38. Night Soldiers- Alan Furst

I won a book by Alan Furst from Library Thing and found it compelling so decided I’d read the entire series in the proper order. Night Soldiers is the first of the series.  It takes place in the 1930s and follows the lives of a few young men who end up, by accident mostly, rather than design, as spies for different sides first in the Spanish Civil War, and then in Paris and Eastern Europe during the run-up and planning for World War II, and then during the war itself.

I love the style this book is written in. Frank, calm, plainly told, no dwelling on the horrors, just calm explanation of them.

You get an excellent sense of how these men’s lives are entirely at the mercy of the grand forces conspiring on all sides, and these men tricked or blackmailed or just accidentally ending up where they are. Also, how easily their lives are turned on end, or suddenly placed at risk because of suspicion or outright plotting by their ‘masters’ regarding their loyalties or competencies.

This is a far cry from 007.  Gritty and suspenseful.