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Catesby #1
Envoy
Kit Fournier, a disaffected former American officer, goes deep undercover and sides with the enemy in this sophisticated espionage thriller that takes place at the height of the Cold War. Giving a unique look into the CIA in London, Kit faces not only the looming arms race and an impending H-bomb apocalypse but also a crisis of the soul-brought about by the unveiling of his own dark, personal secret that might prove more deadly than the dispatches he's decoding. In a world where sexual blackmail and personal betrayal are essential skills, the consequences of siding with the enemy are exposed in this gripping historical drama.
274 pages, Paperback
First published April 1, 2008
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412 people want to read
About the author
Edward Wilson
121 books58 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.
Edward Wilson served in Vietnam as an officer in the 5th Special Forces. His decorations include the Bronze Star and Army Commendation Medal for Valor. Soon after leaving the army, Wilson became a permanent expatriate in the UK in 1974. He formally lost US nationality in 1986. Edward Wilson is a British citizen, but has also lived and worked in Germany and France.
Edward Wilson served in Vietnam as an officer in the 5th Special Forces. His decorations include the Bronze Star and Army Commendation Medal for Valor. Soon after leaving the army, Wilson became a permanent expatriate in the UK in 1974. He formally lost US nationality in 1986. Edward Wilson is a British citizen, but has also lived and worked in Germany and France.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 70 reviews
April 26, 2021
"THE ENVOY" is one of those Cold War based espionage novels that will hold you spellbound in its grip. It weaves a carefully crafted tale that will captivate any reader who loves adventures rich with bravado, derring-do, intrigue from the highest levels of government, and betrayal.
The novel begins in Nice, France during May 1948. Kitson ("Kit") Fournier, a native of Baltimore (Maryland) from a rather well-to-do family and a former OSS officer in French Indochina during the Second World War, is a Foreign Service officer in the U.S. consulate. A phone call at 2:00 AM awakens him from an agreeably erotic dream. The U.S. Deputy Chief of Mission (DCM) in Paris tells him that a notable person by the name of Lady Hartington had died in the crash of a small plane and that Kit is to go identify the body. At first, Kit wondered why he was requested to check on Lady Hartington, whom he supposed to be British and therefore, a matter for the British Foreign Office to handle. The DCM quickly informs him that Lady Hartington is American. What's more, before marrying an English lord who was later killed in the War by a German sniper, Lady Hartington had been Kathleen Kennedy, one of the daughters of Joseph Kennedy, the former U.S. Ambassador to Great Britain. Kit had only known Kathleen Kennedy briefly through meeting her at the Maryland Hunt Cup in the late spring of 1940. (She and her older brother Jack had been staying with a friend at the time.) He then "closed his eyes tight and thought, Why me? He hated dealing with dead bodies. After a moment, he said [to the DCM in answer to his question: 'Do you remember her well enough to identify the body?'], 'I think so, she wasn't a great beauty, but she was a bubbly girl.' "
Kit drove to the area of the crash with his British counterpart (for the other passengers were British; there were no survivors) to identify the bodies, which had been placed by the local authorities in the district council offices. He was the process of examining Lady Hartington's personal effects when in stormed Joe Kennedy himself. Kennedy demanded to see his daughter's body and gave Kit such a hard time that Kit suspected that - given Kennedy's considerable influence - his diplomatic career was forfeit. He met later with the DCM who strongly advised that he lie low and seek employment with the new intelligence agency (an offshoot of the OSS now known as the Central Intelligence Agency or CIA) that was seeking talented, highly motivated and intelligent men for work in spycraft. Kit, with his talent for languages and prior OSS experience, proved to be an apt pupil. By the mid-1950s, he was working - under cover as a State Department senior diplomat - as one of the CIA's top agents at the U.S. embassy in London.
The heart of the novel is centered on Kit's espionage work in Britain, which involved blackmail, coercion, "dirty tricks", and furthering U.S. interests as outlined by the CIA chief Allen Dulles, who was single-minded in his promotion of those interests, even at the expense of a friendly ally (i.e. Britain). Indeed, Kit had learned that "[t]he making of foreign policy ... is not a pretty business. It's a selfish, amoral trade. As an envoy, the interests of your closest ally don't mean a thing; your only job is to further your own country's national interest. You don't just f--k your enemies; you f--k your friends too." To this end, Kit is tasked with preventing a British détente with the Soviet Union (as occasioned by the visit of Khrushchev and Bulganin during April 1956 in a new state-of-the-art warship whose secrets both Britain and America were eager to uncover and exploit) and denying Britain its own hydrogen bomb. The action is riveting, always intense --- especially on the psychological level -- and will get the reader guessing as to what is to come next. And there is also love unexpected, and passion followed by heartbreak, that adds its own bewildering effects to the novel.
"THE ENVOY" sucked me in almost from the very beginning. So much so that I wish it didn't have to end. I LOVE THIS NOVEL.
The novel begins in Nice, France during May 1948. Kitson ("Kit") Fournier, a native of Baltimore (Maryland) from a rather well-to-do family and a former OSS officer in French Indochina during the Second World War, is a Foreign Service officer in the U.S. consulate. A phone call at 2:00 AM awakens him from an agreeably erotic dream. The U.S. Deputy Chief of Mission (DCM) in Paris tells him that a notable person by the name of Lady Hartington had died in the crash of a small plane and that Kit is to go identify the body. At first, Kit wondered why he was requested to check on Lady Hartington, whom he supposed to be British and therefore, a matter for the British Foreign Office to handle. The DCM quickly informs him that Lady Hartington is American. What's more, before marrying an English lord who was later killed in the War by a German sniper, Lady Hartington had been Kathleen Kennedy, one of the daughters of Joseph Kennedy, the former U.S. Ambassador to Great Britain. Kit had only known Kathleen Kennedy briefly through meeting her at the Maryland Hunt Cup in the late spring of 1940. (She and her older brother Jack had been staying with a friend at the time.) He then "closed his eyes tight and thought, Why me? He hated dealing with dead bodies. After a moment, he said [to the DCM in answer to his question: 'Do you remember her well enough to identify the body?'], 'I think so, she wasn't a great beauty, but she was a bubbly girl.' "
Kit drove to the area of the crash with his British counterpart (for the other passengers were British; there were no survivors) to identify the bodies, which had been placed by the local authorities in the district council offices. He was the process of examining Lady Hartington's personal effects when in stormed Joe Kennedy himself. Kennedy demanded to see his daughter's body and gave Kit such a hard time that Kit suspected that - given Kennedy's considerable influence - his diplomatic career was forfeit. He met later with the DCM who strongly advised that he lie low and seek employment with the new intelligence agency (an offshoot of the OSS now known as the Central Intelligence Agency or CIA) that was seeking talented, highly motivated and intelligent men for work in spycraft. Kit, with his talent for languages and prior OSS experience, proved to be an apt pupil. By the mid-1950s, he was working - under cover as a State Department senior diplomat - as one of the CIA's top agents at the U.S. embassy in London.
The heart of the novel is centered on Kit's espionage work in Britain, which involved blackmail, coercion, "dirty tricks", and furthering U.S. interests as outlined by the CIA chief Allen Dulles, who was single-minded in his promotion of those interests, even at the expense of a friendly ally (i.e. Britain). Indeed, Kit had learned that "[t]he making of foreign policy ... is not a pretty business. It's a selfish, amoral trade. As an envoy, the interests of your closest ally don't mean a thing; your only job is to further your own country's national interest. You don't just f--k your enemies; you f--k your friends too." To this end, Kit is tasked with preventing a British détente with the Soviet Union (as occasioned by the visit of Khrushchev and Bulganin during April 1956 in a new state-of-the-art warship whose secrets both Britain and America were eager to uncover and exploit) and denying Britain its own hydrogen bomb. The action is riveting, always intense --- especially on the psychological level -- and will get the reader guessing as to what is to come next. And there is also love unexpected, and passion followed by heartbreak, that adds its own bewildering effects to the novel.
"THE ENVOY" sucked me in almost from the very beginning. So much so that I wish it didn't have to end. I LOVE THIS NOVEL.
May 7, 2025
Wow, so much nail-biting done! What a page turner. If you like a good Cold War espionage book, this is the one to read. Onto Catesby #2!
October 27, 2010
The author, Edward Wilson, has a unique background. A decorated special forces officer in Vietnam, he became a permanent expatriate after he left the army and lost his US citizenship in 1986. He is now a British resident.
Interestingly, the main character’s father, was always losing his job, described as going slightly batty, after doing something honorable and honest, but unwise politically. Certainly, Kit, the diplomat who is moved into the OSS after pissing off Joseph Kennedy, has a similar streak, and one wonders what might be the relationship between those activities and Wilson’s own expatriation.
Wilson is the ultimate cynic. At one point Kit describes espionage as a “sick place: a wilderness of mirrors inhabited by haunted minds that see only images and lies. The more plausible a truth the more cunning the deception.”
There are numerous caustic portraits of real individuals. In one piece the Dulles brothers, Foster and Allen are making fun of Edens, the Prime Minister. Kit notes that neither of the brothers had ever heard a shot fired in anger while Edens had lost two brothers and a son in the wars and won the Military Cross in 1916. They scorned his foreign policy of diplomacy and discussion while neither spoke a foreign language. Edens was fluent in German, Persian, and French and “could tell stories and tell proverbs in Arabic,” not to mention converse in Russian.
Kit’s task is to foment dissension between the British and Russians and to subvert Eden’s foreign policy. The U.S. wants to force Britain to accept hydrogen bombs on their soil. The U.S. also realizes that Britain might be the first to be vaporized in any attack. Kit is also haunted by his lust for his cousin, Jennifer, whose husband works for Britain’s own bomb project and Kit wants Jennifer to spy on him. Soon things begin to spiral out-of-control as the labyrinth of lies, deception and blackmail become overwhelming. I won't spoil things by even hinting at more.
Some great lines: “”Sorry,” [he said] That’s the thing about being born a Catholic: you always feel guilty even if it isn’t your fault. You can stop believing--it’s all infantile nonsense after all--but you can’t stop the guilt..” There’s a great scene when the Dulles brothers are trying to pry some gossip out of Kit. He tells them about this great looking woman he saw at a Washington party only to realize when he got closer and saw the hint of stubble that it was J. Edgar Hoover. Kit left the party and “heard that the party turned pretty raunchy and that the blond boys gave Hoover a hand job -- but I can’t confirm that.” Later that night Kit broke into the embassy’s taping room and erased the tape of that portion of his conversation with the Dulles boys. Kit notes late that Foster Dulles “goes about international diplomacy with all the grace of a trained chimpanzee putting out a grass fire with a wet sack.”
Or this line that sums up the book. Kit is describing a painting he likes: “the beautiful eighteenth-century house was set in an early American Arcadia. The house lies on a slight rise above the Potomac River; the thickly wooded banks are turning autumnal; there are dogs and horse-drawn carriages in the foreground, boats with sails in the background. The house was demolished in 1949 to build a four-lane highway.”
An excellent read. I’m very surprised Wilson hasn’t received more recognition. The book has a verisimilitude about it that’s quite refreshing, if not totally depressing. Actual events and people are woven into the story. The author insists that even though real people and events are mentioned, the story is fiction. One event, for example, the crash of a B-47 into a storage shed housing nuclear weapons in 1956 theoretically had the potential to wipe out much of England. All the reports I read of it assured the reader there was no chance of a nuclear explosion; then again, given the prevarication and mendacity of everyone in this book, one has to wonder.....
Possibly the best spy novel I have ever read.
Interestingly, the main character’s father, was always losing his job, described as going slightly batty, after doing something honorable and honest, but unwise politically. Certainly, Kit, the diplomat who is moved into the OSS after pissing off Joseph Kennedy, has a similar streak, and one wonders what might be the relationship between those activities and Wilson’s own expatriation.
Wilson is the ultimate cynic. At one point Kit describes espionage as a “sick place: a wilderness of mirrors inhabited by haunted minds that see only images and lies. The more plausible a truth the more cunning the deception.”
There are numerous caustic portraits of real individuals. In one piece the Dulles brothers, Foster and Allen are making fun of Edens, the Prime Minister. Kit notes that neither of the brothers had ever heard a shot fired in anger while Edens had lost two brothers and a son in the wars and won the Military Cross in 1916. They scorned his foreign policy of diplomacy and discussion while neither spoke a foreign language. Edens was fluent in German, Persian, and French and “could tell stories and tell proverbs in Arabic,” not to mention converse in Russian.
Kit’s task is to foment dissension between the British and Russians and to subvert Eden’s foreign policy. The U.S. wants to force Britain to accept hydrogen bombs on their soil. The U.S. also realizes that Britain might be the first to be vaporized in any attack. Kit is also haunted by his lust for his cousin, Jennifer, whose husband works for Britain’s own bomb project and Kit wants Jennifer to spy on him. Soon things begin to spiral out-of-control as the labyrinth of lies, deception and blackmail become overwhelming. I won't spoil things by even hinting at more.
Some great lines: “”Sorry,” [he said] That’s the thing about being born a Catholic: you always feel guilty even if it isn’t your fault. You can stop believing--it’s all infantile nonsense after all--but you can’t stop the guilt..” There’s a great scene when the Dulles brothers are trying to pry some gossip out of Kit. He tells them about this great looking woman he saw at a Washington party only to realize when he got closer and saw the hint of stubble that it was J. Edgar Hoover. Kit left the party and “heard that the party turned pretty raunchy and that the blond boys gave Hoover a hand job -- but I can’t confirm that.” Later that night Kit broke into the embassy’s taping room and erased the tape of that portion of his conversation with the Dulles boys. Kit notes late that Foster Dulles “goes about international diplomacy with all the grace of a trained chimpanzee putting out a grass fire with a wet sack.”
Or this line that sums up the book. Kit is describing a painting he likes: “the beautiful eighteenth-century house was set in an early American Arcadia. The house lies on a slight rise above the Potomac River; the thickly wooded banks are turning autumnal; there are dogs and horse-drawn carriages in the foreground, boats with sails in the background. The house was demolished in 1949 to build a four-lane highway.”
An excellent read. I’m very surprised Wilson hasn’t received more recognition. The book has a verisimilitude about it that’s quite refreshing, if not totally depressing. Actual events and people are woven into the story. The author insists that even though real people and events are mentioned, the story is fiction. One event, for example, the crash of a B-47 into a storage shed housing nuclear weapons in 1956 theoretically had the potential to wipe out much of England. All the reports I read of it assured the reader there was no chance of a nuclear explosion; then again, given the prevarication and mendacity of everyone in this book, one has to wonder.....
Possibly the best spy novel I have ever read.
January 24, 2023
I love spy stories and had this series on my TBR list for ages before finally getting around to the first in the series, but have to admit to be somewhat disappointed. Kitson 'Kit' Fournier is a wealthy American and we first meet him in 1948 when he is working in the US consulate and is called to identify an American who has died in a plane crash in France. The victim is Kathleen Kennedy, and her father, Joe Kennedy, storms in and is upset to find Kit going through her things. This results in Kit being advised to go to a new intelligence agency, the Central Intelligence Agency, or fledgling CIA< being seet up. However, although Kennedy is upset, it is unclear why he would halt Kit's career, or even that he knew exactly who he was.
That said, by the 1950's, Kit is living in London, still working at the US embassy. The McMahon Act of 1946 forbids Americans to disclose atomic secrets to foreigners. Churchill imagines this does not mean the Americans allies, only to find it does. However, London quite rightly fears that, if Russia and America get involved in a war, it will be Britain that Russia will drop bombs on - the US being too far away. As such, 1956 sees Kit working as an agent, trying to cause mischief between the British and the Russians and scupper their plans of building their own H bomb. Meanwhile, he is in love with his cousin, Jennifer, who rather coincidentally is living in England and married to a scientist, who works in the Atomic Weapons Research Establishment.
The plot is involved and involves Kit's involvement with members of the IRA, a Russian named Vasily and questioning the motives of his country. However, he is not a typical hero by any means. At one point, even though he is armed, he stands by and listens to a man being tortured and killed and, while I understand that such things happen in this world, it still came across as extremely callous. He does want to survive and that is obviously more understandable than being desperate to rush into danger, but I can't say I warmed to either him or Jennifer, who he claims to love beyond anything, but his motives never really seem believable, even if they are clear. Like Kit, I felt a little out of my depth and I am unsure whether I wish to read on. I may step away from this series for a while before deciding whether to read on.
That said, by the 1950's, Kit is living in London, still working at the US embassy. The McMahon Act of 1946 forbids Americans to disclose atomic secrets to foreigners. Churchill imagines this does not mean the Americans allies, only to find it does. However, London quite rightly fears that, if Russia and America get involved in a war, it will be Britain that Russia will drop bombs on - the US being too far away. As such, 1956 sees Kit working as an agent, trying to cause mischief between the British and the Russians and scupper their plans of building their own H bomb. Meanwhile, he is in love with his cousin, Jennifer, who rather coincidentally is living in England and married to a scientist, who works in the Atomic Weapons Research Establishment.
The plot is involved and involves Kit's involvement with members of the IRA, a Russian named Vasily and questioning the motives of his country. However, he is not a typical hero by any means. At one point, even though he is armed, he stands by and listens to a man being tortured and killed and, while I understand that such things happen in this world, it still came across as extremely callous. He does want to survive and that is obviously more understandable than being desperate to rush into danger, but I can't say I warmed to either him or Jennifer, who he claims to love beyond anything, but his motives never really seem believable, even if they are clear. Like Kit, I felt a little out of my depth and I am unsure whether I wish to read on. I may step away from this series for a while before deciding whether to read on.
May 27, 2021
A gripping Cold War spy thriller that involves an American diplomatic envoy, Kit Fournier, who doubles as the CIA's head of station in London. Kit carries out a number of dirty tricks, mainly to prevent detente between Britain and the Soviet Union, until he finds himself entangled in a love affair with his married cousin Jennifer.
Meanwhile, a conspiracy involving a number of British and Russian scientists, along with rogue members of Russia and British intelligence services, leads Kit to a crisis of conscience as he seems set to betray his country. The story wraps historical facts and people around a conspiracy theory that sheds light on Britain and America's "special relationship" in the 1950's.
Meanwhile, a conspiracy involving a number of British and Russian scientists, along with rogue members of Russia and British intelligence services, leads Kit to a crisis of conscience as he seems set to betray his country. The story wraps historical facts and people around a conspiracy theory that sheds light on Britain and America's "special relationship" in the 1950's.
August 8, 2018
I don't know if my opinion is based because I just finished the 9 books from Len Deighton, the three trilogies (Bernard).
I thought the character KIT be soo fake, so hyped and full of shit I just could not continue to read.
Abandoned with only a few chapters read.
I thought the character KIT be soo fake, so hyped and full of shit I just could not continue to read.
Abandoned with only a few chapters read.
September 28, 2013
Competent espionage. Stark without villains, tradecraft and period detail abound but he's no literary stylist.
May 10, 2021
This was a strong read that faltered in the final chapters when the style and the timescales changed.
Most of the book is an immersive experience. The reader lives inside Kit Fournier's head. It's not a pleasant place to be, he's not a pleasant man, but it's vivid and it feels real. Kit is the CIA Chief of Station in the American Embassy in London in 1955. He's an odd man. He's an isolated, self-contained man, with no friends, limited contact with his family and no lovers. He's in the grip of a long-term sexual obsession with a female cousin who he grew up with. He's a man with inherited wealth that he refuses to use. He has a talent for languages, an appreciation of foreign cultures, a contempt for the vulgar business-oriented policies of his political bosses and no strong political ideology.
What hooks him into being a spy? Well, that's what a lot of the book is about.
One of the things that drew me to the book was the way Wilson brought the insanity of the 1950's arms race to life. This is the first novel I've seen in a while that shows the threat that America under Eisenhower posed to the world. The US had the H-bomb. The Russian's were just developing one. Neither the Brits nor the French had one and America wouldn't share. The US was the only country to have used a nuclear weapon. Now they a weapon a thousand times more powerful than the two bombs dropped on Japan, They had a President who saw the H-bomb as an extension of his armoury that gave a tactical advantage in the war against communism and a military leadership that was recommending a pre-emptive strike on Russia with Europe as an acceptable tactical loss.
Wilson turns this background from a history lesson into something much more threatening by letting us see it through the eyes of Kit Fournier, a man who knows all the players and where the bodies are buried We watch him running schemes to destroy detente between the USSR and the UK and to subvert British efforts to have their own H-bomb. The book is rich in historical detail and anecdotes about public figures that never make it into the schoolbooks.
None of the characters in the book is pleasant but somehow the Americans come across as worse than the rest. It displays an American political elite that was arrogant, aggressive and corrupt. The was the white supremacist America of McCarthy and Hoover. Think Trump, only competent.
I liked Wilson's writing. His people are real, drawn perhaps with more insight than empathy but still real. His evocation of the Suffolk coast is very vivid. He clearly loves it. The voice he gives to Fournier manages to engage and repel at the same time. I believed in this man as much as I disliked him
The plot is complicated and populated with people for whom betrayal, violence and deception are their stock in trade. It had several twists in it that I didn't see coming and enough momentum to make me eager to turn the pages.
Then the pace changed. Suddenly we were covering decades in a few pages and getting political outlines dumped as case reports. It was like moving from close up shots of faces with intense dialogue to aerial shots of a football game with a play by play commentary. It worked, but I didn't enjoy it. I'd have been happier if the book had finished a few chapters earlier, even though that would have left a few things up in the air.
Even so, I want to read more of Wilson's books. GoodReads and Amazon both list 'The Envoy' as the first book of Catesby spy series but it isn't. 'The Envoy' is a standalone book. My next Edward Wilson book I'll read will be the first Catesby book, 'The Darkling Spy'. Published two years after 'The Envoy' and set in 1956, it introduces Catesby, a British spy on a mission in Eastern Europe.
May 6, 2019
A story from the Cold War of the 1950’s which demonstrates the lack of trust between the UK and US over nuclear weapons. A complex story of espionage which is very slow moving in the first half while the characters are linked into real historical people and events - speeds up considerably towards the end.
November 18, 2012
Despite trying to read this more than once, and being reasonably well written, the characters were so unrealistic I just couldn't be bothered with any of them and happily abandoned it after reading the epilogue and discovering a ludicrous world of conspiracy theories etc..
May 21, 2016
A solid thriller that examines the tensions of the rarly Cold War through Kit Fournier, a reluctant spy who comes to loathe his world. of deceit, violence and moral betrayal. More of an interior novel than a conventional action story, it nevertheless has some nice plot turns.
April 6, 2017
It’s 1956, and all hell is about to break out. The U.S. has been testing the first H-bombs, and the USSR and the UK are both scrambling to produce their own. Soviet spies Burgess and Maclean have recently appeared in public in Moscow for the first time since defecting from England five years earlier. The British, French, and Israelis are planning to invade Egypt, to seize control of the Suez Canal from the Nasser regime. Hungary is soon to explode in an ill-considered revolt against Soviet occupation. And just a year later, the USSR will launch the world’s first artificial satellite, Sputnik I, accelerating the arms race with the United States.
British intelligence, the CIA, and the KGB are in competition, and the prize is the H-bomb
The Envoy opens in 1948 as Kit Fournier, then serving as U.S. Consul in Nice, has a difficult run-in with former Ambassador Joe Kennedy, whose daughter Kathleen has just died in an airplane crash on her way to a rendezvous with her lover. To avoid Kennedy’s wrath, Kit leaves the foreign service to join the CIA. This is only the first episode in the novel to involve real-life characters.
The plot begins to unfold eight years later, in 1956, with Kit positioned as CIA Station Chief in London. His relationship with his colleagues in the intelligence game is shaky on all sides: within the Agency, with MI6 and MI5, and with the KGB. In fact, it would appear that he is closer to the local head of the KGB than he is to anyone in Western intelligence. The two routinely swap information of mutual interest — a practice that may actually be real, if the work of John le Carre can be trusted.
The Envoy is a tale of obsessive love, international politics, and rivalry among the various intelligence services. The stakes couldn’t be higher: the global power afforded by possession of the H-bomb. It’s a fascinating and suspenseful story that concludes with a sequence of surprises.
Characters straight out of history
In addition to the Kennedys, the Dulles brothers, Allen (CIA Director) and Foster (Secretary of State) figure prominently in The Envoy. So does the notorious Dominican playboy Porfirio Rubirosa. In the background of the story are Soviet leaders Nikita Khruschchev and Nikolai Bulganin and British officials Anthony Eden, Harold Macmillan, and Hugh Gaitskell, as well as a minor figure, a British diver named Lionel Crabb, who gains notoriety in the course of the story, as he did in real life.
Such well-known and powerful figures as Allen Dulles and Anthony Eden are typically treated in fiction as larger than life. In The Envoy, Wilson brings to bear intimate details from their lives that betray a considerable depth of research. Every detail with which I’m familiar from a reading of history rings 100% true.
About the author
Edward Wilson is a decorated veteran of the U.S. Special Forces who served as an officer in the Vietnam War. Reading between the lines of his biography, it seems that that experience led him to oppose U.S. foreign policy so strongly that he renounced his American citizenship to become a British subject. For the past thirty years he has lived in England, working as a teacher. He has written six espionage novels.
British intelligence, the CIA, and the KGB are in competition, and the prize is the H-bomb
The Envoy opens in 1948 as Kit Fournier, then serving as U.S. Consul in Nice, has a difficult run-in with former Ambassador Joe Kennedy, whose daughter Kathleen has just died in an airplane crash on her way to a rendezvous with her lover. To avoid Kennedy’s wrath, Kit leaves the foreign service to join the CIA. This is only the first episode in the novel to involve real-life characters.
The plot begins to unfold eight years later, in 1956, with Kit positioned as CIA Station Chief in London. His relationship with his colleagues in the intelligence game is shaky on all sides: within the Agency, with MI6 and MI5, and with the KGB. In fact, it would appear that he is closer to the local head of the KGB than he is to anyone in Western intelligence. The two routinely swap information of mutual interest — a practice that may actually be real, if the work of John le Carre can be trusted.
The Envoy is a tale of obsessive love, international politics, and rivalry among the various intelligence services. The stakes couldn’t be higher: the global power afforded by possession of the H-bomb. It’s a fascinating and suspenseful story that concludes with a sequence of surprises.
Characters straight out of history
In addition to the Kennedys, the Dulles brothers, Allen (CIA Director) and Foster (Secretary of State) figure prominently in The Envoy. So does the notorious Dominican playboy Porfirio Rubirosa. In the background of the story are Soviet leaders Nikita Khruschchev and Nikolai Bulganin and British officials Anthony Eden, Harold Macmillan, and Hugh Gaitskell, as well as a minor figure, a British diver named Lionel Crabb, who gains notoriety in the course of the story, as he did in real life.
Such well-known and powerful figures as Allen Dulles and Anthony Eden are typically treated in fiction as larger than life. In The Envoy, Wilson brings to bear intimate details from their lives that betray a considerable depth of research. Every detail with which I’m familiar from a reading of history rings 100% true.
About the author
Edward Wilson is a decorated veteran of the U.S. Special Forces who served as an officer in the Vietnam War. Reading between the lines of his biography, it seems that that experience led him to oppose U.S. foreign policy so strongly that he renounced his American citizenship to become a British subject. For the past thirty years he has lived in England, working as a teacher. He has written six espionage novels.
July 4, 2016
This book was for me like finding a hidden gem; despite being a longstanding fan of espionage books, I did not know the author and I stepped into his book by chance. And I liked it a lot: I thought this was a rather atypical spy book, I noticed some reviews suggesting it is close to Le Carré style, maybe as a way to distinguish it from the all-action spy stories; in reality, I found this novel quite original and different from both styles, a novel where the worlds of policy making, foreign policy, diplomacy and intelligence are connected in a seamless way; so it is more multidimensional than most of the spy books where espionage constitutes the one and only angle of the story, and the hero - Kit - is a more complex and multifaceted character than a classic spy.
This is a cold war spy story, yet again it stays away from the mould of the typical set up (Berlin, the iron curtain, the wall, etc); it all takes place in England, mainly in London and in Suffolk, and Washington. This might take away some adrenaline, but the plot is such a subtle and elegant game that it keeps the reading quite engaging.
Another distinctive point is the complex and intriguing way the author describes the anglo-american relationships in the 50's across all the above mentione dimensions (political, diplomatic, intelligence); the tension between the supposed allies almost prevails over the one with the eternal and classic enemy, the Russians, which remains almost in the background. By the way, the way the author depicts some cultural, linguistic and behavioural "peculiarities" of the British and American societies is hilarious at times, or bitter otherwise - never stereotyped.
There is an underlying moralistic worldview disseminated along the story by its hero, Kit, culminating in a deep existentialist crisis leading him to self-annihilation, but this aspect never gets sticky so it is not too disturbing.
The pace of the book is slow and steady, it is well written and very well documented; in this, it does remind the early Le Carré and Deighton. Wilson, though succeeds in putting up a pretty fascinating and sophisticated story with its own specificity and distinctiveness.
This is a cold war spy story, yet again it stays away from the mould of the typical set up (Berlin, the iron curtain, the wall, etc); it all takes place in England, mainly in London and in Suffolk, and Washington. This might take away some adrenaline, but the plot is such a subtle and elegant game that it keeps the reading quite engaging.
Another distinctive point is the complex and intriguing way the author describes the anglo-american relationships in the 50's across all the above mentione dimensions (political, diplomatic, intelligence); the tension between the supposed allies almost prevails over the one with the eternal and classic enemy, the Russians, which remains almost in the background. By the way, the way the author depicts some cultural, linguistic and behavioural "peculiarities" of the British and American societies is hilarious at times, or bitter otherwise - never stereotyped.
There is an underlying moralistic worldview disseminated along the story by its hero, Kit, culminating in a deep existentialist crisis leading him to self-annihilation, but this aspect never gets sticky so it is not too disturbing.
The pace of the book is slow and steady, it is well written and very well documented; in this, it does remind the early Le Carré and Deighton. Wilson, though succeeds in putting up a pretty fascinating and sophisticated story with its own specificity and distinctiveness.
February 10, 2023
This espionage novel has a twisty plot worthy of more notable writers of the genre such as Le Carré, but isn’t as skilfully executed, and so I found it a bit of a slog. It was worth persevering as events moved more quickly in the final third, with betrayals, discoveries and deaths coming thick and fast, and a satisfyingly sharp Epilogue revealing a further layer of deception and misdirection.
Kit Fournier is an American diplomat, stationed in London, who is also involved in espionage and has meetings with both American and Russian contacts. His current investigation centres on rumours of a missing nuclear weapon, and the British and the Americans are both keen to know the truth of the matter without revealing it to their allies. Kit’s cousin Jennifer (with whom he has a bizarre and rather unconvincing obsession) is married to a British scientist working on nuclear research so he visits them to see what info he can get.
The author obviously has an extensive knowledge of the subject and has attempted to convey a sense of the political tensions of the 1950s and the impact of WWII on those who moved from the military into the secret services. However, in the first half of the novel this is done by info dumps and lengthy explanations, rather than being revealed more subtly through snatches of dialogue or action, and this made that part of the book a slog. The use of Kit’s involvement in real events is clever, but more action would have moved this part of the book along more smoothly.
The final third is very exciting and unfolds at pace with some surprising double crossings and secrets revealed, and I found the air of cynicism and realpolitik as the truth is revealed to be very convincing. Overall the end almost made up for the slow start, and I would definitely consider reading more by this author to see how he moved on from his debut.
Kit Fournier is an American diplomat, stationed in London, who is also involved in espionage and has meetings with both American and Russian contacts. His current investigation centres on rumours of a missing nuclear weapon, and the British and the Americans are both keen to know the truth of the matter without revealing it to their allies. Kit’s cousin Jennifer (with whom he has a bizarre and rather unconvincing obsession) is married to a British scientist working on nuclear research so he visits them to see what info he can get.
The author obviously has an extensive knowledge of the subject and has attempted to convey a sense of the political tensions of the 1950s and the impact of WWII on those who moved from the military into the secret services. However, in the first half of the novel this is done by info dumps and lengthy explanations, rather than being revealed more subtly through snatches of dialogue or action, and this made that part of the book a slog. The use of Kit’s involvement in real events is clever, but more action would have moved this part of the book along more smoothly.
The final third is very exciting and unfolds at pace with some surprising double crossings and secrets revealed, and I found the air of cynicism and realpolitik as the truth is revealed to be very convincing. Overall the end almost made up for the slow start, and I would definitely consider reading more by this author to see how he moved on from his debut.
July 14, 2012
The Envoy is a superior spy story that blends real world events and people with a fictional tale. It is complex, multi-layered, atmospheric, full of historical and political insight, and reveals deep insight into human relations. Wilson constructs a compelling and plausible plot that cleverly uses real events, such as the Ordzhonikidze incident in Portsmouth harbour, Britain’s hydrogen bomb program, and the Suez crisis, and real personalities such as Allen Dulles, Jack Kennedy and Dick White. He recreates the social landscape of Britain and the wider political atmosphere and diplomatic games being played in the 1950s, providing a deep sense of historical realism (indeed, the bibliography at the end of the book shows that Wilson did a fair bit of research in plotting the book). In particular, Wilson captures the spy’s world of deception, lies, betrayals, coercion, blackmail, state-sanctioned murder, paranoia, danger and constant worry, and that half the battle is the games within and between one’s own organisations. His characterization is excellent, especially his portrayal of Kit Fournier as a self-reflexive spy racked with self-loathing, yet compelled out of duty and honour to play his role, and he does a good job at exploring the human condition and what drives and shapes people in particular circumstances. Overall, a very well told story, with a couple of nice twists and turns, and an excellent resolution that proves that nothing is as it seems, even to those that think they can see the hand that each party is holding.
October 5, 2012
Like the other three-star reviewer here, I gave up in disappointment. In The Midnight Swimmer, Edward Wilson pulled off the weaving of real life characters into a fictional tale with bravura. The presence in The Envoy of Anthony Eden, Intelligence chief Dick White, Allen Dulles, Commander Crabbe and others might just have worked had it not been for the many diversions into actual events of the period that were presumably there to strengthen the verisimilitude but become merely irritating.
At least one can believe in Anthony Eden, which is more than can be said for most of the fictional characters. Kit, the US's top intelligence man in London, crying himself to sleep, wasn't easy to swallow.
This is a difficult genre that Wilson has virtually created for himself, and the stars on this occasion are more for a brave effort than for the actual achievement.
At least one can believe in Anthony Eden, which is more than can be said for most of the fictional characters. Kit, the US's top intelligence man in London, crying himself to sleep, wasn't easy to swallow.
This is a difficult genre that Wilson has virtually created for himself, and the stars on this occasion are more for a brave effort than for the actual achievement.
November 24, 2013
Warning - Read The Darkling Spy before reading this book. Although The Envoy is a stand alone novel it complements the Darkling Spy and with knowledge of that narrative there is added tension, twist and bewilderment.
A gripping espionage novel set in London during the cold war. Kitson Fournier is department chief of the CIA in the lead up to the Suez crisis. A conscientious and loyal agent, he nevertheless has reservations about the American administration's attitude to Britain. When he falls in love his loyalty is tested.
This is an intricately plotted novel exploring the relationships of the American, British and Russian secret services as well as examining their diplomatic relationships. In particular the degree of American hostility to Britain is surprising.
A gripping espionage novel set in London during the cold war. Kitson Fournier is department chief of the CIA in the lead up to the Suez crisis. A conscientious and loyal agent, he nevertheless has reservations about the American administration's attitude to Britain. When he falls in love his loyalty is tested.
This is an intricately plotted novel exploring the relationships of the American, British and Russian secret services as well as examining their diplomatic relationships. In particular the degree of American hostility to Britain is surprising.
February 21, 2014
Chillingly brilliant spy novel set in post war UK dealing with nuclear secrets and infiltration of UK security services by US intelligence. Better than Le Carre IMO.
February 9, 2015
A Yank spy in Cold War Britain of the mid-50s. Complex, unrealistic, odd, funny at first, but starkly dark by end.
October 8, 2020
Labored and pedestrian. I gather it's the first in a series, so others must like it better than I did. Found it predictable, and the protagonist rather a pain in the butt. DNF.
January 3, 2026
This is a spy story set in the mid-1950s, in the middle of nuclear paranoia/scare and in which American and British intelligence services were far from aligned on several key issues. In fact, this is a theme of many books in the whole series.
The novel captures a moment when the United States was emerging as a global leader while Britain was beginning to lose that role. One example is given by the Suez canal situation where according to the main character of this book, an American intelligence officer, "Israel, Britain and France didnt'seem to realize that America is going to thump them if they thumped Nasser ".
A central theme of the book is the deep distrust, bordering on contempt, that American intelligence harbors toward its British counterparts, coupled with a belief in their incompetence. This attitude is conveyed through elaborate American espionage operations designed to undermine and discredit the British intelligence services and government, one of which even involves collusion with Russian intelligence.
Kit Fournier, the main character in this story, is an American spy from a wealthy background that he secretly despises.
According to one enemy intelligence officer, he even appears to be one of the civilized and sane persons in his service.
However, is confidence/reckless and, mostly, his "relation" with a cousin led to his downfall at the end.
The novel is a “wilderness of mirrors” story, typical of Wilson’s work, in which everyone spies on everyone else,
sometimes even members of the same intelligence service spying on one another.
At first, Soviet intelligence stays in the background, but its importance becomes clearer as we read on.
After several twists, some of them really unexpected, we reach the final section including a striking twist which evokes a classic David-versus-Goliath feeling when the reader learns of a bold operation carried out by British against American intelligence. The outcome of this operation will remain in the background of several stories that appear later in the series.
Catesby and Bone, which are the main characters of the all series only appear in this book as nameless undercover agents. In an interview, the author even mentions the possibility of rewriting this first novel to better integrate it with the rest of the series.
This review is based on my third reading of the novel, undertaken as part of a plan to reread the entire series from the beginning. Although it is not the first book in the internal chronology of the series, it is the first published volume of an astounding work of spy fiction.
I still remember discovering this first book an author who was not well known at the time, and feeling after reading it that this was an author one must remember.
On this third reading, now with knowledge of the entire series, which includes books depicting events that precede those described here, I find myself admiring the author even more. Even so, I suspect that at the time of writing, the full scope of the series had not yet been completely planned.
An astounding start of an astounding series!
The novel captures a moment when the United States was emerging as a global leader while Britain was beginning to lose that role. One example is given by the Suez canal situation where according to the main character of this book, an American intelligence officer, "Israel, Britain and France didnt'seem to realize that America is going to thump them if they thumped Nasser ".
A central theme of the book is the deep distrust, bordering on contempt, that American intelligence harbors toward its British counterparts, coupled with a belief in their incompetence. This attitude is conveyed through elaborate American espionage operations designed to undermine and discredit the British intelligence services and government, one of which even involves collusion with Russian intelligence.
Kit Fournier, the main character in this story, is an American spy from a wealthy background that he secretly despises.
According to one enemy intelligence officer, he even appears to be one of the civilized and sane persons in his service.
However, is confidence/reckless and, mostly, his "relation" with a cousin led to his downfall at the end.
The novel is a “wilderness of mirrors” story, typical of Wilson’s work, in which everyone spies on everyone else,
sometimes even members of the same intelligence service spying on one another.
At first, Soviet intelligence stays in the background, but its importance becomes clearer as we read on.
After several twists, some of them really unexpected, we reach the final section including a striking twist which evokes a classic David-versus-Goliath feeling when the reader learns of a bold operation carried out by British against American intelligence. The outcome of this operation will remain in the background of several stories that appear later in the series.
Catesby and Bone, which are the main characters of the all series only appear in this book as nameless undercover agents. In an interview, the author even mentions the possibility of rewriting this first novel to better integrate it with the rest of the series.
This review is based on my third reading of the novel, undertaken as part of a plan to reread the entire series from the beginning. Although it is not the first book in the internal chronology of the series, it is the first published volume of an astounding work of spy fiction.
I still remember discovering this first book an author who was not well known at the time, and feeling after reading it that this was an author one must remember.
On this third reading, now with knowledge of the entire series, which includes books depicting events that precede those described here, I find myself admiring the author even more. Even so, I suspect that at the time of writing, the full scope of the series had not yet been completely planned.
An astounding start of an astounding series!
August 22, 2021
The Cold War continues to be a rich and fascinating subject for novelists. The high stakes, the political and personal psychodramas, and the slippery nature of truth and reality that those in the front line of the shadow war had to work with offer the author an abundance of source material. The Envoy follows the fortunes of Kit Fournier, diplomat at the US embassy in London and CIA Chief of Station in the period leading up to the Suez crisis in 1956. Although Eden’s obsession with Nasser features (along with many other period details - the book is very firmly anchored against the politics and geopolitics of the time), there’s a bigger, more existential, crisis looming in the form of the race to develop ever more powerful H-bombs, with the Americans and the Soviets prepared to stop at nothing in order to gain the upper hand, and with the British desperately trying to stay in the race to maintain some (albeit deluded) sense of their role as a world power. The book is fast-paced (somewhat too much so as it approaches the end, where the story is wrapped up rather too neatly, if surprisingly), and immersive. Interestingly, it’s described as the first in the ‘Catesby’ sequence, despite not featuring a character of that name in all its 270 pages - although I’ve a feeling that Fournier encountered Catesby on the London Underground without him being named, and I’m hoping that my suspicions will be confirmed in The Darkling Spy, the next book in the sequence.
December 2, 2024
I read this following a five-star review from a Goodreads 'friend' and was surprised to find myself struggling with it so much that I gave up on page 86.
I know from experience that when you set a novel among real historical events you have to do an extraordinary amount of research to capture what is going on at the time. The tricks to distil it down in the knowledge that the essence of time and place somehow seeps into the fabric of the book.
Sadly, Edward Wilson misses this step and, in 86 pages, I recorded the instances where the protagonist was on the periphery of events which, while being described, gave the author the opportunity to hold forth on background that had no bearing on the plot. They were:
The 'Buster' Crabb disappearance
The brothers Allen and John Foster Dulles and their roles in the US government
East End London and the Kray Twins
The Cambridge Spy Ring
Death of Stalin and the fate of Lavrentiy Beria
Paul Robeson and the House Un-American Activities Committee
I baled out before I could discover that Edward Wilson pulled all these threads together masterfully later in the book. From other reviews it looks like this was my loss. But, hey, life's too short and there are still seven books in Len Deighton's trilogy of trilogies waiting for me.
I know from experience that when you set a novel among real historical events you have to do an extraordinary amount of research to capture what is going on at the time. The tricks to distil it down in the knowledge that the essence of time and place somehow seeps into the fabric of the book.
Sadly, Edward Wilson misses this step and, in 86 pages, I recorded the instances where the protagonist was on the periphery of events which, while being described, gave the author the opportunity to hold forth on background that had no bearing on the plot. They were:
The 'Buster' Crabb disappearance
The brothers Allen and John Foster Dulles and their roles in the US government
East End London and the Kray Twins
The Cambridge Spy Ring
Death of Stalin and the fate of Lavrentiy Beria
Paul Robeson and the House Un-American Activities Committee
I baled out before I could discover that Edward Wilson pulled all these threads together masterfully later in the book. From other reviews it looks like this was my loss. But, hey, life's too short and there are still seven books in Len Deighton's trilogy of trilogies waiting for me.
January 27, 2019
Edward Wilson's spy novels are really beginning to grow on me.
This story follows the travails of Kit Fournier, ostensibly an American spy whose story we pick up in the Cold War 1950's. He is in England, at a time when tensions between the USA, Britain and Russia have never been higher. Let alone the trouble brewing in Indochina and Egypt. Throw in an escalating atom bomb race and you get a feel for the sort of tensions that a spy had to deal with back then.
Our author guides us masterfully through a kaleidoscope of double and triple dealing, where no one is ever really who he or she seems to be. And throw in a few strange peccadilloes as well, and you have all the makings of an intriguing plot - which our author does an excellent job of delivering to us.
A thoroughly enjoyable twisty spy story, which always has a moral undertone, based on historic happenings and people, and also delivers a highly satisfying ending. I really liked this book!
This story follows the travails of Kit Fournier, ostensibly an American spy whose story we pick up in the Cold War 1950's. He is in England, at a time when tensions between the USA, Britain and Russia have never been higher. Let alone the trouble brewing in Indochina and Egypt. Throw in an escalating atom bomb race and you get a feel for the sort of tensions that a spy had to deal with back then.
Our author guides us masterfully through a kaleidoscope of double and triple dealing, where no one is ever really who he or she seems to be. And throw in a few strange peccadilloes as well, and you have all the makings of an intriguing plot - which our author does an excellent job of delivering to us.
A thoroughly enjoyable twisty spy story, which always has a moral undertone, based on historic happenings and people, and also delivers a highly satisfying ending. I really liked this book!
October 7, 2022
I was going to give the book 3 stars but I really thought the writing was excellent; however, Kit Fournier was more anti-hero than hero and I admit to getting very confused about who was doing what to whom. Was this my fault or the fault of the plot? I don’t know but I do know I didn’t enjoy the book without exception. There were bits, like the climax and denouement that read easily and interestingly, and other bits that were less so. Overall, it’s a good book but I don’t think I’ll be searching out other books by this author. One thing that was good was that Wilson did not paint espionage as exciting or sexy or fun; it is a nasty, dirty, terrifying business that sucks people in and ruins their lives. Just because the Cold War is over per se doesn’t mean the whole business isn’t as unpleasant as it was in the 50s of this book, or the 60s onwards in those of Le Carré. Kit himself reflects on this and all the betrayals that happen in the book are proof positive.
January 31, 2020
On the whole, I enjoyed it - I like a good spy novel as bedtime reading to differentiate from the English literature for my degree - but I did find it a bit hard to follow in places. Though, to be frank, that could be down to my lack of concentration. The construction of the protagonist was interesting and refreshing; I always respect a writer who takes the risk of presenting a sometimes distinctly unlikeable character at the centre of a story. Kit Fournier is very definitely flawed individual, and Wilson almost takes it too far, but I suppose it’s in keeping with the tone of the novel.
I’m by no means an expert on the Cold War spy novel, but I’ve read a few (and not just Le Carré), and in The Envoy, I think Wilson manages to weave a unique take on the genre.
I’m by no means an expert on the Cold War spy novel, but I’ve read a few (and not just Le Carré), and in The Envoy, I think Wilson manages to weave a unique take on the genre.
December 3, 2022
Picked this up in Daunts on a hunch and fortunately it was a correct one unlike the horses I back on a similar gut feeling...this is a fantastic read, well written and extremely dark, though there is also moments of excellent dark humour too. IMHO as good as Le Carre...central character Kit Fournier senior US Spook in American embassy in London has a fair amount of hang ups -- especially about his female first cousin -- as you will discern but is pretty darned good at his job. It is the time of the H Bomb and Suez -- no Garden of Eden for the British Government and with the Dulles brothers deeply sceptical about their allies. Cannot go into the plot more than that as would reveal too much only to say invest in this book as it is a cracker. Will be definitely buying his Catesby series.
November 20, 2019
Having really enjoyed Wilson's South Atlantic Requiem I was keen to read more. I really enjoyed The Envoy although, as the main protagonist was American, I didn't feel quite the same engagement with him as I did with the British spy in the other book. From both books I learned a great deal of political history as there is a very strong seam of international political machinations throughout. This one is set in the 1950s and the arms race is the main focus. Some of the action is based in Suffolk (which is where the author lives) and as that's local it added to my engagement with the storyline. As spy books go, Edward Wilson is certainly a master of the genre.
September 25, 2020
It occupies the same genre and historical turf as books by John Lawton and Alan Furst: espionage before, during, and after WWII. In this case 1951. The plot is rather busy, and the main character, an American spy, is one strange guy. It took me a while to get into it, but then it became intriguing. It doesn't quite have the wit and broad sense of culture as Furst's and Lawton' s and Le Carre's books do, but it's in the ballpark. Kathleen Kennedy (sister of Jack and Bobby) and the odious Dulles brothers make appearances, but KK is already dead when the book starts. Some complex dilemmas concerning sexuality arise, and the politics of the nuclear age are everywhere. I enjoyed this one.
February 13, 2021
A top-quality spy novel set mainly in 1956 England where young high-flyer Kit Fournier is the CIA’s London station chief involved in the duplicity of his trade as real and invented characters worry about Britain’s gaining an H-Bomb and rapprochement with the Soviets. The ruthless Fournier is self-reflective and his connection to his female cousin is increasingly critical as the twists and turns of the plot lead him deeper into a self-created mire. A few inconsistencies but a bleak re-creation of the Cold War with less of the obtrusively political compared to the later novels in the series.
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