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The Spies of Warsaw (Unabridged) | 
| Author: Alan Furst
Publisher: audible.com
Category: Book
List Price: $39.95
Buy New: $20.98
You Save: $18.97 (47%)
Avg. Customer Rating:  67 reviews
Media: Audio Download
ASIN: B001AQHZFG
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Product Description
A new thriller from "the greatest living writer of espionage fiction"-- Houston Chronicle Autumn 1937: War is coming to Europe. French and German intelligence operatives are locked in a life-and-death struggle on the espionage battlefield. At the French embassy, the new military attache, Colonel Jean-Francois Mercier, a decorated hero of the 1914 war, is drawn into a world of abduction, betrayal, and intrigue in the diplomatic salons and back alleys of Warsaw. At the same time, the handsome aristocrat finds himself in a passionate love affair with a Parisian woman of Polish heritage, a lawyer for the League of Nations. Colonel Mercier must work in the shadows, amid an extraordinary cast of venal and dangerous characters -- Colonel Anton Vyborg of Polish military intelligence; the mysterious and sophisticated Dr. Lapp, senior German Abwehr officer in Warsaw; Malka and Viktor Rozen, at work for the Russian secret service; and Mercier's brutal and vindictive opponent, Major August Voss of SS counterintelligence. And there are many more, some known to Mercier as spies, some never to be revealed. The Spies of Warsaw is Furst's finest novel to date -- exciting, atmospheric, erotic, and impossible to put down.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 62 more reviews...
 WONDERFUL START, STALE FINISH September 26, 2008
I loved Furst's prose, sinuous, direct, filled with telling detail, and the narrative had me hooked, until the last third of the book, when the writing got flabby and the narrative fell apart so precipitously, I thought I had missed several important pages. There was no grand scheme here, and maybe that was the author's point, to show the herky-jerky nature of spying in that place in those days. But a little more artifice would have gone done nicely with this reader.
 Furst is First September 9, 2008
Furst is the best writer of thrillers in the business and The Spies of Warsaw is first-rate Furst. All of his novels are historically accurate, not only in the major events that actually occurred but in the ambiance of the setting and the psychological outlook of his fictional characters.
Interesting reading, but.... September 5, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I would add only that A. Furst tried to match realities of Poland but did not meet the expectations. Some names are not even taken from a real Warsaw telephone book. I do not dare to mention his stylization of Polish in some phrases; just terrible. Same with names of some real European cities and streets in Warsaw. There are still maps easy available as a reference tool. Not mentioning a common cliche: Soviet agents prosecuted by Stalin because of their Jewish roots. There were many Communist activist of Jewish origin in Stalinist Russia who collaborated actively with NKVD during the Great Purges and later on. In general, it is an entertaining reading with some historical facts. It is not Graham Greene, for sure.
Not one of Furst's best September 2, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
While I enjoyed "The Spies of Warsaw", I don't believe it is as good as the two other Furst novels I have read: "Dark Star" and "Kingdom of Shadows". Once again the hero is a man of action, courage and steely character, when he needs to be. At the same time he is reflective, and very human. Once again I learned some history: the French general staff was divided, with one faction very aware of the threat of a German tank attack through the Ardennes forest; this faction included then Colonel Charles de Gaulle. Marshall Petain was the leader of the other faction which believed that the Maginot line provided safety. This is the same Marshall Petain who accepted leadership of the Vichy government 3 days after the capitulation of France.
Furst several times has his hero express sympathy for the people who would likely be victimized by the looming war. In the other novels the ominous future was there more as an undercurrent. I also believe the women in the other two novels were better developed. "Dark Star" was a more complex, harrowing novel, while "Kingdom of Shadows" had a better plot and pre-war atmosphere.
A Great Read August 29, 2008
Alan Furst's "The Spies of Warsaw" lacks some of the depth and complexity of his early work, but I still enjoyed it. I think I could read anything he wrote--a phone book, a computer instruction manual, a life insurance policy--and appreciate it for Furst's intelligence, his impressionistic prose, and his evocation of atmosphere. He is simply a wonderful writer.
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