"27" [Hardcover]

William Diehl (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The gripping audacity of Diehl's ( Thai Horse ) plot justifies his integration of real-life characters in this blockbuster thriller set in the '30s. Some of America's richest, most powerful men meet regularly at an exclusive resort on an island off Georgia. A Nazi "sleeper agent," code named 27, living in the U.S. since 1933, plans to kidnap these VIPs and hold them hostage in exchange for Roosevelt's guarantee that the U.S. will stay out of the war. Larger-than-life Francis Keegan, a wealthy American ex-bootlegger and friend of FDR, is agent 27's nemesis. Keegan's fiancee, a Berlin cabaret singer, had been sent to Dachau because her Jewish half-brother belonged to secret anti-Nazi group Black Lily, and was murdered there. Anger, grief and guilt drive Keegan to flush out 27, a former actor who switches identities with ease. Diehl cleverly integrates chunks of history--the Depression, Hitler's rise to power, Dillinger's bank robberies--into his plot. Despite some improbable coincidences, his solidly researched tale is suspenseful, ingenious and, in places, deeply moving.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 559 pages
• Publisher: Villard; 1st edition (February 10, 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0394568486
• ISBN-13: 978-0394568485
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.4 x 1.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,088,538 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars You don't breathe a lot when you read a Diehl novel., July 15, 2002

By 

R. Tiedemann "Sunnye" (Bellevue, NE USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: 27 (Mass Market Paperback)

William Diehl was a gunner on a B-17 (or B-24?) during WWII, flying over France and Germany. He was shot down and rescued by the French underground so he definitely writes from both experience and imagination in this book.

This, my favorite Diehl novel, is set in the churning years of World War II. Originally published with the title "27," it's out now under "The Hunt."

Master disguise artist/actor Johann Ingersoll is commissioned by Hitler to destroy the defenses of the United States. The plot is lethal, relentless, ruthless and already in motion -- the scope and details of the mission known only to someone known as "27"...
Diehl is a master at creating villains that can hold their own among the most heinous in literature. Johann Ingersoll is the cruelest, most insidious and most romantic of them all... If you liked Aaron Stampler (in PRIMAL FEAR, etc.), you'll shudder at Johann Ingersoll...
Read a book by William Diehl and come away stunned by his power and energy. It's like riding a twister--you'll sail high, fast, wide and land hard. But if you treasure the best in writing and in story telling, and love to watch a skillful wordsmith at work weaving unforgettable characters into storylines swift and deep, you'll love every moment. Seldom will you find more powerful writing.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Simply the best spy novel ever written, May 2, 1998

By 

Ed Santella ([e-mail]) (Greenwich, CT) - See all my reviews

This review is from: 27 (Mass Market Paperback)

As a person who has read everything by Ludlum, LeCarre, Cussler, et al. there is no doubt in my mind that espionage novels reached an all time peak with this novel. Diehl has made himslef the king of the genre with this novel.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars The hysteria of a true fanatic, September 28, 2000

By 

Allan - See all my reviews

This review is from: 27 (Mass Market Paperback)

"The Hunt", or "27" as it is on my bookshelf, is a story of a fanatical Nazi, sent on an extraordinary quest to commit mass assassination in the U.S.A., and is chased by another fanatic (this one on our side), who is determined to stop him.

It's a chase story - and, like all Diehl books (with the exception of "Reign In Hell") it's well plotted, well written, and populated with over-the-top characters who conduct themselves with, well, fanaticism.

Yep, these two guys are way over the top, and they're fun. Dastardly Dan being chased by Dudley Do-Good. The blood flows faster than the Colorado River, and in quantities which make even that roaring river seem like a dry creek bed. The body count's right up there with the national road toll, and the detective work's compelling.

There are a number of books Robert Ludlum will have read and thought to himself "I would love to write a book like this one day". However, Ludlum and James Patterson both write as though they attended the same School of Shonky Writing, so he never will.

"The Hunt" or "27" is fun. You'll like it.