Our Friends in Berlin

Description

A captivating thriller novel set in wartime London about the dangers of deception and loyalty in love 'A gripping espionage thriller' Observer London, 1941. The city is in blackout and an enemy is hiding in plain sight. Jack Hoste has become entangled in a national treachery. His mission- to locate the most dangerous Nazi agent in the country. He soon receives a promising lead in Amy Strallen, whose life is a world away from the machinations of Nazi sympathisers. But when Hoste pays a visit to Amy's office, the dangerous game he is playing becomes even more lethal. 'A cracking tale of high-stakes espionage... Intensely atmospheric' Mail on Sunday *Perfect for fans of John Le Carre and Charles Cumming*

Anthony Quinn was born in Liverpool in 1964. From 1998 to 2013 he was the film critic for the Independent. He is the author of six novels- The Rescue Man, which won the 2009 Authors' Club Best First Novel Award; Half of the Human Race; The Streets, which was shortlisted for the 2013 Walter Scott Prize; Curtain Call, which was chosen for Waterstones and Mail on Sunday Book Clubs; Freya, a Radio 2 Book Club choice, and Eureka.

[A] gripping espionage thriller... An addictive cocktail of action, romance and politics. * Observer * Our Friends in Berlin brings to the fore all of Quinn's talents - gripping storylines, plot twists, thorough research and elegant prose. * The Times * A cracking tale of high-stakes espionage and poignant romance. It's elegantly observed, expertly paced and intensely atmospheric. * Mail on Sunday * Those in search of a smart, tautly rendered, atmospheric beach read should pack a copy now. * Metro * Our Friends in Berlin is an immensely enjoyable Buchanesque adventure... Its descriptions of London under bombardment are vividly sensuous and beautiful... Its characters are intriguing and deftly presented... Most memorably of all, though, the book and its cast are shot through with a persuasive postmodern melancholy, the hard-wired ambivalence that is very much Le Carre rather than Buchan. This sensibility allows the novel to illuminate complex times. * Guardian * Quinn's gripping plot about spying is matched by the evocatively gloomy atmosphere of wartime London that he conjures up. * The Times * A wartime novel with atmospheric evocations of London in the Blitz -- Sebastian Faulks * Good Housekeeping * Anthony Quinn's Our Friends in Berlin is set in the Blitz, and captures the horror and strange romance of blackouts, near-death experiences and not knowing who to trust. An Atmospheric thriller. * Grazia, This Winter's Must Reads * A tightly woven spy thriller full of narrative hairpin bends and cinematic set pieces, this is so atmospheric you can almost taste the cigarettes -- Claire Allfree * Metro * An eye for a plot, a profound gift for character and a faultless sense of period and place: Anthony Quinn was always going to write first-rate thrillers, and Our Friends in Berlin is pure pleasure. -- David Hare The best spy novel set in wartime London. A masterpiece... Anthony's book is wonderful. He is a master at creating page-turning tension. Our Friends in Berlin grips the reader from the very first page and won't let go. Good authors create period authenticity; superb authors add their own creative mood music to that. Anthony Quinn's Blitz-battered London is more than black out curtains, blast tape and wrecked buildings, it is an eerie setting of Hitchcockian menace. -- Edward Wilson, author of A Very British Ending Wild horses could not have spoilt my enjoyment of this pitch-perfect reimagining of British counter-espionage and anti-fascism during the Blitz. I raced through it - twice... to spend more time with Anthony Quinn's superb characters... [a] classy, entertaining performance. * Tablet * A masterful evocation of wartime London and the plotting of Nazi sympathisers. Quinn's storytelling is gripping, his writing delightful. An addictive page-turner that expertly combines both love story and thriller. You won't want it to end. -- David Young, award-winning author of Stasi Child This tale of wartime espionage is clever, perceptive and a very good read... Quinn's vividly imagined portrait is entirely convincing... This story is beautifully written and elaborately plotted... the plaudits are well deserved. * Literary Review * Anthony Quinn writes novels that I live in while reading them. Our Friends in Berlin, set in wartime London, didn't disappoint. * Red *This Month's Best Books* * Quinn paints a gripping picture of a city trying to carry on as normal under extreme circumstances... You'll find the pages turning faster as you approach the end. -- Pat Carty * Hot Press * I was sucked into this story from the start; something about it kept me in a trance... Excellent. * Evening Standard * An addictive cocktail of action, romance and politics -- Anthony Cummins * Observer *