein in their prey.
One thing that they don't realize is that Henry has a spot of humanity tucked into his genetic code. He doesn't appear to mind killing a puppy which was given to him while he was in spy training sessions; a test to see if he could follow orders. Later, while on assignments, he is witness to the killing of individuals by agents who were supposed to protect them. Eventually, he will find himself in a similar situation where he has to dispose of someone who could expose him.
In spite of inner turmoil and constant nightmares, Henry is able to keep both his spymasters satisfied with his performance, neither one suspecting that he is unravelling. In order to atone for his own perceived misdeeds, Henry realizes that he must rescue Rosa, a Jewish woman and her young daughter hiding in Berlin before they are caught by the SS.
The Nazis are shown in all of their graphic brutality - intent on exterminating an entire Jewish population. As raw as some of the author's imagery, there is something even more appalling in a group of MI6 spy chiefs at work in deciding the future of a spy trained by them. It is difficult to imagine a group of proper English chaps, public schooled, members of the same clubs, who willingly participate in the murder of one of their own - the casual and precise way this is carried out is the most chilling of all.

[Tony Mac · Rating 3 out of 5]

Brisk, efficient WWII espionage yarn, high on period flavour and background historical accuracy, but written in a rather formal, matter-of-fact journalistic style that keeps you at arms length. Don't expect much soul searching, character study or inner turmoil here; this is not a book looking to probe deep into the psyche of any of its large ensemble cast. Ironic, given that it is exactly a matter of the psyche that takes one of our main characters spectacularly off-script in the closing chapters.

On a surface level all of the characters are well drawn, but the reader has to reach their own conclusions about them as the author prefers to keep his distance throughout. Some readers may like this approach, but it is just too remote to build empathy with many of the characters, most of whom are not very likeable anyway. There is no emotional payback, which a novel needs for me.

On the plus side the plot is intelligent and believable throughout, building a convincing world of wartime espionage, counter-espionage and painting a vivid picture of paranoid, police-state Germany, where the citizens seem to live more in fear of the Nazis than the Allies.

Perfectly readable, if written more like a cold history than an involving novel.

[Nooilforpacifists · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not bad, but nothing stood out. Alex Gerlis's prose style borders on the monotonous; it now twice has failed to impress.

[Melanie Fraser · Rating 5 out of 5]

Like all this author's books, I've thoroughly enjoyed reading this one too. Full of action, suspense and treachery.....

[David Highton · Rating 4 out of 5]

A WW2 spy story about a British/Russian double agent operating in Switzerland with several highly dangerous trips into Germany in the period prior to Hitler’s invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941. A good well-paced narrative, fictional but based in historical reality.

[Scott Head · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book was going far too well, I knew something big had to happen at some point. The main character, the "Swiss spy" had everything so easy... until the last 30 pages. If ever you go fishing or boating in Switzerland, say hello to Henri Hesse for me. Brutal ending, wow!

[Mal Warwick · Rating 4 out of 5]

The role that Switzerland played in World War II is reasonably well known. Swiss banks laundered the equivalent of billions of dollars in funds seized from Jews and others by the Nazi regime in neighboring Germany. Because the country was officially neutral in the war, Zurich, Geneva, Bern, and other Swiss cities housed spies from every major power in the conflict. In his novel, The Swiss Spy, Alex Gerlis artfully brings together both factors in a gripping novel of espionage.

Switzerland as the center of the action

A man named Henri Hesse on his Swiss passport and Henry Hunter on his British one is pulled from a line at London’s Croydon Airport and presented with a dilemma: serve as an agent for Britain’s Secret Intelligence Service (now known as MI6) or go to prison for a long time for having been just a little too clever in his attempt to take a large sum of money out of the country. Because Henry lawfully possesses both passports and speaks English, German, and French without difficulty, he is a ideal catch for British Intelligence. As we learn later in this complex and rewarding tale, he also displays a marked talent for espionage. The story of his steadily deeper involvement in the spy game is highly suspenseful. Though fictional, it’s also based largely on carefully researched historical facts.

World War II as a source of fiction

World War II is a bottomless source of fiction of all types, espionage novels not the least among them. No wonder! The war was the most destructive single military conflict in world history, causing an estimated 60 million casualties. A total of 16 million American men and women served during the four years that our country was at war, and it’s likely that similar (if not greater) numbers of Russians and Germans were involved in the conflict as well — not to mention many millions of Japanese, French, Chinese, British, Italians, Indians, Poles, and so many others. And though the USA was at war for just four years, many scholars date the war’s beginning to 1937, when the Japanese invaded China. During the course of the eight years that followed, involving so many millions of people, there is an endless number of stories that might be told.

About the author

British author Alex Gerlis has written four espionage novels. For two decades he worked as an editor and researcher for BBC news.

[Cropredy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not bad, not great.

The scene is Switzerland 1940 and there's an agent running missions into Germany related to forthcoming Nazi plans to expand the war. I'll say no more about the plot to avoid spoilers.

So, let's critique the writing, characterizations, and plot devices.

Bad people are bad, good people are good, albeit flawed, and because it is wartime, under serious risk to their lives. There's an awful lot of checking into hotels, booking train tickets, riding trains, and having one's papers checked. The author clearly researched transit routes and schedules for 1940 Germany and Switzerland with a bit of Portugal thrown in.

One thing in the book's favor is that there are no derring-do's. The combination of quotidian routine under an oppressive police state yields predictable results. No material for a Tom Cruise movie here.

While the book is readable with concise chapters and a linear plot, I only gave it three stars because the writing didn't live up to better author's renditions of spy or intelligence novels, authors like Alan Furst, John Le Carre, or Gerald Seynour. There is the sense of "character X did Y, spoke to Z saying W and then boarded the train to Stuttgart". Because of the situations the characters are in, you supply your own details to fill out what they are thinking and feeling . Everyone is nervous and anxious. Deeper atmospherics to put you into the narrative and characters' heads are touched on but do not give the novel that extra lift towards greatness.

So, basically a beach read for WW II spy novel buffs. Gerlis has other novels in the same vein which I have not yet read but given the size of my "to read" list, they are likely to go unread.

[Flo · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked Alex Gerlis first spy story but this 2nd one is a bit disappointing. Quite long it tells of a double agent, Henri Hesse, living in Switzerland who gets involved in a ruse to make Soviet Russia believe that an invasion by the German Army is not planned for the near future. The British believe that should the Soviets think the invasion is imminent they will be ready and Hitler will abandon Operation Barbarossa thus avoiding the trap of a war on two fronts. Hesse is sent into Germany and back to Switzerland, into Germany and back to Switzerland. There is a lot of detail involving train schedules and air flights which allow him to do his double dealing.
The book is overlong. One never really cares about any of the characters--not the Germans of course, not the Swiss who are raking in money in their banks while the war goes on (and where it comes from is very clear), not the English who are too cold and uncaring and not even the Jewish citizens who seem stereotyped trapped in a nightmare. No one is likable. A good spy story needs a hero, a love story helps and lots of 1940's atmosphere--something Alan Furst does so well. Gerlis doesn't quite get it, but I'm sure if he tries harder, he will. I would still read his books.

[Hannah Summerlin · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't dislike this book, but I didn't particularly enjoy it. The plot was hard to follow as it jumped around a wide cast of characters that, at least for the first half of the book, were completely unrelated to one another. In addition, most characters had code names which were used interchangeably with their given names, making remembering who was who even more difficult. The book did have a character list at the beginning, but even this was incomplete- it did not include the all the characters, included some very insignificant characters, did not list the characters in any particular order, and listed some codenames alongside the other character names and some separately. A huge part of the book was also related to specific street names or particular locations. While I am familiar with the geography of Europe, I haven't traipsed through Berlin so this information was rather useless. Overall, since there are so many WWII novels, this was disappointing and I would recommend picking up something else.

[Jon Gertler · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decent enough story, but somewhat moderate writing which I found clunky in places.
For me the goal is to find well written books within my favoured Detectives and Spies fields.
It appears that quality of writing is rather less prized in these genres than in the 'literary fiction' category, which can often make selection via reviews a bit tricky.

This is very readable (listenable?) but I feel that many better are available.

[Heather · Rating 2 out of 5]

An interesting read if not always believable. 2nd book in a series and somewhat predictable based on the first read. I may or may not continue the series. Lots of typos in the edition and in the 1st book took.

[AC · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very well done.

[Alistair · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have not come across this series of WW2 spy stories so this particular one may not be the best example
this has a very complex plot which is not a problem in itself but the author drags the story out and out and out . Much of it revolves around train journeys between Germany and Switzerland . If you are a train spotter you may like this . I found it boring .
There is also a totally unrealistic sub plot about smuggling a young boy escape from Berlin which is linked to the main plot of British spies stealing Hitler's supposedly top secret plan to invade Russia .
None of the characters have any personality and the suspense is minimal

Philip Kerr's novels are superior

[Viva · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really liked Gerlis's Prince series but this series is pretty bad. I dnf'd this at about 33%. The plotline was messy and wasn't straightforward. The story jumped from one POV to another and one timeline to another. On top of that, I didn't like the protagonist, or one of them. I wasn't sure if the others were main characters or not. Anyway, I lost interest a third of the way through.

Spoilers ahead.
Summary: yea this was about a Swiss/British man who was turned by the Russians and then turned by the British. And then the story started talking about someone else, who was or wasn't connected with him. Not sure.

[Ewan Hamilton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Started reading this some time ago and had to restart it. Another great spy novel from Alex Gerlis. A slightly different approach to the telling of this story than other stories from the author. Gerlis’ trademark gripping plot and wonderful scene setting makes this a breeze to read. The plot sees the main character undertake a whole load of missions within occupied Germany and this is the first Gerlis book I have read which is set largely within Switzerland(as the title would suggest). The climax is shocking and leaves the characters reeling. The ending, whilst somewhat predictable, is executed in a way that yet again shocks the reader. A most enjoyable read.

[Luke · Rating 3 out of 5]

Entertaining

Overall, the Swiss spy is an entertaining if mostly unremarkable novel. The pace is reasonably fast, with a number of characters, with chapters often being used to tell what is going on from different protagonists viewpoints. The story is entertaining if mostly unremarkable. The one thing I would say it's that for me, the characters were not drawn well enough or with enough detail for me to really become immersed in this. Overall, a decent, diverting novel that fails to greatness.

[Richard · Rating 4 out of 5]

A novel that I found, for the most part, absorbing. It focused on the time before the German invasion of Russia and how vital that event would be in reducing the likelihood of invasion of mainland Britain. While that was the driving force behind the story it also illustrated what everyday life might have been like in Nazi Germany.

Overall the plot was full of twists with many of the characters having their time in the sun. Henry Hunter was a bit of a marmite figure with a dark past which helped the plot move to an emotional and dramatic conclusion.

[Michael Greene · Rating 4 out of 5]

In some ways I like a series because you can really get to know a character. I enjoyed the previous book in this series and was a little sad at first that this one introduced a new character because I wondered if I would not like him as much. But that was not the case. It is not so much that I liked the main character but I found him interesting enough to carry the story. The Swiss Spy had the same strong blend of espionage and historical detail that I have come to expect from Alex Gerlis, and the ending surprised me in a good way.

[Charles Mcdonald · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Swiss Spy is set against the backdrop of the top-secret Nazi plans to invade the Soviet Union. The story explores life inside the ever-present danger of wartime Europe.

The author does an excellent job in his description of how those living in the Europe of World War II.

It also documents the manner in which spies needed to operate in an old technology world - one with code words and procedures that bring the reader into the world far different from today's digital age.

[dennis barron · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Swiss Spy. Alex Gerlis

A masterfully written spy novel. The primary character Henry Hunter who resides in Switzerland is a Russian spy. Later he is forced to become a spy for the British. Both countries train him for clandestine work. He is a natural. Unfortunately, both countries view him as expendable. The life span of a spy and any resistance fighter is shortlived. In the end the British terminate him. This is an excellent read. My highest recommendation.