KOMET’s Comments (group member since Apr 26, 2013)

KOMET’s comments from the Espionage Aficionados group.

in August 2011, I read the Ted Allbeury novel "As Time Goes By."



This novel is largely centered around the activities of a resistance network in Southern France that fought against the Germans between 1941 and 1944. The leader of the unit is an Englishman, Harry Bailey, who, though from a modest working class background in the Midlands, developed an early love for the French language and culture that was later to stand him in good stead upon entering the British Army in 1940. Subsequently, Bailey was assigned to the Intelligence Corps and was later recruited to join SOE (the Special Operations Executive).

The novel goes on to explore the relationships among the various members of Harry's unit (e.g. Paulette, Louis Maurois, Paul Cattoir, Violette Crowther, and Jenny Campbell) and gives the reader an idea of how the war impacted on people who, in spite of the dangers in being a "resistant", bravely fought against the German occupiers. (The author himself had served in SOE, and through his writing, shows the painstaking work that was involved in training and leading a resistance network.)

A Small Town in Germany by John le Carré



I read this novel during the summer of 1986, having recently graduated from college.

Mary wrote: "Hello everyone, my name is Mary Hadden: I study history at university (second year). I am not the author of this book; Feliks has given his kind permission for me to list this book with the group (..."

Thank you, Mary, for this. You've really piqued my curiosity! I'm a John le Carré, Charles McCarry, Alan Furst, and Eric Ambler fan. I will be buying this book.

BTW: Good luck with your studies.

Poppy wrote: "Hello, I'm Poppy.
I work in hospitality: a plush establishment, patronised by more gentle, conservative folk. I work. I walk. I read. I work. I walk. I read. I don't know just yet what I really want..."

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Welcome to the Group, Poppy! :)

I've been a fan of John le Carré's novels since the mid-1980s. One of my favorites from him is "The Honourable Schoolboy", which I read a little over 30 years ago.



Since that time, I've read several other le Carré novels. I've always appreciated the intelligence and the quality of writing he brought to his work. (I've also enjoyed listening to the various radio interviews - both here in the U.S. and overseas - he had given over time about his life and novels. He was a very fascinating man in many ways.)

Recently, I read a book of short stories by Graham Greene. I can't say I found it particularly impressive. At some point, I will read one of his novels, just to see how they stack up.

Conrad I've read a couple of times over the past 30 years. He doesn't do much for me. "Heart of Darkness" - despite an interesting quote here and there - made for excruciating reading.

The writers of spy fiction I especially like are Edward Wilson (he's fantastic!) , Alan Furst, Charles McCarry, Robert Littell, Aly Monroe, and Eric Ambler.

Sometime this year, I intend to read some spy novels I have from David Downing, Charles Cumming, Francine Mathews, and Mick Herron.

Paul wrote: "I'll mention a spy author in the underrated category: Charles McCarry.

My first experience reading him was
The Miernik Dossier,
, and I was hooked. Read his spy stuff in order, ..."

I wholeheartedly agree. I became a fan of Charles McCarry after reading " The Tears of Autumn" several years ago.

.American Spy by Lauren Wilkinson



SUMMARY
"It's 1986, the heart of the Cold War, and Marie Mitchell is an intelligence officer with the FBI. She's brilliant but she's also a young black woman working in an old boys' club, and her career has stalled out; she's overlooked for every high profile squad, and her days are filled with monotonous paperwork. So when she's given the opportunity to join a shadowy task force aimed at undermining Thomas Sankara, the charismatic, revolutionary president of Burkina Faso, whose Communist ideology has made him a target for American intervention, she says yes. Yes, even though she secretly admires the work Thomas is doing for his country. Yes, even though she is still grieving the mysterious death of her sister, whose example led Marie to this career path in the first place. Yes, even though a furious part of her suspects she's being offered the job because of her appearance and not her talent.

"In the year that follows, Marie will observe Thomas, seduce him, and ultimately, have a hand in the coup that will bring him down. But doing so will change everything she believes about what it means to be a spy, a lover, a sister, and a good American.

"Inspired by true events --Thomas Sankara is known as 'Africa's Che Guevara'--this novel knits together a gripping spy thriller, a heartbreaking family drama, and a passionate romance. This is a face of the Cold War you've never seen before, and it introduces a powerful new literary voice."

This is DEFINITELY a book I will be seeking out at my local independent bookstore when it's released.

What is suggested here reminds me of the detrimental impact the Cambridge Spies had on the UK and the West from the 1930s to the 1960s.

Picked up in the bookstore today "The Angel: The Egyptian Spy Who Saved Israel" by Uri Bar-Joseph. The title was enough to capture my interest.

Began reading today (June 5th, 2017) "The Midnight Swimmer" by Edward Wilson, which is set at the time of the Cuban Missile Crisis of October 1962.

I've read several of Wilson's other espionage novels and I'm a fervent fan of his work.

Feliks wrote: "Let us hear your opinion of that McCarry book when you get a chance."

Here it is. :)

The Secret Lovers by Charles McCarry



This is the second Charles McCarry novel in the Paul Christopher series that I've read, and it had more twists and turns than any roller coaster I remember holding on to for dear life. It is 1960 and Christopher, a polyglot CIA agent working in Covert Action (CA), has met on a West Berlin street in the wee hours of the morning with Horst Bülow, one of his contacts. Bülow, an erstwhile Abwehr agent (i.e. the German military intelligence arm during the Nazi era), had travelled over from East Berlin with a manuscript that had been spirited out of the Soviet Union. It represents the magnum opus of a celebrated writer who had been in the gulags over the previous 2 decades following his return from Spain, where he had served the Loyalist cause during the civil war there. Suddenly, as Christopher and Bülow part company, a Black Opel appears as if out of nowhere, and in passing, strikes Bülow, killing him instantly. Christopher is shocked, but quickly composes himself and later flies to Paris, where he meets with Pachen, his boss who had flown in from Washington to consult with Christopher.

This sets in train a sequence of events that sees Christopher on the move --- to Rome (where he has a home with his wife Cathy; their relationship represents a study of how a life lived as a spy under deep cover can impact in various ways on a marriage), Paris, West Germany, Switzerland, Spain, and Africa --- to discover the leak that caused Bülow's death. Plus, resolving the matter of what to do with the manuscript, whose publication would be a revelatory and damning indictment of the Soviet system. McCarry assembles here a colorful cast of characters and with great skill, ties together the various threads of the novel into a cohesive and compelling whole. For any reader of espionage novels, he/she will be in for a merry ride --- much as I was.

Feliks wrote: "Hmmm. Seems to me we are drowning in media lately. Eh, does anyone read printed books anymore? Does anyone talk about books anymore?

When was the last time you saw an actual book in someone's hand?

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Answer: A few days ago, I saw a young lady reading a book on the subway. For me, that was very heartening to see.

I'd like to recommend to all Group members this new espionage novel, winner of the 2016 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction ~

The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen




I bought it a local bookstore last weekend and can hardly wait to read it. A brief summary follows...

" 'The Sympathizer' is the breakthrough novel of the year. With the pace and suspense of a thriller and prose that has been compared to Graham Greene and Saul Bellow,

" 'The Sympathizer' is a sweeping epic of love and betrayal. The narrator, a communist double agent, is a 'man of two minds,' a half-French, half-Vietnamese army captain who arranges to come to America after the Fall of Saigon, and while building a new life with other Vietnamese refugees in Los Angeles is secretly reporting back to his communist superiors in Vietnam.

" 'The Sympathizer' is a blistering exploration of identity and America, a gripping espionage novel, and a powerful story of love and friendship."

Does anyone know if any of Charles McCarry's spy novels have been adapted for the screen and/or TV? I speak as a fan who has most of the Paul Christopher Series in my library.

Sorry if this question isn't exactly germaine to the topic of this forum. But when I saw it mentioned here that Charles McCarry didn't merit a mention on the list of the Top 20 Spy Novels, I felt compelled to ask the above listed question.

Here is my "Murderers' Row" --

1) Joseph Stalin ("Devil incarnate")
2) Adolf Hitler
3) Mao Zedong
4) Heinrich Himmler
5) SS-Obergruppenführer und General der Polizei Reinhard Heydrich

6) Rudolf Höss - Commandant of Auschwitz
7) George W. Bush
8) Lothar von Trotha (carried out a policy of genocide against the Herero people in German Southwest Africa between 1904 and 1907)

9) Leopold II of Belgium
10) Pol Pot of Cambodia

1) Red Sparrow by Jason Matthews



2) Slow Horses by Mick Herron



3) Midnight in Europe: A Novel by Alan Furst



4) Red Joan by Jennie Rooney



5) The Secret Lovers by Charles McCarry



6) The Trinity Six by Charles Cumming



7) The Midnight Swimmer by Edward Wilson



8) The Spy Bazaar by Michael Alcroft

I would recommend any Edward Wilson espionage novel. He's TERRIFIC!!! To date, I've read 3 of them and began reading this morning "The Whitehall Mandarin" which, like the other novels, are set during the heart of the Cold War years (1950s and 1960s).

I rarely give up on a book I take on to read. Maybe once every 5 years or so. Right now, I'm reading a historical novel by Patrick Garland that --- while it has many good and interesting points --- I have found glaring historical inaccuracies in it that at times make me want to give up on the novel. Notwithstanding that, I think I will persevere.

I have a special fondness for historical espionage novels, especially those of Alan Furst, John le Carré, Christopher New, Eric Ambler, Robert Littell, and Charles McCarry.

These authors have a special talent for taking me to a time and place -- be it prewar Europe 1938, Vietnam 1963, or Hong Kong in the immediate aftermath of the Vietnam War --- and make me feel very much a part of the lives of the chief protagonists (and antagonists). As a reader, you come to understand how resourceful spies had to be (in terms of understanding ciphers/coding, foreign languages, the lay of the land, and the types of people he/she may either find themselves working with or against) before the proliferation of hi-tech reduced the human element in espionage.

Happily, I discovered a short time ago a novelist who knows how to craft a well-told, engaging espionage novel. His name is Edward Wilson and his specialty is the Cold War Era. His latest novel "A Very British Ending" I HIGHLY RECOMMEND.

Heydrich was also a qualified pilot who occasionally flew combat missions with a Luftwaffe fighter wing on the Eastern Front in a Messerschmitt 109 fighter.

Truly a cold, calculating and brutal man.