LoveReading Says
LoveReading Says
In his splendid previous spy thriller A Foreign Country, Cumming introduced once-disgraced and now covertly back in the fold operative Thomas Kell and MI6’s first female head Amelia Levene. In his new book, they both appear again. Following the mysterious death of Turkey’s Head of Station the remaining evidence points Tom to a traitor inside Western Intelligence. Kell’s task of unravelling the conspiracy is not made any easier by disturbing news emerging from Levene’s own past. Tom Kell is more Smiley than James Bond and his adventures ring terribly true and easily sow many seeds of doubt about the undercurrent of world affairs in a disturbing perspective in this much up to date thriller. Cumming knows his stuff. ~ Maxim Jakubowski
Sarah Broadhurst's view...
A cracking story with all the ingredients of a Le Carré Smiley novel and then some! It is the second work to feature Thomas Kell, a disgraced spy introduced to us in A Foreign Country. It is up-to-date in dealing with the Irish question and although not quite so with Ukraine, it does give a good background to the present situation in a great adventure of cover-up, duplicity, betrayal and double agents. All very tense, complex and satisfying, it is a very fine spy novel indeed.
Click here to view the new editions of The Hidden Man and Typhoon by the same author.
Sarah Broadhurst
Find This Book In
About
A Colder War Synopsis
From the winner of the CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger 2012 for Best Thriller of the Year comes a gripping and suspenseful new spy novel. Perfect for fans of John le Carre, Charles Cumming is 'the master of the modern spy thriller' (Mail on Sunday) MI6's Head of Station in Turkey is killed in a mysterious plane crash. Amelia Levene, chief of the Secret Intelligence Service, wants the incident investigated - quickly and quietly. The only man she can trust is Thomas Kell, a disgraced spy searching for redemption. Arriving in Istanbul, Kell discovers that MI6 operations in the region have been fatally compromised: a traitor inside Western Intelligence threatens not just the Special Relationship, but the security of the entire Middle East. Kell's search for the mole takes him from London, to Greece, and into Eastern Europe. But when Kell is betrayed by those closest to him, the stakes become personal. He will do anything to see this operation through - including putting himself, and others, in the line of fire...
About This Edition
Press Reviews
Charles Cumming Press Reviews
Praise for A Foreign Country: 'We are in Smiley country, but with extra 21st century nuance ... Cumming has an exquisite touch and we should treasure him
Daily Mail
'A thriller that has everything you could ask for - a twisty, sexy plot, topical themes, memorable characters and plentiful spy lore'
Sunday Times, Books of the Year
'Refreshing, plausible and effective ... Best of all is the sheer pace of the narrative'
Spectator
'You are likely to be up for most of the night to find out how this novel ends. It grips from the first page ... A fast-moving treat'
The Scotsman Praise for Charles Cumming:
'Charles Cumming is a man put on this earth to perpetuate the spy thriller'
Daily Telegraph
'From the first page to the last it has the ring of absolute authenticity. Tautly written, cleverly plotted...it reminded me strongly of the early books of John le Carre'
Robert Harris
Author
About Charles Cumming
Charles Cumming was our Guest Editor in March 2013 - click here - to see the books that inspired his writing.
Charles Cumming was born in Scotland in 1971. He has been described as ‘the man who most successfully gets under the skin of Britain’s intelligence agencies’ (The Times). In the summer of 1995, he was approached for recruitment by the Secret Intelligence Service (MI6). A year later he moved to Montreal where he began working on a novel based on his experiences with MI6, and A Spy by Nature was published in the UK in 2001.
Author photo © Toby Madden
More About Charles Cumming
