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The Seeds of Treason
"Intricate and compelling … Ted Allbeury is one of the most skilled wordsmiths we've got, ranking with le Carré, Deighton, Forsyth, and Gardner." — The Gloucester Citizen, U.K.
"Ted Allbeury is one of our best spy writers, quiet, thoughtful, and menacingly compelling." — The Birmingham Post, U.K.
"Absorbing and sturdily crafted." — The Literary Review
A gripping tale of love and treachery, this novel by a former British intelligence officer explores the reasons why men and women betray their countries and each other. The cast includes Jan Massey, Head of British Intelligence in Berlin and a passionate anti-Communist who falls in love with the wife of a KGB officer; Arthur Johnson, a lowly signalman in the Berlin office who dreams of money and power; civil servant Eric Mayhew, stung by an unjust act of authority; and mathematician Jimbo Vick, lured into betrayal by a seductive Soviet agent. Although they operate under different motivations and circumstances, their roles in the intelligence community will connect them as they frantically attempt to evade a day of reckoning.
"No one twitches the strings more expertly than Allbeury," noted The Observer, and indeed, Ted Allbeury's experience as a Cold War–era spy adds a thrilling realism to this story of the egotism, passion, and desperation that underlie acts of treason.
"Ted Allbeury is one of our best spy writers, quiet, thoughtful, and menacingly compelling." — The Birmingham Post, U.K.
"Absorbing and sturdily crafted." — The Literary Review
A gripping tale of love and treachery, this novel by a former British intelligence officer explores the reasons why men and women betray their countries and each other. The cast includes Jan Massey, Head of British Intelligence in Berlin and a passionate anti-Communist who falls in love with the wife of a KGB officer; Arthur Johnson, a lowly signalman in the Berlin office who dreams of money and power; civil servant Eric Mayhew, stung by an unjust act of authority; and mathematician Jimbo Vick, lured into betrayal by a seductive Soviet agent. Although they operate under different motivations and circumstances, their roles in the intelligence community will connect them as they frantically attempt to evade a day of reckoning.
"No one twitches the strings more expertly than Allbeury," noted The Observer, and indeed, Ted Allbeury's experience as a Cold War–era spy adds a thrilling realism to this story of the egotism, passion, and desperation that underlie acts of treason.
304 pages, Paperback
Published November 6, 2017
1 person is currently reading
3 people want to read
About the author
Ted Allbeury
167 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 - 5 of 5 reviews
April 14, 2019
Jan Massey is the head of the British SIS (Secret Intelligence Service) in Berlin. It is well before 1989 and the Wall is well and truly still up with the English (SIS), the Americans (CIA), the Russians (KGB), the Germans and even the French are all snooping around in the shadows. In this spy thriller, Massey falls in love with Anna who is married to a KGB agent and he knows that that love is forbidden. It's like forbidden fruit that can't be eaten and, of course, things don't go to plan as it the case with many of Allbeury novels. You will find that Arthur Johnson, James Vick and Eric Mayhew have each fallen for a woman too. What will become of the four men? Will all four men find real true love in world where things are not always what they seem or is catastrophe just waiting around the corner for them?
A solid thriller from Allbeury, where this reader used only Kindle to read it and missed all the preamble that would usually go with a paperback. Being the first time, it made for a difficult read, but still enjoyable nonetheless. Could this reader say that this story cost him only a dollar and he got the download straight away. Wow! Technology is unbelievable and made for a bargain read, didn't it?!! Four Stars for, 'The Seeds of Treason'. It was a good solid spy thriller.
Ted Allbeury wrote a staggering 42 novels and used two other pen names ~ Richard Butler and Patrick Kelly as well. Here are 25 read’s from Allbeury, all rated accordingly:
Ted Allbeury wrote a staggering 42 novels and used two other pen names ~ Richard Butler and Patrick Kelly as well. Here are about 26 other reads from Allbeury all rated accordingly:
THE GOOD (Four to Five Stars): 'The Lantern Network', 'A Wilderness of Mirrors', 'A Shadow of a Doubt', 'The Only Good German' aka ‘Mission Berlin’, 'A Time Without Shadows', 'The Dangerous Edge', ‘Palomino Blonde’ aka 'Omega-minus', ’The Crossing' aka ‘The Berlin Exchange’,'The 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): Some other novels that this person thought were either bad or only okay were: 'Show Me a Hero', 'Aid and Comfort', '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 Star): It’s, however, probably best to stay away from: ‘Aid and Comfort’, ‘The Assets' aka “Due Process’, 'The Secret Whispers’, 'The Alpha List', 'The Consequences of Fear' and ’The Spirit of Liberty' aka ‘Beyond the Silence’. He also wrote, ’The Choice' which is not a good one and not espionage.
A solid thriller from Allbeury, where this reader used only Kindle to read it and missed all the preamble that would usually go with a paperback. Being the first time, it made for a difficult read, but still enjoyable nonetheless. Could this reader say that this story cost him only a dollar and he got the download straight away. Wow! Technology is unbelievable and made for a bargain read, didn't it?!! Four Stars for, 'The Seeds of Treason'. It was a good solid spy thriller.
Ted Allbeury wrote a staggering 42 novels and used two other pen names ~ Richard Butler and Patrick Kelly as well. Here are 25 read’s from Allbeury, all rated accordingly:
Ted Allbeury wrote a staggering 42 novels and used two other pen names ~ Richard Butler and Patrick Kelly as well. Here are about 26 other reads from Allbeury all rated accordingly:
THE GOOD (Four to Five Stars): 'The Lantern Network', 'A Wilderness of Mirrors', 'A Shadow of a Doubt', 'The Only Good German' aka ‘Mission Berlin’, 'A Time Without Shadows', 'The Dangerous Edge', ‘Palomino Blonde’ aka 'Omega-minus', ’The Crossing' aka ‘The Berlin Exchange’,'The 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): Some other novels that this person thought were either bad or only okay were: 'Show Me a Hero', 'Aid and Comfort', '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 Star): It’s, however, probably best to stay away from: ‘Aid and Comfort’, ‘The Assets' aka “Due Process’, 'The Secret Whispers’, 'The Alpha List', 'The Consequences of Fear' and ’The Spirit of Liberty' aka ‘Beyond the Silence’. He also wrote, ’The Choice' which is not a good one and not espionage.
April 9, 2025
Why do people in responsible government positions commit treason? "The Seeds of Treason" by the late, great Ted Allbeury, provides a few case studies that cover some reasons (for example, sex, money, revenge....) but puts a human face on each that makes the reader realize just how personal such decisions are.
It's the 1980s before the wall fell and Europe is seemingly crawling with spies. Jan Massey, son of an English father and Polish mother, is the head of the Brit's SIS station in Berlin. He falls in love with the Polish wife of his Russian KGB counterpart, has a relatively long affair with her, and eventually faces much trouble because of it. Several other characters are woven into the narrative: a thick-as-a-brick low-level government worker with a prostitute wife who loves the respect his Soviet contact provides as he crosses the line, a weakling cryptographer who's pissed at the establishment, and a brilliant SIS math whiz with a privileged background and a bad attitude that allows himself to be honey-trapped. And that's not counting the French, German, and Russian spooks bouncing back and forth across lines that ought not be crossed. Allbeury tells these tales with such authority that it all seems real. Networks are rolled up, spies are caught, defections occur, and in the end there's a resolution for Jan Massey that is fitting for someone who gave his all for his country and made one mistake for love.
Mr. Allbeury wrote some of the best spy novels of the 20th century and "The Seeds of Treason" is an excellent example of his work. Great writing, sympathetic characters, realistic action.... it's solid.
It's the 1980s before the wall fell and Europe is seemingly crawling with spies. Jan Massey, son of an English father and Polish mother, is the head of the Brit's SIS station in Berlin. He falls in love with the Polish wife of his Russian KGB counterpart, has a relatively long affair with her, and eventually faces much trouble because of it. Several other characters are woven into the narrative: a thick-as-a-brick low-level government worker with a prostitute wife who loves the respect his Soviet contact provides as he crosses the line, a weakling cryptographer who's pissed at the establishment, and a brilliant SIS math whiz with a privileged background and a bad attitude that allows himself to be honey-trapped. And that's not counting the French, German, and Russian spooks bouncing back and forth across lines that ought not be crossed. Allbeury tells these tales with such authority that it all seems real. Networks are rolled up, spies are caught, defections occur, and in the end there's a resolution for Jan Massey that is fitting for someone who gave his all for his country and made one mistake for love.
Mr. Allbeury wrote some of the best spy novels of the 20th century and "The Seeds of Treason" is an excellent example of his work. Great writing, sympathetic characters, realistic action.... it's solid.
June 10, 2019
It's many years since I last read Allbeury. His is strong, confident plotting and writing - very impressive. The style is unusually plain, unadorned. The tone is diffident, distanced. The author disregards the contemporary insistence on showing not telling, and much of the tale is told. It's curiously affecting, though, and I just had to finish it to find out what happened to the compromised hero. Clearly as a former Intelligence Corps officer in WW2, Allbeury is comfortable in the world of signal intelligence, though it's obvious his knowledge of some SIS habits and procedures is second-hand. For example, SIS officers retire in their early 50s, their true role is 'declared' to the host government after only two or three postings under diplomatic cover. And honours are never publicly gazetted where a serving intelligence officer is concerned. None of that matters much. Unlike le Carre he doesn't fuss over his characters and overwork his descriptions. Instead, Allbury reveals character by degree through their actions. I'm going to read a lot more of his work.
May 25, 2018
I’ve read too many identical espionage books to tell them apart anymore.
March 23, 2021
An appropriately titled book that explores several examples of individuals drawn into compromising situations, sometimes for love, sometimes for personal gain, sometimes from loyalty, sometimes out of fear. The major story line, that of Jan Massey, is explored in depth as LeCarre would have done. The overlays of UK, US, USSR and French intelligence operations and politics adds context. An excellent read.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews