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3.78 AVERAGE
3.78 AVERAGE
A Prince and A Spy - Rory Clements
Thanks to Readers First, Rory Clements and Zaffre books for my copy of this book.
Sweden, 1942 - Two old friends meet. They are cousins. One is Prince George, Duke of Kent, brother of the King of England. The other is Prince Philipp von Hesse, a committed Nazi and close friend of Adolf Hitler. Days later, the Prince George is killed in a plane crash in the north of Scotland. The official story is that it was an accident - but not everyone is convinced. There is even a suggestion that the Duke's plane was sabotaged, but with no evidence, Cambridge spy Tom Wilde is sent north to discover the truth . . .
I loved this book and devoured in in 2 sittings. It is absorbing, compelling and sinister, reminding me in some way of The 39 Steps, with its twisting, racing, hunted nature.
The relationship to recent history and imagining of the story of real-world events is one I love. It made me wonder about shadowy societies that control the seats of power and the possibility that this could still be happening today in a dystopian type way. The chilling link to the Nazi Death Camps was hard to read but something that we cannot shy away from or forget .
The characters are all strong, I love Tom Wilde, the dependable old school hero, he doesn’t readily fall into the old hat spy trope and Harriet, the female protagonist knows what she is about and is not left as a cliche.
There is more than one storyline which funnel together as it races towards its conclusion.
A really gripping, addictive and thought provoking spy thriller. The real life connections at the end really left me thinking. 5
Thanks to Readers First, Rory Clements and Zaffre books for my copy of this book.
Sweden, 1942 - Two old friends meet. They are cousins. One is Prince George, Duke of Kent, brother of the King of England. The other is Prince Philipp von Hesse, a committed Nazi and close friend of Adolf Hitler. Days later, the Prince George is killed in a plane crash in the north of Scotland. The official story is that it was an accident - but not everyone is convinced. There is even a suggestion that the Duke's plane was sabotaged, but with no evidence, Cambridge spy Tom Wilde is sent north to discover the truth . . .
I loved this book and devoured in in 2 sittings. It is absorbing, compelling and sinister, reminding me in some way of The 39 Steps, with its twisting, racing, hunted nature.
The relationship to recent history and imagining of the story of real-world events is one I love. It made me wonder about shadowy societies that control the seats of power and the possibility that this could still be happening today in a dystopian type way. The chilling link to the Nazi Death Camps was hard to read but something that we cannot shy away from or forget .
The characters are all strong, I love Tom Wilde, the dependable old school hero, he doesn’t readily fall into the old hat spy trope and Harriet, the female protagonist knows what she is about and is not left as a cliche.
There is more than one storyline which funnel together as it races towards its conclusion.
A really gripping, addictive and thought provoking spy thriller. The real life connections at the end really left me thinking. 5
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I love this series featuring American Cambridge History Professor Tom Wilde and his partner Lydia Morris.
Set in the summer of 1942 the book opened with Professor Wilde being asked go up to Scotland to check out the crash site on behalf of OSS, the new American Intelligence section and FDR, the American President. As is usual for Tom Wilde it wasn’t a simple task as he wasn’t wanted up there asking awkward questions. Add subterfuge and characters that I really wasn’t sure if I should trust, plus a plot had me turning the pages really fast as I couldn’t wait to find out what was going to happen next!
Characters from previous books make reappearances, including the enigmatic Philip Eaton. He always makes me feel wary as I know something bad is probably going to happen to poor Tom or Lydia.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book, in fact it’s one of my highly anticipated reads for 2021. I’m very happy to say that it lived up to my expectations. Rory Clements once again took a historical event that I knew nothing about and worked a fantastic spy story into it. It was fascinating to read at the end of the book about the real events it was based on and the people who were involved.
I thoroughly recommend this book and the series, especially if you enjoy spy thrillers set in World War Two.
Thanks so much to NetGalley and Bonnier Zaffre for my digital copy.
Set in the summer of 1942 the book opened with Professor Wilde being asked go up to Scotland to check out the crash site on behalf of OSS, the new American Intelligence section and FDR, the American President. As is usual for Tom Wilde it wasn’t a simple task as he wasn’t wanted up there asking awkward questions. Add subterfuge and characters that I really wasn’t sure if I should trust, plus a plot had me turning the pages really fast as I couldn’t wait to find out what was going to happen next!
Characters from previous books make reappearances, including the enigmatic Philip Eaton. He always makes me feel wary as I know something bad is probably going to happen to poor Tom or Lydia.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book, in fact it’s one of my highly anticipated reads for 2021. I’m very happy to say that it lived up to my expectations. Rory Clements once again took a historical event that I knew nothing about and worked a fantastic spy story into it. It was fascinating to read at the end of the book about the real events it was based on and the people who were involved.
I thoroughly recommend this book and the series, especially if you enjoy spy thrillers set in World War Two.
Thanks so much to NetGalley and Bonnier Zaffre for my digital copy.
dark
informative
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
Having now finished A Prince and A Spy, I can say I actually really enjoyed it. The plot follows Professor Tom Wilde on a mystery solving mission around England, Scotland and Sweden. It's full of twists and turns and the pace never really slows down so my attention was held throughout the whole book.
I really enjoyed the way Rory Clements was able to weave the historical aspect of the book in amongst the intrigue so that the two areas work together rather than against one another.
The characters and the relationships between them (both new and established) feel brilliantly worked out and detailed and I have a soft spot for some of the side characters (Jimmy Orde and Anders Skoog in particular) which shows Clements dedication to making each aspect work with every other aspect.
The ending is satisfying, the twists and reveals realistic and the suspense simmers away in the background, keeping you enraptured and turning the pages.
I'm definitely going to keep my eyes peeled for any of the other Tom Wilde and read them when I find them!
I really enjoyed the way Rory Clements was able to weave the historical aspect of the book in amongst the intrigue so that the two areas work together rather than against one another.
The characters and the relationships between them (both new and established) feel brilliantly worked out and detailed and I have a soft spot for some of the side characters (Jimmy Orde and Anders Skoog in particular) which shows Clements dedication to making each aspect work with every other aspect.
The ending is satisfying, the twists and reveals realistic and the suspense simmers away in the background, keeping you enraptured and turning the pages.
I'm definitely going to keep my eyes peeled for any of the other Tom Wilde and read them when I find them!
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Had I not received this in exchange for a review, it is unlikely that it would be a book that I would have picked up. However I am so glad that I have read it, and having not read any of Rory Clements' books before I will definitely look out for them in the future.
This historical spy thriller follows Professor Wilde as he searches for answers about the 'accidental' crash of a plane carrying Prince George, the Duke of Kent. In his search for answers Wilde becomes entangled in a dark web of secrets leading to questions of Nazi involvement. But was it the Nazis or was the crash as a result of orders closer to home?
From the moment I picked up this book I was desperate to find out the story behind the crash and couldn't put the book down. The well paced book had regular twists and turns helping to keep me on edge and wanting to find out more - right down to the very end.
This historical spy thriller follows Professor Wilde as he searches for answers about the 'accidental' crash of a plane carrying Prince George, the Duke of Kent. In his search for answers Wilde becomes entangled in a dark web of secrets leading to questions of Nazi involvement. But was it the Nazis or was the crash as a result of orders closer to home?
From the moment I picked up this book I was desperate to find out the story behind the crash and couldn't put the book down. The well paced book had regular twists and turns helping to keep me on edge and wanting to find out more - right down to the very end.
adventurous
challenging
dark
informative
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated