Synopses & Reviews
World War II seems to provide an endless supply of amazing true stories of heroism in the face of mortal danger. This true account of an MI6 agent's kidnapping and survival is a real-life spy thriller, and one worth knowing. On November 9, 1939, Captain Sigismund Payne Best and other members of Britain's ultra-secret Z service sat near a café in Venlo, The Netherlands, waiting to meet with whom supposedly-sound intelligence told them would be German resistance leaders. In reality, what they would meet at Venlo was an SS ambush--leading to the murder of Best's Z associate and the Nazis' seizure of a plain text list of British under-cover agents. It was a massive disaster for British intelligence and a crucial turning point of war-time espionage.
Best survived Venlo to tell of the shocking intelligence coups that precipitated the attack. His harrowing account of torture at the hands of the Nazis and five years in the infamous Sachenhausen and Dachau concentration camps offers unparalleled, first-hand details from inside the Third Reich. As a prisoner, he crossed paths with famous Nazi resistance fighters, including Georg Elser and Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Best's explication of top-secret spy techniques and his depiction of how the incident played out to justify Nazi aggression is military history at its finest. His memoir of espionage, survival, and captivity is a riveting narrative that readers will not soon forget.
Review
"Starred Review. In all, an amazing read--nonfiction boasting the kind of plotting, sense of place, and rich characterization that one associates with le Carré." Booklist
Review
"Lovers of espionage and war literature, fictional and nonfictional alike, should read this." Margaret Heilbrun
Synopsis
An incredible, rare glimpse into the inner world of Nazi espionage.
About the Author
Captain S. Payne Best was an MI6 agent and the head of the top secret Z organization in The Netherlands during World War II. Captured by Nazis following a disinformation trap, he has a unique knowledge of both British and Nazi espionage techniques. "Tall, spats-wearing, and monocled," Best was a classic spy of the old school. He died in Britain in 1978.Nigel Jones is an award-winning author, BBC radio broadcaster, and journalist.