“In the first nineteen months of European war, from September 1939 to March of 1941, the island nation of Britain and her allies lost, to ...
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reviews
Oct 04, 2008
Ed
rated it: 
In my mind Furst writes the finest espionage novels available. I like his stuff better than LeCarre's.
This particular story follows the travails of a Dutch Cargo ship that ends up running undercover missions for the British in early 1941.
Furst's ability to describe the atmosphere of those times is astounding. He draws Captain DeHaan in such realistic terms that I only wish I could meet the man.
The entire story gives us a peek into the past that is realisti More...
This particular story follows the travails of a Dutch Cargo ship that ends up running undercover missions for the British in early 1941.
Furst's ability to describe the atmosphere of those times is astounding. He draws Captain DeHaan in such realistic terms that I only wish I could meet the man.
The entire story gives us a peek into the past that is realisti More...
Jan 23, 2010
Kenyon
rated it: 
Woke up in the middle of the night due to my cold and decided to finish this. I liked the second half much more than the first half, which took a little while to set up, and required me to get used to a writing style deliberately evocative of a ship's log -- complete with numerous deliberately incomplete sentences. Furst writes wonderful, evocative novels of espionage set during and before WWII. This is the second I have read, and I'll read more. There appears to always be a love affair. Th
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Oct 02, 2010
Lars
rated it: 
Still good, but maybe my diet has been too heavily weighed toward Furst's spy thrillers recently. The formula is formulaic, even if it is a good formula.
'Dark Voyage' differs from Furst's other World War II espionage novels I've read so far in that there is an absence of eastern European intrigue. Somehow a merchant seaman from the Netherlands doesn't quite have the pizzazz of other Furst protagonists. Captain Eric DeHaan is a stolid burgher type and the attempts to spice up his l More...
'Dark Voyage' differs from Furst's other World War II espionage novels I've read so far in that there is an absence of eastern European intrigue. Somehow a merchant seaman from the Netherlands doesn't quite have the pizzazz of other Furst protagonists. Captain Eric DeHaan is a stolid burgher type and the attempts to spice up his l More...
Aug 08, 2011
Ben
rated it:
‘Dark Voyage’ is the first book I’ve read by Alan Furst after coming across this author on the Fantastic Fiction website where the Philip Kerr page suggested them. The novels in this particular thriller series take place either before or during the Second World War in varying locations. Unlike Kerr however, each title is standalone without a main recurring character.
This novel is mostly set at sea in 1941 with a Dutch freighter being commandeered by British intelligence for a secr More...
This novel is mostly set at sea in 1941 with a Dutch freighter being commandeered by British intelligence for a secr More...
Feb 05, 2009
Dark Voyage is the eighth book by acclaimed novelist Furst, whose writing plumbs the territory of war-torn Europe prior to America's involvement in WWII. Many critics agree that Dark Voyage is Furst's best to date. Atmospheric, nuanced, and rich with complex characters, this book transcends the well-worn formulas of genre novels. Captain DeHaan is an interesting mix of intellectual and adventurous, witty and "decent"—a man worth rooting for—and the rest of the unique cast also enlive
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Oct 17, 2011
Christopher
rated it:
I generally enjoy the heck out of Alan Furst's novels. The atmosphere he creates is very immersive, and even when the main character is a bit inscrutable, supporting characters can just send your brain spinning off into the possibilities of their backgrounds and futures.
This volume is one of the most disjointed of Furst's novels I've read. The narrative can jump several days, then backtracking as our PoV character thinks back to how they survived the last cliffhanger. The role of S. More...
This volume is one of the most disjointed of Furst's novels I've read. The narrative can jump several days, then backtracking as our PoV character thinks back to how they survived the last cliffhanger. The role of S. More...
Feb 17, 2009
This is the eighth volume in Furst's "Night Soldiers" series, although most of the series need not be read in the order published: only The World at Night and Red Gold relate directly as a sequential pair. For those that wish the read the books in sequence, Blood of Victory precedes this and The Foreign Correspondent follows.
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Oct 27, 2010
Jenn
rated it:
This is one of my favorite Furst novels to date. This and "The Spies of Warsaw". Part of it may have been my own personal fascination with ships, but again, the appeal of these ordinary, unglamorous people in extraordinary circumstances is exactly what keeps me coming back to these novels.
"The real hero is always a hero by mistake; he dreams of being an honest coward like everybody else." -Umberto Eco
If you like WWII history, these books are excellent in More...
"The real hero is always a hero by mistake; he dreams of being an honest coward like everybody else." -Umberto Eco
If you like WWII history, these books are excellent in More...
Jan 12, 2010
Norvin
rated it:
This novel, like most of Alan Fursts work, begins on the eve of WWII, and concerns a Dutch tramp freighter captain who gets mixed up with Naval Intelligence. I enjoy the sweet remorse and fatalistic romance typical to Fursts work- his writing is full of memories just past, and the scared excitement of the displaced- but this book is special. In describing the life aboard the tramp freighter, Furst nails the details so effortlessly, one can only think that he too has been to sea, or at least ha
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Nov 19, 2009
Julie
rated it:
Rock on, Furst! If anyone can make me keep turning the pages of a book about a Dutch freighter posing as a Spanish tramper, wending its way through the Mediterranean and Baltic Seas on secret missions, you are the one.
This won't be my favorite of Furst's WWII thrillers, but in the end I was on board for the full ride. He has this amazing ability to slice in and out minor characters that make the mystery come alive with local color- fleshing out details that create vivid scenes.
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This won't be my favorite of Furst's WWII thrillers, but in the end I was on board for the full ride. He has this amazing ability to slice in and out minor characters that make the mystery come alive with local color- fleshing out details that create vivid scenes.
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Apr 19, 2009
Joshua
rated it:
Furst's books, set in or around WW2, are always atmospheric, tense explorations of morality and suspense as people drift in and out of trouble while connected to events of the time. This novel, largely set on a ship, is more of the same as it is a tense, very well done story about a Dutch merchant ship that is used to carry cargo through hazardous waters to Allied forces (Nazi ships and subs and U-boats threaten their mission and their lives).
Good stuff. I'd read Furst's Dark Star yea More...
Good stuff. I'd read Furst's Dark Star yea More...
May 12, 2011
Robert
rated it:
This was a terrific read, as I have found with all of Furst's work so far, four or five novels. This was a little slice of WW II that I had never considered or new anything about. The main character is a merchant marine captain on a tramp steamer that was at sea when Netherlands was overrun by the blitzkrieg. Along with some other Netherlanders, who find themselves out of the country and unable to go back, Captain DeHaan forms a group to resist where possible within the bounds of the merchant
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Jan 10, 2010
Emily
rated it:
The most economical of Furst's novels that I've read so far, and also the only one in which the main action takes place after the outbreak of the war. This book deals with a Dutch merchant marine steamship that is coopted, willingly enough, to help in the English war effort in the spring/summer of 1941. The captain, De Haan, is like the king and protector of his own floating mini-state--which is a new theme, since most Furst books deal with lone-wolf characters. As usual, the novel is highly atm
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Oct 06, 2010
Brad
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DARK VOYAGE is Alan Furst's WWII tale of espionage at sea. Eric DeHaan is captain of the Dutch freighter Noordendam. He and his ship have been pressed into service under secret orders from British Naval Intelligence. With their boat disguised as a neutral Spanish freighter, DeHaan and his crew perform missions in waters controlled by the Nazis off of North Africa and in the Baltic.
This is yet another gripping thriller from Alan Furst. He just does not miss the mark and has become one More...
This is yet another gripping thriller from Alan Furst. He just does not miss the mark and has become one More...
Feb 02, 2008
Rick
rated it:
Slim, taut novel of World War II. Furst is a master of the genre of period suspense and his theater of operation is Europe during the mid-to-late 30s and the war years themselves. This novel features a Dutch merchant marine captain whose tramp steamer becomes first an agent of the Dutch resistance, then the British war effort. Like all of Furst’s work, Dark Voyage is crisp, character and plot driven, and rich in period detail. Also, characteristically, the hero is not the sole agent of heroic an
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Jun 21, 2007
Sarah
rated it:
Dark Voyage was my introduction to Alan Furst's WWII spy novels. The book follows the ad hock crew of the Noordendam, sailing for the Royal Navy under a stolen Spanish flag. While the crew sails from port to port, we are given hints at the battles through letters, radio transmissions and their brief ports of call.
Furst's writing style is reminiscent of Grahame Green, especially when writing for Carol Reed. I was most reminded of Our Man in Havana and The Third Man.
The mid More...
Furst's writing style is reminiscent of Grahame Green, especially when writing for Carol Reed. I was most reminded of Our Man in Havana and The Third Man.
The mid More...
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Jul 23, 2008
Ron
rated it:
E.M. DeHaan, captain of the tramp freighter Noordendam, is recruited by Dutch naval intelligence service in exile in London (Holland has already fallen to the Germans). At first he is resistant to, or at least skeptical of, the plan to disguise his ship as a Spanish vessel (thus making his ship a neutral that would be able to more easily navigate in dangerous waters under the close watch of U-boats and other enemies).
His missions take him from the Mediterranean to the North Sea to th More...
His missions take him from the Mediterranean to the North Sea to th More...
Aug 09, 2011
Jeff
rated it:
This is one of my favorite Furst novels. The time period is typical 1940 Nazi occupied Europe. Mr. Brown plays a minor role in the story, and the visit to the Brasserie Heiniger is told in flashback. But the setting is very different. Rather than the usual turf of Paris and eastern Europe, this novel follows a Dutch tramp steamer from north Africa to the Baltic. The atmosphere is thick, as you would expect from Furst, but it amplifies this story better than some others. The ambigous ending is al
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Jul 23, 2010
J
rated it: 
Not particularly gripping as a spy novel. Its quality comes from creating a mood and atmosphere that purportedly well represents the World War II setting. I have no way to know if its an accurate mood or atmosphere, and I can't say that he's any better at creating it than any number of decent writers. On the positive side, its pace is good for reading before going to sleep, kind of interesting, but not hard to put down. I mildly enjoyed it.
Feb 23, 2009
Oh goodie, another great Alan Furst novel to read. I have read three of his books and think they are really stupendous. He is so good at conveying atmosphere and the uncertainties and ambivelences in his characters. I have read one other spy novel in my life that REALLY stuck with me - Larry Collins:"Fall From Grace" - another brilliant espionage book. I highly recommend it. And I am looking forward to this one
Jun 05, 2011
Julie
rated it:
We listened to this book as we drove through Illinois & Iowa, finally finishing it in Nebraska on our road trip westward. We both found it hard to follow. We enjoyed the subject matter of subterfuge & ships & probably would have awarded four stars if it hadn't been for the abrupt ending. The ship had run aground, the engines had failed, we were gripped for the finale and.....were left hanging!
Mar 28, 2009
J
rated it:
Highly read and disposable espionage fiction set during the beginnings of World War II. It begins in a highly believable manner with a carefully drawn world of those drawn into the "shadow" world by the exigencies of war. By the end though, it becomes a bit of a fairy tale, though the improbable becomes fact when the world is at war.
In short, great airplane/train reading.
In short, great airplane/train reading.
Aug 23, 2008
Sarah
rated it:
I first read Alan Furst's Red Gold as part of a care package sent by my friend Kevin to me in Europe. I was immediately pulled into the WWII ambience and began to seek out all his other books.
I started this in South Carolina in April but had to return it to the library before I could finish it so when I returned to the US, I got it out of the library immediately.
It did not disappoint. I loved the Dutch captain and his misfit bunch of sailors. The fact thatI had just met More...
I started this in South Carolina in April but had to return it to the library before I could finish it so when I returned to the US, I got it out of the library immediately.
It did not disappoint. I loved the Dutch captain and his misfit bunch of sailors. The fact thatI had just met More...
Sep 14, 2011
Marc
rated it:
Another winner by Alan Furst. I haven't had this much enjoyment from historical fiction since Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey and Maturin series. If Furst can turn as many good volumes as he did (and he's well on his way), I'll be in heaven. I've often wondered what my father's (born in Poland in 1909) life was really like when the world around him went mad. Furst brings the WWII period as it looked to many ordinary (and some extaordinary) Europeans to life with great stories, peopled by beutifully rea
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Aug 31, 2009
Mike
rated it:
One more excellent plunge into the murky world of WWII espionage. This time, we follow the journey of a Dutch merchant marine captain as he is drawn into the business of covertly helping the British secret service.
This is a novel of quiet, reluctant heroes working in backwater locations. Furst's novels do an amazing job of placing the reader into times and places that we rarely get to see in english language literature.
This is a novel of quiet, reluctant heroes working in backwater locations. Furst's novels do an amazing job of placing the reader into times and places that we rarely get to see in english language literature.
Oct 01, 2010
Linny
rated it:
Love Alan Furst, passionate historian of WWII. When merchant ships taking a beating, captain Eric DeHaan agrees to direct a trap freighter in a spy operation against all odds in the Swedish seas. Lots of details of ships, the war, brave seamen, tension filled.
Want more of Furst.
Want more of Furst.
Nov 29, 2008
Ann
rated it:
My favorite of the many books by this author I've read. The ship's captain is indelibly drawn, and Furst draws the several wonderful locales utterly specifically. His balance here among despair, glory, bliss, and everyday labor--always a strong point!--is particularly fine.
Dec 30, 2010
Donald
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DARK VOYAGE is my favorite of Furst's novels thus far (though I still have a few to catch up with). Rich in detail with the author's keen eye for accuracy and his knack for getting the most out of even the least important characters, DARK PASSAGE feels like it puts you on Captain DeHaan's crew. Can't recommend Furst highly enough to lovers of thrillers, WWII history and plain good writing.
Mar 13, 2011
Interesting fictional book based on some actual events druing WW2. Dark Voyage is the journey of the Dutch freighter Noordendam, under disguise as a neutral Spanish freighter but actually transporting supplies and arms for the Allies.
Jun 06, 2010
Sharonm
rated it: 
Read for book club. Naval war story. Not much characterization at all. Plot driven, but plot didn’t capture me except for a short time about ¾ of the way through. Would not have finished this if it weren’t for the book club.
