A review by rubybastille
The Foreign Correspondent by Alan Furst

4.0

This was the first Furst (heh) book I read, and the more of his stories I read, the easier it gets. Furst writes historical thrillers almost like poetry, with unconventional sentences, stellar imagery, and lots of foreign phrases sprinkled in. But they never really reach a climax - they meander along at a pleasant pace, giving you plenty of time to explore your surroundings, then rush you through some exciting rapids, then set you gently adrift as you were before. This is the biggest drawback to Furst's books: they don't really have endings. It's like the printers constantly lose the last chapter of his books. But they're still beautifully written, and they weave together so many interesting aspects of an unfathomably huge war. The characters in his books cross over into each others' stories, trying to lead their day-to-day lives, whether they're film producers, secret agents, or boat captains. Think of "Foreign Correspondent" as one vignette in a series of snapshots about everyday live being altered by WWII.