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Spy Line: A Bernard Samson Novel
“Spy Line is vigorous and sleazy, psychologically complex and action-packed. And it is always exciting.” —Daily Mail
Bernard Samson is a spy on the run, forced to abandon his life and job and plunge into hiding. But in the murky, dangerous streets of Berlin, he knows where to hide. Wanted for an act of treachery he has not committed, he must not only escape the grasp of London Central, but get to the bottom of a tangled conspiracy that is about to change everything. In the thrilling second installment of the Hook, Line, Sinker trilogy, Bernard’s personal and professional lives collide with devastating consequences.
Bernard Samson is a spy on the run, forced to abandon his life and job and plunge into hiding. But in the murky, dangerous streets of Berlin, he knows where to hide. Wanted for an act of treachery he has not committed, he must not only escape the grasp of London Central, but get to the bottom of a tangled conspiracy that is about to change everything. In the thrilling second installment of the Hook, Line, Sinker trilogy, Bernard’s personal and professional lives collide with devastating consequences.
272 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 2, 2024
31 people are currently reading
10 people want to read
About the author
Len Deighton
225 books956 followersDeighton was born in Marylebone, London, in 1929. His father was a chauffeur and mechanic, and his mother was a part-time cook. After leaving school, Deighton worked as a railway clerk before performing his National Service, which he spent as a photographer for the Royal Air Force's Special Investigation Branch. After discharge from the RAF, he studied at St Martin's School of Art in London in 1949, and in 1952 won a scholarship to the Royal College of Art, graduating in 1955.
Deighton worked as an airline steward with BOAC. Before he began his writing career he worked as an illustrator in New York and, in 1960, as an art director in a London advertising agency. He is credited with creating the first British cover for Jack Kerouac's On the Road. He has since used his drawing skills to illustrate a number of his own military history books.
Following the success of his first novels, Deighton became The Observer's cookery writer and produced illustrated cookbooks. In September 1967 he wrote an article in the Sunday Times Magazine about Operation Snowdrop - an SAS attack on Benghazi during World War II. The following year David Stirling would be awarded substantial damages in libel from the article.
He also wrote travel guides and became travel editor of Playboy, before becoming a film producer. After producing a film adaption of his 1968 novel Only When I Larf, Deighton and photographer Brian Duffy bought the film rights to Joan Littlewood and Theatre Workshop's stage musical Oh, What a Lovely War! He had his name removed from the credits of the film, however, which was a move that he later described as "stupid and infantile." That was his last involvement with the cinema.
Deighton left England in 1969. He briefly resided in Blackrock, County Louth in Ireland. He did not return to England apart from some personal visits and very few media appearances, his last one since 1985 being a 2006 interview which formed part of a "Len Deighton Night" on BBC Four. He and his wife Ysabele divided their time between homes in Portugal and Guernsey.
Deighton worked as an airline steward with BOAC. Before he began his writing career he worked as an illustrator in New York and, in 1960, as an art director in a London advertising agency. He is credited with creating the first British cover for Jack Kerouac's On the Road. He has since used his drawing skills to illustrate a number of his own military history books.
Following the success of his first novels, Deighton became The Observer's cookery writer and produced illustrated cookbooks. In September 1967 he wrote an article in the Sunday Times Magazine about Operation Snowdrop - an SAS attack on Benghazi during World War II. The following year David Stirling would be awarded substantial damages in libel from the article.
He also wrote travel guides and became travel editor of Playboy, before becoming a film producer. After producing a film adaption of his 1968 novel Only When I Larf, Deighton and photographer Brian Duffy bought the film rights to Joan Littlewood and Theatre Workshop's stage musical Oh, What a Lovely War! He had his name removed from the credits of the film, however, which was a move that he later described as "stupid and infantile." That was his last involvement with the cinema.
Deighton left England in 1969. He briefly resided in Blackrock, County Louth in Ireland. He did not return to England apart from some personal visits and very few media appearances, his last one since 1985 being a 2006 interview which formed part of a "Len Deighton Night" on BBC Four. He and his wife Ysabele divided their time between homes in Portugal and Guernsey.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
August 26, 2024
Deighton says in his afterword that this was written in a “minor key” or you could say that it’s just a little slack and unfocused, at least until the chaotic ending on the autobahn. The second of the second trilogy of Samson novels (or the fifth of the nonet) and Bernard is still trying to piece together what happened to his wife Fiona: high level defector or deep cover penetration agent? He’s also trying to dodge his own service who are using him as a potential scapegoat for several operations. For a secret agent, Samson is remarkably trustworthy for people he knows to be bent. As before, Deighton’s subject is bureaucracy and its simultaneous movement toward both expansion and entropy.
September 17, 2024
Same great writing, characters, settings, etc. as the rest of the series. Each of the books in the series is supposed to stand on its own, but this one has a pretty convoluted plot that would be difficult to follow without some familiarity with the earlier books in the series. It becomes unclear whether the protagonist's wife is actually a Russian spy or a double or triple agent still working for MI6. Even within MI6, it is unclear who thinks or knows what. Similarly, the protagonist is not sure whether he has been shunted aside or is under deep cover related to a scheme involving his wife. Relatedly, the possibility of his wife's return to the West begins to undermine his current romantic relationship. Also a new plot thread related to heroin smuggling through East Germany. I am addicted to these books. I will try to take a break after the sixth.
March 20, 2025
Great addition to the series
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews