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The Fox From His Lair
A hunt that will decide the victor of the Second World War...Throughout the summer of 1944, southern England was transformed into one huge armed camp as the allied forces made their final preparations for D-Day. It was at this crucial moment in history that the Fox emerged from his lair.
The Fox had many names and many disguises, but behind them all lay the resource and ingenuity of a dedicated German agent. His very existence was not suspected until a totally unexpected E-Boat attack on a landing resulting in hundreds of casualties, and the loss of a set of top-secret plans detailing the invasion.
Desperate to stop them falling into enemy hands, two officers are tasked with recovering the plans and taking out the Fox. Failure would mean the total defeat of the allied forces. Failure is not an option...
A gripping, action-packed D-Day thriller from a master of the war story, perfect for fans of Frederick Forsyth, John le Carré and Alistair MacLean.
The Fox had many names and many disguises, but behind them all lay the resource and ingenuity of a dedicated German agent. His very existence was not suspected until a totally unexpected E-Boat attack on a landing resulting in hundreds of casualties, and the loss of a set of top-secret plans detailing the invasion.
Desperate to stop them falling into enemy hands, two officers are tasked with recovering the plans and taking out the Fox. Failure would mean the total defeat of the allied forces. Failure is not an option...
A gripping, action-packed D-Day thriller from a master of the war story, perfect for fans of Frederick Forsyth, John le Carré and Alistair MacLean.
- GenresHistorical Fiction
294 pages, Paperback
Published April 8, 2021
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
October 25, 2024
I came across this group, Military Thriller Book Group, about two years ago and thought that after being made aware of a slew of great authors and building a TBR (To Be Read) pile of books, if they were physical copies would be leaning dangerously to one side or another. Recently I attempted to pick the brains of some of the other members of this group to see if they might be able to provide me with a list of authors that they might recommend. One member provided me with a list of authors that he had on his various shadow drives, and I took that list and proceeded to develop a listing of all the books by that author and then attempt to read some of these books.
One of these authors was John Harris, a British author who wrote under the pseudonyms of Max Hennessy and Mark Hebden. He wrote a series of crime novels plus ventured into a series of war stories based on some of his experiences in the British Navy.
The short novel, The Fox From His Lair, is a relatively quick read of 237 pages. It was originally published in 1980 and is based on the hunt for a German spy, codenamed "The Fox" by two Allied intelligence agents - Iremonger and Pargeter - that takes place across the English isles in the days proceeding D-Day (6 June 1944) and Operation Overlord.prevent the plans from falling into enemy hands, the two officers are tasked with recovering the plans and taking out the Fox. Failure would mean the total defeat of the Allied
Throughout the summer of 1944, southern England was transformed into one huge armed camp as the Allied forces made their final preparations for D-Day. At this crucial moment in history, the Fox emerged from his lair. The Fox is a wily German agent who is on the loose having stolen a copy of the D-Day plans to give to the High German command.
Desperate to prevent the plans from falling into enemy hands, the two officers are tasked with recovering the plans and taking out the Fox. Failure would mean the total defeat of the Allied forces. Failure is not an option…
This short novel details the attempts to hunt for The Fox across the opening hours of Operation Overlord and is worthy of a solid four stars out of five (with my only issue being the shortness of the story).
A gripping, action-packed D-Day thriller from a master of the war story, perfect for fans of Frederick Forsyth, John le Carré and Alistair MacLean.
As with all my literary ramblings, these are just my five cents worth.
One of these authors was John Harris, a British author who wrote under the pseudonyms of Max Hennessy and Mark Hebden. He wrote a series of crime novels plus ventured into a series of war stories based on some of his experiences in the British Navy.
The short novel, The Fox From His Lair, is a relatively quick read of 237 pages. It was originally published in 1980 and is based on the hunt for a German spy, codenamed "The Fox" by two Allied intelligence agents - Iremonger and Pargeter - that takes place across the English isles in the days proceeding D-Day (6 June 1944) and Operation Overlord.prevent the plans from falling into enemy hands, the two officers are tasked with recovering the plans and taking out the Fox. Failure would mean the total defeat of the Allied
Throughout the summer of 1944, southern England was transformed into one huge armed camp as the Allied forces made their final preparations for D-Day. At this crucial moment in history, the Fox emerged from his lair. The Fox is a wily German agent who is on the loose having stolen a copy of the D-Day plans to give to the High German command.
Desperate to prevent the plans from falling into enemy hands, the two officers are tasked with recovering the plans and taking out the Fox. Failure would mean the total defeat of the Allied forces. Failure is not an option…
This short novel details the attempts to hunt for The Fox across the opening hours of Operation Overlord and is worthy of a solid four stars out of five (with my only issue being the shortness of the story).
A gripping, action-packed D-Day thriller from a master of the war story, perfect for fans of Frederick Forsyth, John le Carré and Alistair MacLean.
As with all my literary ramblings, these are just my five cents worth.
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March 24, 2021Following a disastrous ambush during a training exercise, Allied bodies are washing up on the beaches of England -- and if the intelligence taken from one of those bodies falls into German hands, the Allies' hopes of opening the second front may be washed up as well. The Fox from his Lair is unusual among Hennessy titles,being a murder mystery & thriller set during the days leading up to D-Day: the resolution also takes place on Omaha Beach and just inland from it, making it possibly the most dramatic end to a murder mystery ever. One can't easily top D-Day, of all things. I found that particular development rather implausible, but Hennessy's intro indicates this was based on a true incident. I have my doubts, but it makes for a unique WW2 mystery.
February 26, 2026
This is not the best book I've read about the Second World War. It is a fairly straightforward action novel about the hunt for a German spy, set just before and during D-Day. It was entertaining, even though the detailed discriptions of the horrors during the Omaha beach landing were also quite disturbing. I prefer books like Enigma by Robert Harris. There is more tension and more of an interesting story in Enigma.
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October 2, 2023D Day is approaching and the Fox, a wily German agent is on the loose having stolen a copy of the D Day plans to give to the High German command. Two intelligence officers one British and one American are on his tail and finally locate him on the landing beaches posing as an American soldier. Will they succeed in bringing him down? Read the fascinating story to find out!
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews