Flight from Berlin: Summary and book reviews of Flight from Berlin by David John, plus links to an excerpt from Flight from Berlin and a biography of David John.
Flight from Berlin A Novel
by David John
Hardcover: Jul 2012,
384 pages.
Paperback: 25 Jun 2013,
384 pages.
A cynical English reporter and a beautiful, headstrong, American Olympic hopeful are caught in a lethal game of international espionage during the 1936 Berlin Olympics in Flight from Berlin, a riveting debut thriller from breakout novelist David John. Combining the suspense and atmosphere of Alan Furst's spy novels with the exciting narrative drive of Daniel Silva's Gabriel Allon adventures, John delivers an unforgettable masterwork of thrilling suspense set against the backdrop of one of the most monumental summers in history - a contest of champions, including the remarkable Jessie Owen, that captivated the world as the specter of Nazi Germany continued its rise to threaten the globe.
If Berlin feels like a scary fog, John's coverage of scenes from the Olympic competitions puts the reader smack inside the roar and excitement of the crowds. Combining the pressure of young athletic performances with the stress of Hitler's efforts to stage a phony humanitarian show for the watching world and the unwinding fictional espionage plot highlights John's authorial mastery. It rivals the very best of spy novels. I would like to see more of Richard Denham, maybe in another adventure since this one is definitely a first rate nail-biter. (Reviewed by Donna Chavez).
Library Journal
Starred Review. This first novel by British journalist John is a stunning example of its genre. The characters are fully realized, the plots twist and turn, the pages flip at lightning speed. Lovers of historical thrillers, World War II stories, athletic history, and espionage novels will be mesmerized by this offering.
The Denver Post
Throw in a missing dossier with a secret that could topple the Reich along with a host of real life characters making cameo appearances and it all adds up to an exciting ride...
In Flight from Berlin, Richard Denham inherits his love for and fascination with zeppelins from his father. The highlight of his press coverage of the 1936 Olympic games is flying into Berlin on the Hindenburg with a film crew. At that time, passenger zeppelins were mostly a uniquely German phenomenon having been developed in the late 1800s by German war hero Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin (1838 – 1917).
The Count first encountered so-called lighter-than-air travel during his visit to the United States in the 1860s with permission from president Abraham Lincoln. The flight was aboard a coal-fired hot air balloon. Years later, after he retired from the army, he began work on a steerable balloon-type airship and developed his first prototype in 1898. It was only able to fly for about eighteen minutes covering three and-a-half miles. Zeppelin...
Building on the tradition of Little Bee, Chris Cleave again writes with elegance, humor, and passion about friendship, marriage, parenthood, tragedy, and redemption.
WWII has ended… But the danger has just begun for a spy caught between political superpowers.
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(778 words).
The Count first encountered so-called lighter-than-air travel during his visit to the United States in the 1860s with permission from president Abraham Lincoln. The flight was aboard a coal-fired hot air balloon. Years later, after he retired from the army, he began work on a steerable balloon-type airship and developed his first prototype in 1898. It was only able to fly for about eighteen minutes covering three and-a-half miles. Zeppelin...
