Non-Bond Spy Novels...

chrisisall

I have the Destroyer novel #3 The Chinese Puzzle, and I just ordered Anthony Burgess' Tremor Of Intent. I intend to read them both soon.

Anyone here read them?

Other novels you'd recommend?

Bleuville

chrisisall wrote:

I have the Destroyer novel #3 The Chinese Puzzle, and I just ordered Anthony Burgess' Tremor Of Intent. I intend to read them both soon.

Anyone here read them?

Other novels you'd recommend?

My favourite older spy novels are the Quiller lone spy / Cold war stories by Adam Hall.
From the 1960s to about mid-1990s when the author died. Ther are 19 books. See quiller.net.
It's told in the first person-so he's talking to you, about his Karate fighting methods
and spy-craft precautions. Often set in Eastern Europe or Asia and on his own trying to
stop assassinations or terrorists, or rescuing a dissident from a hostile country.

In a different way I rate it as enjoyable as a Bond story-but different.
More gritty and less travelogue than a Fleming story.
Quiller is a lone wolf who dislikes his employers but will do the mission for his love of "living dangerously".
Highly recommended.

Bleuville. I'm just re-reading Quiller's Run where he's up against a deadly female Cambodian called Mariko Shoda !

chrisisall

Sounds GOOD! -{

Le Samourai

I second Bleuville's recommendation of the Quiller novels. I actually prefer them to the Bond novels (heresy, I know), and cannot recommend them highly enough.

A word of advice: It's best to read at least two or three of the books before passing judgement on the series. Hall has a very distinctive writing style, and the novels have a stream-of-consciousness quality that takes getting used to. Many people don't take to them at first, but come to love them.

Also, it's worth noting that Adam Hall (real name Elleston Trevor) was a real-life black belt in Shotokan Karate and also practiced Aikido and yoga.

Here is a great intro to the character of Quiller from Hall himself:

http://quiller.net/extras/greatdetquiller.html

And Bleuville… Quiller's Run is one of my favorites. I've read it at least three or four times mysef.

chrisisall

Gentlemen, you have piqued my interest with this! I will definitely keep it in mind for after I'm done with the Gardner Bonds & Tremor Of Intent (the Destroyer book ended seeming a bit juvenile to me). )

Bleuville

chrisisall wrote:

Gentlemen, you have piqued my interest with this! I will definitely keep it in mind for after I'm done with the Gardner Bonds & Tremor Of Intent (the Destroyer book ended seeming a bit juvenile to me). )

Yes I'm re-reading paperbacks, Quiller, Fleming and Gardner Bonds, John Le Carre and Modesty Blaise by Peter O'Donnell.

(There is a new Le Carre called A Delicate Truth-in hardback.) Waiting for Solo by William Boyd in September.

A lot of the above are only available in secondhand bookshops.
With the Quiller books the writer will confuse by having 2 subjects and mix them, so you think he's talking about the first,
until you realise he's talking about the 2nd. Or the tension rises as Quiller is being hunted by a killer, and then
he'll jump on to hours later, and explain back how he got out of the deadly situation.
Which leaves you wondering-just a minute-how did he get out of that?!

Bleuville.

Charmed & Dangerous

All from the 60s, and easy reading, are Alistair Maclean's spy novels. He wrote many adventure novels of varying quality and most have been turned into films. I started reading them as a kid, when they were everywhere, and must have read the good ones 2 or 3 times over.

Ice Station Zebra, The Golden Rendezvous, The Satan Bug are all excellent, as are Where Eagles Dare and The Guns of Navarone (though set in wartime). Night Without End, Circus And The Way to Dusty Death are good too.

Mostly found in second hand book shops now, too.

chrisisall

Bleuville wrote:

With the Quiller books the writer will confuse by having 2 subjects and mix them, so you think he's talking about the first,
until you realise he's talking about the 2nd. Or the tension rises as Quiller is being hunted by a killer, and then
he'll jump on to hours later, and explain back how he got out of the deadly situation.

Sounds like an interesting temporal trick.

Barbel

Charmed & Dangerous wrote:

All from the 60s, and easy reading, are Alistair Maclean's spy novels. He wrote many adventure novels of varying quality and most have been turned into films. I started reading them as a kid, when they were everywhere, and must have read the good ones 2 or 3 times over.

Ice Station Zebra, The Golden Rendezvous, The Satan Bug are all excellent, as are Where Eagles Dare and The Guns of Navarone (though set in wartime). Night Without End, Circus And The Way to Dusty Death are good too.

Mostly found in second hand book shops now, too.

Completely agree- except for Circus, which I didn't like at all! )

Charmed & Dangerous

I just finished reading The Quiller Memorandum - thoroughly enjoyed it. It's full of 'trade-craft' and you get the feeling Hall (Elleston Trevor) must have been in Intelligence.

Conversely I've just started The Liquidator by a certain Mr Gardner and I'm not enjoying it anywhere near as much...

Barbel

That's a pity, it's often regarded as one of his best. What's putting you off?

Thunderpussy

I used to read loads of " Nick Carter " books, really enjoyed them, used to
get them in markets and used book shops.

AlphaOmegaSin

Been wanting to read some of Gardner's non Bond Books. Any Recommendations ?

Charmed & Dangerous

Barbel wrote:

That's a pity, it's often regarded as one of his best. What's putting you off?

Well I didn't mean to imply that it wasn't good, it's just that coming straight from The Quiller Memorandum, which I thoroughly enjoyed, the start didn't quite grip me in the same way. Maybe it's because it's more humorous, and it was written in a very Swinging Sixties style so it's somewhat dated (there's a literal mention of "birds with big ****" on almost every page). But I'm sure I will warm to it once I get into it. -{

Charmed & Dangerous

Thunderpussy wrote:

I used to read loads of " Nick Carter " books, really enjoyed them, used to
get them in markets and used book shops.

I remember seeing those in markets and used book shops too - never read any though. I used to spend all my pocket money on Alistair Maclean novels and, of course, Fleming paperbacks )

Thunderpussy

) oh I bought those too. {[]