Spandau Phoenix (World War II, Bk 1)
Author:
Genre: Mystery, Thriller & Suspense
Book Type: Mass Market Paperback
Author:
Genre: Mystery, Thriller & Suspense
Book Type: Mass Market Paperback
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!
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