Aurore

Wars Within #2

by Graham Hurley

Aurore connects Billy Angel, an RAF wireless operator selected for a covert mission to occupied France, with Helene Lafosse, a French woman keeping unusual company in her small family chateau in the depths of the Touraine. Helene has begun an affair with senior Abwehr Intelligence officer and in return he has turned a blind eye to the succession of Jews, refugees, resistance fighters and downed Allied airmen to whom she offers shelter. MI6 want to exploit their relationship and plant a false lead about the D-Day landings. It falls to Billy Angel to find his way to the Chateau de Neune where he must win Helene's confidence and share the tiny piece of the intelligence jigsaw that will only make sense to her German lover.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Espionage, Thriller, War, Mystery Thriller

416 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2017

About the author

Graham Hurley was born November, 1946 in Clacton-on-Sea, Essex. His seaside childhood was punctuated by football, swimming, afternoons on the dodgems, run-ins with the police, multiple raids on the local library - plus near-total immersion in English post-war movies.

Directed and produced documentaries for ITV through two decades, winning a number of national and international awards. Launched a writing career on the back of a six-part drama commission for ITV: "Rules of Engagement". Left TV and became full time writer in 1991.

Authored nine stand-alone thrillers plus "Airshow", a fly-on-the-wall novel-length piece of reportage, before accepting Orion invitation to become a crime writer. Drew gleefully on home-town Portsmouth (“Pompey”) as the basis for an on-going series featuring D/I Joe Faraday and D/C Paul Winter.

Contributed five years of personal columns to the Portsmouth News, penned a number of plays and dramatic monologues for local production (including the city’s millenium celebration, "Willoughby and Son"), then decamped to Devon for a more considered take on Pompey low-life.

The Faraday series came to an end after 12 books. Healthy sales at home and abroad, plus mega-successful French TV adaptations, tempted Orion to commission a spin-off series, set in the West Country, featuring D/S Jimmy Suttle.

Launch title - "Western Approaches" - published 2012. "Touching Distance" to hit the bookstores next month (21st November).

Has recently self-published a number of titles on Kindle including "Strictly No Flowers" (a dark take on crime fiction), "Estuary" (a deeply personal memoir) and "Backstory" (how and why he came to write the Faraday series).

Married to the delectable Lin. Three grown-up sons (Tom, Jack and Woody). Plus corking grandson Dylan.

You're very welcome to contact Graham through his website: www.grahamhurley.co.uk

Or direct on seasidepictures@btinternet.com.


Series:
* D.I. Joe Faraday

Reviews

[Lucian Belić · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,1 / 5

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent

Historical fiction of the highest order. Well written, impeccably researched, great story, different. Just read this and all the books in Hurley’s Spoils of War series. Wow?

[Margaret · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've long been a fan of Graham Hurley's DI Joe Faraday novels. I find his characters utterly believable: his sense of place, and of telling detail make his stories compelling.

This is the first book of his in which Portsmouth, Devon and crime fighting aren't centre stage. Instead, we are in wartime England, and in the world of the French Resistance. We meet Billie Angell, an actor whose wartime career is as a Wireless Operator in Bomber Command, despite having originally registered as a conscientious objector. As he completes 30 operations, he's allowed a decent breather. Life, of course, has other plans. He finds himself in training as a secret agent, destined for France, with the task of planting a convincing story designed to mislead the Nazi lover of Helene Lafosse.

I was utterly convinced by Billie's own story, and by accounts of Helene's life in Paris, and in her exiled Jewish husband's chateau in the Touraine. I couldn't put this book down as I was transported to the complicated daily life of a French woman giving shelter to a Jew; a résistante; and two refugees from the Spanish Civil War, as she enjoyed a relationship with her Nazi lover while remaining committed to her Jewish husband.

It's when things began to go horribly wrong (How? You'll just have to read the book) that I slightly lost touch with the plot. I think I may have been intended to be confused by who was being loyal to whom, who was hand in glove with secret agents on the side of the English, or perhaps the Germans.

The ending is not entirely a happy one. But it extends the promise of an interesting and fruitful future for one of the characters in this book. I'd willingly read the first book in the series, 'Finisterre', and look forward to the promised third volume.

[Dan O'Meara · Rating 1 out of 5]

I have read and, mostly, thoroughly enjoyed every book Graham Hurley has published. His Faraday and Winter series remains for me among the top 3 police procedurals I have ever read (with Rankin's Rebus and Mankell's Wallander). I was also intrigued by his own account of writing this series in Backstory. His Jimmy Suttle books and various one off have also been devoured with interest and enjoyment (especially Permissible Limits), and his opening account in his Wars Within Series (Finesterre) also had me hooked. But I struggled with Aurore from get-go. His principal characters never really gelled for me, and the treatment of overall conceit, both in England and in France, remained scarcely credible throughout (and there are deeply irritating minor errors of fact - De Gaulle was not a colonel but a brigadier-general; the film Cassablanca would not have been shown in occupied France in 1943, and its theme song would not have been known to German officers at the time). Deploying a dual track narrative in which his two principal characters meet somewhere near the middle of the book, Hurley seems to have written himself into a real narrative cul de sac. His solution is to opt for ever more dramatic capsule events and displacements of some of the characters, all of which seem overwrought fail to get him out the narrative hole he dug. And the final climax was just the entirely gratuitous cherry on an already overly gaudy top. Seldom have a read a book that seemed to have less point, less coherence.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

In April 1943 twenty seven year old Flight Sergeant Billy Angell, a Wireless Operator, joins Bomber Command at RAF Wickenby, one of a network of airfields in the east of England. Prior to the start of the war he had been a successful actor but, as a committed Quaker and pacifist, when the war started he became a registered conscientious objector, working in a hospital. However, the death of the close friend who had introduced him to Quakerism causes him to question both his faith and his role in the war and so he enlists. He is well aware that barely half of bomber crew members survive the thirty missions which constitute a full tour, after which there is an exemption from active service for six months. However, against all the odds, Billy does survive, although he is deeply traumatised by the psychological effects of seeing so much carnage, uncomfortably recognising the part he has played in this destruction.
His fears about eventually having to face future missions are, to some extent allayed when he is approached by MI5 to take part in a top secret mission in Nazi-occupied France. They are interested in a woman called Lafosse who lives in a château in Touraine, where she is known to offer refuge to Jews, refugees, members of the resistance movement and downed Allied airmen. She is protected in these activities because of her relationship with an Abwehr intelligence officer, Bjorn Klimt, a man she has come to love and trust, even though she is still in love with her husband, Nathan Khorrami, a Jewish art dealer who has fled to London. MI5 wants Billy to agree to be dropped in France, to make contact with this woman, gain her trust and plant a false lead about the expected Allied invasion of northern France, with the expectation that this will be passed on to her German lover. The ability to act well is a pre-requisite for a spy and, although nervous about his mission, Billy is at least confident in his acting skills.
I found this an engaging novel, and thought that the author maintained a real tension in his story-telling. As in his first WWII novel, Finisterre, initially the narrative switched between Billy’s and Hélène’s stories but, as these gradually merged there was less switching and more of a feeling of focus to the story. However, for me the real strength in this story was the portrayal of the individual characters, their relationships and their interactions. I thought that Graham Hurley captured, in a thought-provoking way, the moral dilemmas and dangers they faced as they tried to navigate their personal journeys through the horrors of war and occupation. In my review of Finisterre I reflected on the fact that I found his development of the romantic aspects of his characters’ relationships less successful. However, in this story I thought that he was far more convincing in his portrayals of the multi-faceted and complex relationships which exercised the consciences of Billy and Hélène.
Most of his plot development felt credible, although there were a couple of occasions when I did find that my credulity was stretched just a bit too far! I thought that he generated a very real sense of the ever-impending threat which must accompany any espionage mission or participation in a resistance movement. As the story progressed, this threat and accompanying fear began to feel almost unbearable, to the extent that I was torn between not wanting to be exposed to the horrors being faced, and yet finding myself unable to bear to put the book down. There were some shocking, although not totally surprising, twists towards the end and these images, which I won’t elaborate on because that would spoil the story, continue to haunt me. As in his earlier book, the author blended fact and fiction in a way which made very effective use of his extensive research, reminding the reader of some of the horrors of this shameful period of European history whilst not making them the only focus of his story-telling.
This is the second book in the “Wars Within” trilogy; Finisterre was first in the series and Estocado is to follow. However, as I know from having very recently read, reviewed and enjoyed Finisterre, this book is one which can easily be read as a stand-alone novel because the links between the stories, although adding extra interest, are tenuous rather than crucial. In some ways I found this a less thought-provoking read than the first book but, as a group read I think some of the themes and moral dilemmas covered would make for some very interesting discussion and debate.

[Ross Cameron · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is written as a dual narrative, with alternating chapters focussing on each of the protagonists before they come together in Part 2. It is well written, and very readable, but the plot feels full of holes and the latter half of the book does not match the slow, steady build up of the first.
Time is taken to introduce the characters, but elements feel incidental and not fully explored (eg the love interest). While this book is fiction, I also feel this episode and the resulting punishment would have removed any chance of the main character undertaking this mission.
Parts of the mission just seemed poorly thought out (that he would be instructed to tell his captors he alone had baled out, the hiding of a parachute next to a frequently used drop zone etc) and from the arrival in France the pace too fast.
This does feel picky, but this is a book that could have been better.

[Wendy Hearder-moan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Parts 1 through 3 were excellent - I was totally engaged in Billy’s situation and in Helene’s, and even to a lesser extent with Klimt’s and Nathan’s. But as operation Aurore foundered, so did the book, for me. Whether I failed to understand something in the spy/counter-spy culture or the relationships among the political figures in Germany or what, I don’t know, but in Part 4, I couldn’t follow the action or figure out why certain things were happening and as a result, the ending, which I guess was supposed to be satisfying on an emotional level, fell flat and the book seemed to fizzle out.

[The Villan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well researched book about the experiences of a Lancaster crew during WWII. Then the remainder of the book was about how some French people existed during the German occupation and the attempt to deceive the Germans about the intended invasion location. Not sure what to make of this novel with it’s unusual ending. Maybe that’s the point to show the futility and the waste of human lives due to war.

[G L · Rating 2 out of 5]

Formulaic plot. mediocre writing.
I read the first 50-60 pages. It was obvious where the book was going. I leafed through, and read the last 25 pages. They confirmed my impression.
I gave up. Life is too short for bad writing.

[Helen Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Superb fiction

Well they say 'truth' is stranger than fiction, but in this case it's probably untrue. Somewhat typical fantasy, gorgeous, rich, highly sexed heroine in lusty relationship with a cultured member of the enemy.

[Lysergius · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a superbly executed novel. The plot is impeccable, the characterisation vivid, the action unending and conclusion shocking. Graham Hurley has secured himself a place with John Lawton and Philip Kerr in the forefront of this genre of historical fiction. Totally gripping.

[Bob · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book, the second in trhe series. I read the first one and enjoyed it a bit better but this was one was still good. A story about WWII France and England and the struggles of people in the war and the attempts by British spymasters to deceive the Germans

[Matthew Barker · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good story, unlike any other WW11 story I’ve ever read. From frontline bombing missions to life in occupied France, a number of stories are intertwined. Some sudden shocks along the way and a brutal last 50 pages or so.

[Catherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Prefer his other police characters. This one was good tho.

[Simon Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic, couldn't put it down. Nothing like the Faraday & Suttle series. Can't wait to read the others in this series. Hurley is a genius.

[John Nicholson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A rather unusual novel, but thoroughly entertaining.

[Peter Timson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the third book of Hurley I've read now. All have been in this series where the order in which they are read is unimportant. This is the best so far. Another library book in this lockdown.

[Natasa Sears · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great start. Excellent really. Then the book flops and never recovers. Shame.

[Keith Currie · Rating 4 out of 5]

An attempt to sow misinformation about the imminent Normandy landings goes disastrously wrong.

[David Cooper · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the vast majority of this book. I liked the swapping between the 2 story lines until they joined up towards the end. However, I felt that the ending didn't fit with the rest of the story and was a bit rushed.

[Neil · Rating 1 out of 5]

Abandoned after chapter 11, storyline direction not to my taste I'm afraid

[Ant Koplowitz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Second book in Graham Hurley's slow burn second world war spy series. Beautifully written.

[Leonie · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars as I really enjoyed this fast-paced wartime adventure - half a star off as the ending was… not what I wanted! I loved Hélène. And Klimt.

[Katharine Bird · Rating 1 out of 5]

I couldn't get past the conversation about Agnes being r*ped, and apparently being thankful for it. I couldn't continue reading.

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

I ordered this as a result of a recommendation on the Nevil Shute website. I must admit I was expecting a much better ending but, in some sense, this may have been more like the real world as the ending of WWII approached. There were many parts left hanging and one has to wonder about ‘ what might have happened if’. About halfway through the story seemed to fall apart.

[Catherine · Rating 1 out of 5]

Got fed up with the style so I’m putting it back on the shelf for the moment. Maybe even the Charity shop !