Helpful Score: 8
Wow! It's difficult to tell if truth or fiction, probably a little of booth.
Greg Iles has the ability to weave a tale that you can't stop writing. This story went from West and East Germany to England to South Africa all the time gathering your interest so you can't stop until the final page. The story centers around the possibility that Rudolph Hess of Hitler fame is still living...50 years after the war.
Greg Iles has the ability to weave a tale that you can't stop writing. This story went from West and East Germany to England to South Africa all the time gathering your interest so you can't stop until the final page. The story centers around the possibility that Rudolph Hess of Hitler fame is still living...50 years after the war.
Helpful Score: 6
This was the first book I read from Greg Iles and one of the most enjoyable. It kept me interested through the whole book, it made me go and look for other books written by Mr. Iles. Exciting to the end, and hard to put down.
Helpful Score: 4
Wow, Action packed; tangled plot; can't put down book!
Helpful Score: 2
One of the great unsolved mysteries of WWII, Nazi collaboration with England? Possible, probable, irrisistable plot
Helpful Score: 2
This is one of, if not the best stories of mystery, intrigue and suspense that I have ever read. I could hardly put it down. Nelson Demille summed it up well when he said "It's a remarkable, impressive novel.
Helpful Score: 2
Although this one was very good.It was tougher to follow.There was alot going on with the spy organizations of the different countries involved.I likes The Black Cross better.Still, he's a Iles is my favorite fiction writer.
Mark T.
Mark T.
Helpful Score: 1
This book is fast paced, and offers a look at what "could have" happened if a high powered Nazi official actually escaped death AND punishment...
"The Spandau Diary-what was in it? Why did the secret intelligence agencies of every major power want it? Why was a brave and beautiful woman kidnapped and sexually tormented to get it? Why did a chain of deception and violent death lash out across the globe, from survivors of the Nazi past to warriors in the new conflict about to explode? Why did the world's entire history of World War II have to be rewritten as the future hung over a nightmare abyss?"
"The Spandau Diary-what was in it? Why did the secret intelligence agencies of every major power want it? Why was a brave and beautiful woman kidnapped and sexually tormented to get it? Why did a chain of deception and violent death lash out across the globe, from survivors of the Nazi past to warriors in the new conflict about to explode? Why did the world's entire history of World War II have to be rewritten as the future hung over a nightmare abyss?"
Helpful Score: 1
Spandau diary...secret intelligence agencies...chain of deception and death from survivors of the Nazi past to warriors in the new conflict.
love this guy, he writes a great book! Interesting and very well written.
I really enjoyed this taut thriller. This is the first novel written by Iles and it is definitely a departure from his later novels which are mostly suspense thrillers set in the current time. SPANDAU PHOENIX was written in 1993 and takes place mostly in 1987 but the theme of the novel involves a Nazi plot involving Rudolf Hess, Hitler's second in command. In 1941, Hess made a solo flight to Scotland, where according to history, he hoped to arrange peace talks with the Duke of Hamilton, whom he believed to be a prominent opponent of the British government's war policy. Hess was captured and convicted at Nuremberg of war crimes and served a life sentence in Spandau Prison in Germany. But is this what really happened and the reason for Hess's solo flight to Britain?
The novel tells of the discovery of a document at Spandau Prison after Hess's death that revealed a conspiracy by the British and that proved that the prisoner at Spandau was not really Hess. This document is discovered by a German policeman and is wanted by both the Russians, the English, the Germans, and a far-right group called Phoenix operating in Germany and South Africa. So what is so important about the document and why are people being tortured to try to recover it? The novel delves into the psuedo-Nazi group headquartered in South Africa and a sinister plot to eliminate the Jews in Israel.
This was a long novel at close to 700 pages but it kept me interested throughout. There were a myriad of characters involved and the plot lines went from Germany to England to Israel to South Africa with other stops along the way. The characters were well developed and the story was compelling and exciting. The story was along the lines of a Robert Ludlum or Tom Clancy novel and overall I would highly recommend it. I have read several of Iles's other novels including the first three Penn Cage novels and have enjoyed all of them. This one was no exception!
The novel tells of the discovery of a document at Spandau Prison after Hess's death that revealed a conspiracy by the British and that proved that the prisoner at Spandau was not really Hess. This document is discovered by a German policeman and is wanted by both the Russians, the English, the Germans, and a far-right group called Phoenix operating in Germany and South Africa. So what is so important about the document and why are people being tortured to try to recover it? The novel delves into the psuedo-Nazi group headquartered in South Africa and a sinister plot to eliminate the Jews in Israel.
This was a long novel at close to 700 pages but it kept me interested throughout. There were a myriad of characters involved and the plot lines went from Germany to England to Israel to South Africa with other stops along the way. The characters were well developed and the story was compelling and exciting. The story was along the lines of a Robert Ludlum or Tom Clancy novel and overall I would highly recommend it. I have read several of Iles's other novels including the first three Penn Cage novels and have enjoyed all of them. This one was no exception!
Good thriller involving old Nazis, mysterious weapons, etc. Well written.
A thriller that involves the unsolved mystery of WWII...The Spandau Diary...intriguing and full of suspense.
Greg Iles is one of the best thriller writers I have encountered.
In 1987, Rudolph Hess, the last inmate of the infamous Spandau Prison in Berlin, is dead. While the prison is being destroyed with the wrecking ball, the Spandau Diary is found. Why do the secret intelligence agencies of the major world powers want it?
In 1987, Rudolph Hess, the last inmate of the infamous Spandau Prison in Berlin, is dead. While the prison is being destroyed with the wrecking ball, the Spandau Diary is found. Why do the secret intelligence agencies of the major world powers want it?
Great read
The Spandau Diary - What was in it? Why did the secret intelligence agencies of every major power want it? Why was a brave beautiful woman kidnapped and sexually tormented to get it? Why did a chain of deception and violent death lash out across the globe, from survivors of the Nazi past to warriors in the new conflict now about to explode? Why did the world's entire history of World War II have to be rewritten as the future hung over a nightmare abyss?
Both book and author are excellent.
Spandau Phoenix is definitely action-packed and suspenseful with so many twists to an interesting plot. It held my attention in spite of the length: 700 pages. There should have been some serious editing because it is much too long! Can't believe I stuck with it but the story is intriguing. Iles needs to learn how to put a limit on the words/pages in a good story. His writing loses some of its power when the book is 700 - 800 pages reducing the reader to considerable skimming. Too bad when he is such a creative and imaginative writer.
