A review by downby1
Midnight in Europe by Alan Furst

4.0

Midnight in Europe encapsulates the frantic effort and energy devoted to preserving the republican government during the Spanish Civil War. While these efforts proved futile, the dedication of those individuals fighting against Franco and his Falanage-led coalition proved a greater reflection of the war that consumed Europe a few years later. Furst does an admirable job of capturing this chaotic era, especially with his snapshot approach to characters and viewpoints. He adds layers to his contemporary characters by flipping major characters from other books, such as S. Kolb and Count Polyani, into peripheral players. This shows how interconnected Europe was even after the tribulations of the First World War and the political factionalization of the '20s and '30s, but also speaks to how so many influential members of the Continent's government and society simply allowed the fascist movements to press on with their ambitions in the testbed of Spain.