The Dangerous Edge

by Ted Allbeury

1st NEL 1992 edition paperback fine book In stock shipped from our UK warehouse

Genres: Espionage, Thriller, Fiction

256 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1992

About the author

1917 - 2005. Also wrote under the pseudonyms Richard Butler and Patrick Kelly.

Ted Allbeury was a lieutenant-colonel in the Intelligence Corps during World War II, and later a successful executive in the fields of marketing, advertising and radio. He began his writing career in the early 1970s and became well known for his espionage novels, but also published one highly-praised general novel, THE CHOICE, and a short story collection, OTHER KINDS OF TREASON. His novels have been published in twenty-three languages, including Russian. He died on 4th December 2005.


See also: http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/2006/j...
and
http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/a/t...

Reviews

[Sheepdog · Rating 5 out of 5]

I always find Allbeury's novels immersive. His writing is quite unlike any other author I know.

While I am ordinarily quite shallow, and lean towards "plot driven" books, with not too much emphasis on atmosphere, character development and motivations, with Allbeury I find what he does in these lines draws me in. I have trouble putting his books down.

I find his writing draws me in to thinking about what is going on in the novel. So often, I read inferior material which is a "fun ride", but not much more.

Oodles of atmosphere.

[Jak60 · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a highly satisfactory read, and incredibly well researched and documented story interweaving the SIS and SOE operations in Europe in the immediate aftermath of WWII. The author shows off here, like in some others of his novels, a deep knowledge of the intelligence world in that period of our history. An enjoyable plot and engaging characters complete the picture.

[Colin Robertson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nothing beats a good allbeury

Ted Allbeury is one of the finest English thrilller writers. Of Cold War puzzlers. Intrigue, deceit, double-deals, honour, courage - it’s alll there. Allbeury writes beautifully and evocatively. If you like Alan Furst you’ll like Allbeury. And AnthonyPrice.

[A.P. Martin · Rating 3 out of 5]

In the end a fairly straightforward plot which ranged from WW2 to the 1980s. The wartime sections, recounted by some of those present, were generally superior to the 1980s conspiracy, which failed to engage. An enjoyable read, especially for those who like WW2 espionage.

[j seasman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good story

I really enjoyed this book and have started to work my way through all the Ted Allbeury collection. An excellent back and forth from present day to WW2 with an unsentimental ending.

[Solim · Rating 4 out of 5]

They sent the main character on a roller coaster. Good spy stuff!

[Nigel Pinkus · Rating 4 out of 5]

Also called, "The Dangerous Truth" in some cases. Anyway, in response to a newspaper article that questioned whether or not Britain's SIS (Secret Intelligence Service) had in fact employed Nazi war criminals back during the war, Mallory was SIS's own tracker dog used to sniff around to see if he could uncover what, if anything, had occurred. Most of this information was on the cover of the book so don't worry this reader isn't giving too much story away. More specifically, Mallory was to investigate an old SOE (Special Operations Executive) that went very wrong in Holland which lead to fifty one Dutch and British deaths.

The only information that that the service had on hand, however, were three names as leads and a file that contained just a couple of sheets of paper. We find conflicting accounts, as we often do when reading Allbeury's novels, because the 'truth' is a fickle beast. Who do you believe, if anyone? There seems to be a few skeletons in the closet and these seem destined to stay there, but Mallory is a naive agent and rattles them pretty bloody hard so that it's difficult to ignore. How will the agency react to his inquiries and is he putting his life on the line for something that happened a long time ago? Does the agency have a hidden agenda or is Mallory doing the right thing by trying to bring Nazi war criminals to justice?

It's a classic spy novel because we don't find out the answer to these questions until the very end of the book. (So be a good reader and don't read the last chapter or the last few pages of the book). A very satisfying read that takes a bit of time to get going, but is well worth it. Not a thriller in the true sense of the word, but more a slow burner that had an excellent twist in the tale which this reader enjoyed very much. He also enjoyed the war time recounts by some of the characters, not because they were enjoyable experiences, but because we should never forget them. 4 stars.

Ted Allbeury wrote a staggering 42 novels and wrote under two other pen names ~ Richard Butler and Patrick Kelly as well. Here are 28 read’s from Allbeury, all rated accordingly:
THE GOOD (Four to Five Stars): ‘The Lantern Network’, ’Shadow of a Doubt’, ’A Wilderness of Mirrors', 'A Time Without Shadows' aka 'The Rules of the Game', 'The Only Good German' aka ‘Mission Berlin’, 'The Dangerous Edge', ‘Palomino Blonde’ aka 'Omega- minus', 'The Lonely Margins', ’The Crossing' aka ‘The Berlin Exchange’, 'Seeds of Treason', 'Other Kinds of Treason', 'Special Forces' aka 'Moscow Quadrille', the feel good, 'The Girl From Addis', 'Pay Any Price' and the rather exceptional, and this person's favourite, 'The Line-Crosser' (published in 1993).

THE AVERAGE (Two or Three Stars): 'Show Me a Hero', 'No Place to Hide' aka ‘Hostage’, ‘The Reckoning’, ’The Twentieth Day of January’ a.k.a. ‘Cold Tactics’, 'The Reaper' aka 'The Stalking Angel' and ‘Deep Purple’. He also wrote, ’The Choice' which is not espionage and this reader thought (even though it was critically acclaimed) not a good one.

THE UGLY (One or two stars): It’s, however, probably best to stay away from: ‘Aid and Comfort’, ‘The Assets' aka “Due Process’, 'The Secret Whispers’, 'The Alpha List', ’Consequences of Fear' aka ‘Smokescreen’ and ’The Spirit of Liberty'.

[Michel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ambiguous and respectful novel about war, hot or cold.
How long a spoon, and which devil?
Graham Greene good, really.

[Lysergius · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wonderfully absorbing tale of past deceits.