A Time Without Shadows

A Time Without Shadows by Ted Allbeury

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I am currently re-reading several of Ted Allbeury's books, which had me captivated at the time. His writing is still skilful and pacey, but I find in some of his books the storytelling ages in a way that his contemporaries Le Carré, Price and Deighton don't. This is not one of them.
I am coming to the conclusion that his best work is that which draws most directly on his own experience during and after World War II. This falls into that group and focusses on a post-war effort to unravel the betrayal of a Special Operations Executive (SOE) network in France. It mixes in the bitter rivalry between SIS (MI6) and SOE, and blends fictional characters into real events in the manner of the best historical fiction.
Thematically, then, it has a certain amount in common with The Dangerous Edge. Both are worthwhile reads or re-reads. The world they describe feels real and relevant while some of his more imaginative works can seem a bit laboured in retrospect. Some of the phrasing is 'of its time' but less so than many others.



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