08/17/2020
Conor Thorn, a spy for the U.S. Office of Strategic Services, and Emily Bright, his counterpart in England’s MI6, reunite for their richly detailed second WWII adventure (after The Torch Betrayal). In 1942, the Allies' greatest weapon may be Ultra, the deciphered German codes, so when Swedish cryptographer Gunnar Lind disappears from England with intimate knowledge of them, Thorn and Bright team up to slip into neutral Sweden and find him—before the Germans do. Double crosses abound as the spies vie with Germans, Swedes, and Russians. There are personal agendas as well, especially for Thorn, who learns that his late wife may have been raped by a man he knows, and the intersections of private and public obligations add exciting twists to the plot.
Dyer keeps the story moving with short chapters that bounce quickly among various locations. Most chapters contain some kind of action—the torture scenes are not for the weak of heart—and end on cliff-hangers, keeping the reader’s blood pumping. The international cast is large and lively. Indeed, many minor characters come and go so quickly it's often hard to keep track of them. However, Thorn and Bright and the other main characters are fully fleshed out, with a wide array of virtues, faults, and motives that help to develop the tension.
The author's nimble integration of historical and fictional characters puts the spy story in context and amps up the suspense. Winston Churchill, Heinrich Himmler, and OSS chief “Wild Bill” Donovan all make appearances, including in intimate scenes such as one of Himmler forming a curious relationship with his physical therapist. The Swedish setting is unusual for a WWII novel and lends a welcome freshness. Vibrant descriptions and meticulous historical details do much to make this an especially rewarding and believable spy story.
Takeaway: Fans of WWII suspense novels will be thrilled by this action-packed story’s richly detailed settings and complex characters.
Great for fans of Alistair MacLean’s The Guns of Navarone, John le Carré.
Production grades Cover: B+ Design and typography: A- Illustrations: - Editing: A- Marketing copy: B+
"The Ultra Betrayal exceeds all expectations. I'm a fan! Read it today!"
-Jack Carr, New York Times bestselling author of Savage Son"A tantalizing premise set among the ominous atmosphere of World War II . . . plot twists galore . . ." -Steve Berry New York Times and #1 Internationally Bestselling Author
"The Ultra Betrayal is a masterful historical spy thriller where morality pushes people to their breaking points."-Foreword Clarion Reviews
"Conor Thorn is back with a vengeance . . . History and thriller lovers alike will stay up reading late into the night . . ."-Anthony Franze Author of The Outsider"The Ultra Betrayal is blessed with a plot that zings along like a ricocheting bullet . . ." -James R. Benn Author of the Billy Boyle Mystery Series
"Glenn Dyer's THE ULTRA BETRAYAL is a classic spy thriller . . . Ian Fleming would likely approve . . ." -IndieReader
"Dyer's detailed prose excels at evoking the feel of World War II spycraft . . ."-Kirkus Reviews
2020-05-07
This sequel follows an American and British spy team during World War II.
England, 1942. The crucial secrets of Bletchley Park, Britain’s code and cipher school, are in jeopardy. Swedish cryptologist Gunnar Lind has disappeared from the school, and it is vital to the war effort that his knowledge of Britain’s code-breaking program doesn’t end up in Nazi hands. Winston Churchill knows just whom he wants for the mission: Conor Thorn and Emily Bright. Conor is an agent of the OSS, America’s newly inaugurated intelligence agency. He’s known for his rather reckless methods—like his recent shootout with German spies in the Lisbon airport. Emily is an MI6 agent who worked with Conor successfully on his previous mission—and who has developed strong feelings for him despite herself. Conor is a bit distracted after recently learning that his wife, Grace, was raped not long before her death. Emily goes ahead to Stockholm to search for Lind, but when she turns up missing, Conor must go after her, accompanied by the cryptologist’s highly suspicious wife, Eve. With so many emotions involved, it’s all but inevitable that Conor will resort to even more reckless tactics to save Emily and the Allied war effort. Dyer’s detailed prose excels at evoking the feel of World War II spycraft—or at least the sense of it that readers have in their minds: An operative’s “suite at the Grand was impressively spacious, as well as being neat and orderly, as if an army of maids had just left….A small envelope lay on top of the paper. An ashtray, free from any ash, was placed alongside the newspaper and a pack of Chesterfield cigarettes, unopened.” The book features the requisite historical cameos—Alan Turing, Edward R. Murrow, Ian Fleming—and plenty of cloak-and-dagger encounters, which will please readers enough to ignore the rather contrived plot. Grace’s assault seems a bit exploitatively dark for this sort of novel, which can at times feel quite cartoonish. But fans of this genre will enjoy Dyer’s handling of the setting and the tropes.
A fun, if slightly flawed, wartime espionage tale.
