The Elegant Lie

by Sam Eastland

The year is 1949. In the bombed-out ruins of Cologne, Hanno Dasch is king. Director of the most successful black market operation in post-war Germany, Dasch has kept his clients supplied with goods so extravagant and rare that they were almost impossible to find even at the height of Germany's conquests.Nobody but Dasch, his enigmatic daughter and the war criminal he keeps as his bodyguard know how he does it.None of this has escaped the attention of Allied Intelligence, who face not only the systemic corruption of a country where everything is in short supply, but the growing threat of Stalin's KGB.Fearing that Dasch will soon expand his business to include dealings with Russia, and invite the further meddling of Russian agents in the west, the CIA sets in motion an undercover operation to infiltrate and, ultimately, destroy Dasch's empire. A disgraced American Army officer, Nathan Carter, is recruited to approach Dasch and to ingratiate himself with promises of stolen army supplies. As Carter moves further and further into the labyrinth of Dasch's world, it soon becomes clear that the black market ring has already been compromised, but by someone even more dangerous than the Russians.Carter stumbles upon a counterfeiting ring, with whom Dasch has unwittingly gone into business, which seems to have been created with the sole purpose of destroying the Soviet economy, something it could easily do with the superlative quality of the forged bills it is producing. With Carter caught in the middle, and facing the danger that his cover might be blown at any moment, a race begins between the Russian and American spy agencies to uncover who is responsible, before the situation escalates to war.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Germany, Fiction, Thriller, Mystery, Crime, Spy Thriller

314 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 5, 2019

About the author

A pseudonym used by Paul Watkins

Reviews

[Rob Kitchin · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Elegant Lie follows the fortunes of disgraced American officer, Nathan Carter, as he goes uncover in post-war Cologne to tackle a black market racketeer. While the premise is interesting, the story is far too linear and aspects of it make little sense. For example, it is really not clear at all why Dasch needs Carter, or why he’d pick him up straight after release from prison. Dasch has operated perfectly well without Carter, who brings little to Dasch’s game, and either Carter would have been thoroughly checked out in advance, or he would have needed to inveigle his way in. Instead, joining Dasch’s operation simply lands in Carter’s lap. Moreover, it’s not clear why the authorities can’t move to shut Dasch down given what’s known about his activities, or why Carter has to travel to a crash site rather than local contacts. The story is full of such simple plot devices, which along with the lack of twists and turns, means the tale is thin and lacking credibility, intrigue and tension. Instead, the narrative is padded out with an extended history of Carter and his time as an undercover cop pre-war and his journey to prison which provides a lot of backstory that could have been snappier, rather than spooled out for little gain. Moreover, the character development is somewhat anaemic and there is little sense of life in post-war German beyond some thin description. So, while the premise of the story offered much potential, its execution lacked the depth, complexity and characterisation of a Philip Kerr, David Downing or Luke McCallin tale.

[Carol · Rating 1 out of 5]

I am a big fan of Sam Eastland’s writing. However The Elegant Lie is a huge disappointment. I actually quit half way through! Could not engage with the main character or his motivations, and the whole story seemed pointless. Really wishing he could give us one more Inspector Pekkala story.

[Paul Hargreaves · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked Sam Eastland's Inspector Pekkala series, but this is even better. Solidly into the territory occupied by Philip Kerr and Joseph Kanon. Yes, that good!

[MaureenM · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nothing special here.

[Elgyn · Rating 1 out of 5]

Nikdy jsem si nemyslela, že bych někdy mohla dát Samu Eastlandovi tak nízké hodnocení. Ale tady se nedá nic dělat.
Tohle je horší, než když pejsek s kočičkou vařili dort. Už tam chyběli jen mimozemšťané. I když... možná tam byli v nějakém divném propletenci.
Překombinovaný, chatrný, rozklížený děj s divným koncem. Nuda, nuda, šeď, šeď.
Na můj vkus divně skáče v čase tam a zpátky. Totálně jsem se v tom ztratila. Stejně jako v postavách.
Asi takhle – mnohem zajímavější mi přišlo i to, že si Pekkala o víkendu čistí boty.

Jediné, co můžu ocenit je, že se tentokrát autor obtěžoval s křestním jménem pro hrdinu.

Při vší úctě – kdo soudný by si v roce 1949 vezl s sebou z Německa do Československa fotku, na které je s Hitlerem?

Jestli jsem to pochopila správně, tak v roce 1949 spadlo u Karlových Varů kapitalistické letadlo s kontrabandem a hrdina se tam vypraví a má mapu dopadu?
To by nevymyslel ani major Zeman.
Hrdina se podívá, že tam letadlo opravdu je, a dalším vlakem pojede dál.
To byly sakra krátké líbánky.

Tohle mě pobavilo. Jestli on autor nepotřebuje kamaráda na telefonu.
s. 199 When do you leave for Karlovy?
s. 222 Arriving at Karlovy.
Tedy do Karlových Varů.

Karlovy Vary was once named Carsbad Cure (s. 223)?

[Elizabeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's not that it's a bad book. I love Eastland's Pekkala series, and had high hopes for this new book. It's just that it felt disjointed, liked he was writing two different stories that he tried to blend together. The first 100 pages or so are all tell, no show, and it's not until about a quarter of the way into the WWII flashback that everything starts to click. Unfortunately, it's just not enough. Carter isn't an interesting enough character to really carry the story, and the plot is just a little too thin to make it worth it.

[Mike · Rating 3 out of 5]

I find it hard to rate Eastland's novels. I find myself doubting them all the way through only to find that I have enjoyed them come the end. This isn't as engrossing as his Inspector Pekkala series, but for me that might be the lack of Russia in The Elegant Lie. Still worth a read, though.

[Osvaldo Querin · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent espionage thriller

An eloquently written thriller with two parallel times which as they meet in the end all then makes sense. And you ask, who really are the criminals?

[Mike Sampson · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first Sam Eastland book l have read and it won't be the last. I really enjoyed reading it, an engaging tale set in post war Cologne. Excellent characterisation and a story with a few twists to keep you guessing. Very credible.

[Boris Feldman · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5. Post-War thriller. German spy noire. Like Philip Kerr but better.

[Grahamgill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sam Eastland is quickly becoming a favourite!

[Tolkien InMySleep · Rating 4 out of 5]

Elegant and well-plotted

[Abbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is really a 3.5. It's a really fun quick read but it's kind of predictable. Still, I'm not sorry I read it. Very fast and fun. It reads like you're watching a movie.

[Medeiros · Rating 1 out of 5]

WTF?

[Bill Lydon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sam Eastland is good.

[Libby · Rating 3 out of 5]

Three and a half stars

[Eric Grounds · Rating 4 out of 5]

A new author for me. Cracking good read, so I am going to attack his (many) other books

[Chris Baker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyable read

Cracking story, enjoyed every page, lack of chapters only drawback but that's my problem does jump around a bit but still readable

[Ken B · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 STARS.

[Sophie · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Gianna Lorandi · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 Stars
This book is about the smuggling underworld during WWII. The author skilfully switches between two timelines, one in the present and the other explains how the main character found himself doing what he does.
I found it a bit monotonous at times but there are plenty of deceit and lies which makes the plot interesting.

[Judie · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Elegant Lie takes us to post World War II Germany. Sam Eastland shows us the devastation that follows war and gives us a good thriller as well.