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S**N
The weakest of all the Quiller novels. Only for completionists.
I'm a huge Quiller fan, but this one left me cold. While he's still the same secret agent who needs to be talked into taking missions, never carries a gun, never works with support, and is driven more by his own ego than his love of country, this novel is by far the weakest of them all. The "talk him into the mission" part of the book is incredibly long and tedious. There isn't more than a paragraph of action (or suspense) for the first half of the novel, and the rest lacks any sense of momentum or even purpose. He spends most of his time floundering aimlessly for reasons that no one seems to understand.I suspect it's below average because it was rushed. The novel takes place in Berlin just before the fall of the Berlin Wall. The actual wall fell late the same year the novel was published (1989), so I suspect it was rushed to cash in on the historical moment. As someone who lived through the fall of the Berlin Wall it was nicely nostalgic to remember what a dramatic change that moment had on the world, but that was about the only joy I got from this book.Also a note about the Kindle edition: The Quiller novels are obviously scans with minimal proofing. There are many more spelling and punctuation mistakes than one expects in a book at this price.
C**K
An interesting twist for an old friend
Quiller and the KGB are sworn enemies-after all-the time period is during the cold war. Image you suddenly had to work with someone you hate. Someone that wants to see you dead. Someone that you cannot trust and you have to place your life in their hands. Sure, this is not a new concept as stories goes. But for Quiller fans- our loner that only feels alive when he is on the edge of death itself-is suddenly placed in this situation despite all attempts- to refuse. The reason is the plot of the story of course and if you like cold war era espionage stories-especially those that has a main character that is usually written in the 1st person-so you understand and become one with the character-then this series-if you can find it- is worth the time, money and effort. Enjoy!
W**M
Quiller - None better
A novel of a human spirit, of mind over matter; a novel filled with all the tension and the extraordinarily detailed action - the complexity of doing simple things in perilous- situations - that we've come to expect when following this shadow executive through one of the Bureau's ultra-hazardous missions.
T**Y
Great
The best quiller !!! Adam hall is number one espionage writer.A classic in the genre.A must read for quiller fans.
T**L
In love with Quiller
Looking for an espionage novel with some action? This is it. Quiller KGB is my first Hall book, but I loved it and enjoyed it thoroughly. The action is pretty nice and though there's not much surprise element, and you can guess pretty much what's coming next, but it's like a cool an hour or two at the movies. Plenty of action. Unfortunately, no romance. Am looking for a Hall book next where Quiller also has a love interest... any ideas which?
J**N
Terrific, BUT
This is a terrific book. That said, it has two major drawbacks. I have not really purchased it, but have leased the right to read it but not transfer this product because I do not own it. Second, if I were to purchase a new print paperback version through the Amazon Marketplace, I would pay less than the Kindle version and would be able to resell.
A**T
SAY NO TO QUILLER
I don't care for this book at all. I will delete it from my list today, as well as the other Quiller novels I have purchased.
J**N
Five Stars
Great book, fast action. Thoughtfully crafted
J**K
Of its time but still highly enjoyable
Quiller teams up with the KGB to foil a plot to kill Gorbachev in this dated but still highly readble title in the Quiller series. Mention of the Berlin Wall, Gorby, Thatcher etc, places the action firmly at the back end of the eighties, but Hall was astute enough to bring in references to the politics of the day, so the Berlin setting, tensions and sense of change in the air is well-handled, and stil gives the book a fresh feel, even now. In places, it feels little more than one extended hunt and be hunted story, with Quiller escaping some very shut-end situations in Berlin. That said, Hall's books were as much stories of the mind as they were all-action espionage stories, so there is that element to enjoy as well. The usual narrative chop and changes leave the reader wondering how certain situations have played until part-way through the next chapter. Annoying for some, but all part of the fun to be had from Adam Hall. Of its time certainly - but still leagues ahead of most of the dross that gets churned out these days by so-called practitioners of the genre.
G**I
Intriguing but.....
This was the first Adam Hall book I ever read; as a big fan of spy stories (and in particular of the early Le Carré ones), I had mixed feelings about "Quiller KGB". The story is intriguing, the narration is essential and tense, the novel has many of the typical ingredients of the good old cold war spystories....though by no means this could be put next, not to say compared, to absolute masterpieces of the genre such as The Spy Who Came In From The Cold.What I found odd in the book is that the writing style is at times difficult to follow; some sentences are constructed in an awkward way, making it hard to understand who's saying what and why and when (lots of phrase in italic: are they flashbacks? Someone else speaking? Or maybe an inner conversation between Quiller and his mind? Or a blend of all this? Well, up to you to figure out...); plus sometimes the narration jumps suddenly from one situation to another without possibility to understand what happened in-between - a few times I went back in search of a chapter which I thought could be missing, but it was not...
B**K
Annoying
I'm a big fan of Quiller books, but I was disappointed with this Kindle edition. It's a British storyline, by a British author and purchased from Kindle UK; so why the American spelling? I found it so irritating that it spoilt my enjoyment of a good storyline. I can therefore only award it 2 stars.
H**K
Four Stars
as expected
D**S
Love of Hate him, Quiller is tops.
Love all Quiller books. I can nearly believe he's real, I'd like to think so anyway. one two three four