In the past, I’ve covered a variety of spy fiction, be it the brainless fun with lots of things that go boom, or the heady, well-plotted type where there action is only a small part of the story. This week, I present three different takes on the matter, including an author who would have turned 100 this month, a return of a personal favorite and a debut novel from a man best-known for a detective series. But it seems he had the spy bug in him first.
JOURNEY INTO FEAR by Eric Ambler — This 1940 book is considered one of Ambler’s best. Some people would give the edge to A COFFIN FOR DIMITRIOS, which shares one of FEAR’s characters. For those unfamiliar with the author’s work, the best way to describe his stories are Hitchcockian, in the sense that Alfred Hitchcock was a fan and used Ambler’s template of a man way out of his element, thrust into the world of espionage and intrigue.
The book takes place right at the start of World War II, which most people think will be a lot like the first one, not realizing the massive scope and true destruction to come. A British engineer named Graham has just concluded talks with the Turkish government to ally itself with Britain. Trouble starts right away for Graham, with attempts made on his person, to the point that he relies on the help of a Turkish colonel.
The colonel promises to help him out, putting him on a ship where he vouches for all the passengers. The problem is that Graham recognizes one of them as one of the people who tried to kill him. The story moves into a cat-and-mouse game, with Graham at center stage. All of the action takes place while at sea, with Graham trying his hardest to convince anyone that he is in dire straits. He has to rely on some of his fellow passengers, who comprise a rogue’s gallery — including pimps, secret agents, a political French couple and a German spy master with his hired goon — with the story building to what for the time would be the big-budget climax.
Ambler’s writing is of its time, but still pretty relevant. His style is slowly paced, but engaging for readers today, which is a pleasure for a novel close to 70 years old. A bit of serendipity is that I also got my hands on the original movie version with Joseph Cotten in the role of Graham, but I understand that I would have been lost if I did not first read the book.
SPY STORY by Len Deighton — This 1974 book is a bit of a conundrum, since some think it’s a continuation of the Nameless Spy/Harry Palmer series. But while reading the book, some details don’t gel with what we have been presented with before. We also have a name for our spy this time out: Pat Armstrong, who is just coming off a six-week trip on a sub doing research on the Soviets in the Arctic Circle.
Once his time is up, Armstrong goes back to his old apartment, only to find that it seems someone else is not only living there, but living his life, with his clothes being slightly altered, as well as family photographs. Armstrong is pretty much out of the spy life, since he now works for the Studies Center, where the main order of business is running military strategy programs on computers — a bit of war-game theory.
The story slowly builds into the crux of the matter: The British are about to receive another Russian defector. Deighton paces the book so well that it’s more of an enigma for Armstrong, as well as the reader, with Armstrong making discoveries of a rogue operation being run to take in this defector. Armstrong is forced into the position of getting back into the spy game.
Things really go into high gear when Armstrong is taken on a trip to the Arctic Circle for the big climax of this operation, where the whole truth is revealed, with our working-class spies still just pawns in a much larger picture. Deighton mapped out a truly fantastic Cold War tale, but it is not for newbies of his writing, though, since some characters from previous books make appearances. No matter what, it’s a fantastic read that starts off slowly, only to deliver the goods at the end.
THE DARK TUNNEL by Ross Macdonald — Originally credited to his real name, Kenneth Millar, this is the 1944 debut novel of Macdonald, who came up with a iconic figure in his Lew Archer books. The story is very much of the time it was written, right in the middle of World War II, with the idea of sleeper spies in the country alive and well.
Robert Branch is a university professor in the Midwest. Early on, he relates a story of his time in Germany before the war broke out and how he fell for a woman with whom he has been trying to keep in touch ever since, only to find out she has been offered a position at the university. But as much as this is good news for Branch, something happens that enters him into the world of espionage: the death of one of his good friends.
The police believe it to be suicide, but Branch is not sure and thinks it has to be enemy agents. Add to this that the woman he has not seen in more than six years turns up with a fiancé in tow, all leading to another death, this time with all the fingers being pointed at Branch.
There is a fantastic chase sequence in the woods, where Branch tries to find a weapon to protect himself, with his purchase being made from a deaf mute. That is just a tad bizarre for bizarre’s sake. As much as Branch pleads his innocence, the cops still arrest him, but Macdonald throws a curve ball or two. That is when the book shows its age, with depictions of certain characters’ proclivities, to put it nicely. I don’t want to ruin that nugget of information, since it’s key to what follows, but just remember this was the 1940s, where terms were thrown around like grass seed.
I’ve got to say this had to be the fastest I’ve ever read one of Macdonald’s books. It literally flies by. But be forewarned: This is not the mature style that he would find later in his career, but he is not aping anyone else’s style — just trying to find his footing in the world of writing. It’s a shame he did not continue in the spy genre. I’ll just have to make do with those Archer books and some of his non-series entries still waiting to be read. If you come across a copy of THE DARK TUNNEL, grab it with out a worry. Even though it was his first attempt, it’s still better than some of the dreck people rave about.
Next time: These authors are not green. —Bruce Grossman
OTHER BOOKGASM REVIEWS OF ERIC AMBLER:
• THE LEVANTER by Eric Ambler
OTHER BOOKGASM REVIEWS OF LEN DEIGHTON:
• THE BILLION DOLLAR BRAIN by Len Deighton
• AN EXPENSIVE PLACE TO DIE by Len Deighton
• FUNERAL IN BERLIN by Len Deighton
• HORSE UNDER WATER by Len Deighton
• ONLY WHEN I LARF by Len Deighton
OTHER BOOKGASM REVIEWS OF ROSS MACDONALD:
• THE ARCHER FILES by Ross Macdonald
• BLACK MONEY by Ross Macdonald
• BLUE CITY by Ross Macdonald
• THE BLUE HAMMER by Ross Macdonald
• THE DOOMSTERS by Ross Macdonald
• THE GALTON CASE by Ross Macdonald
• THE INSTANT ENEMY by Ross Macdonald
• THE MOVING TARGET by Ross Macdonald
• THE WAY SOME PEOPLE DIE by Ross Macdonald
Related posts:
- BULLETS, BROADS, BLACKMAIL & BOMBS >> Break from Character
- BULLETS, BROADS, BLACKMAIL & BOMBS >> MacDonald’s Extra-Value Meal
- BULLETS, BROADS, BLACKMAIL & BOMBS >> Harry Moseby Investigates
- BULLETS, BROADS, BLACKMAIL & BOMBS >> Shades of Rockford
- BULLETS, BROADS, BLACKMAIL & BOMBS >> Shelf-Clearing Shorts
