A Burnable Town (Jonathan Cape Original) [Paperback]

Philip Davison (Author)

Book Description

Series: Jonathan Cape Original | Publication Date: January 23, 2006

Harry Fielding has been hiding out in Spain, but now Clements, his controller, is calling him home. With a heavy heart Harry takes up a dubious post as Clements' personal assistant. He begins to think like a spy again. Then news comes that Johnny Weeks has surfaced and is looking for revenge. Against Harry's better judgement they join forces—and the fearless Johnny becomes both a friend and a catalyst for Harry's rebellion. As he turns against the wheels of the MI5 machine, and begins to employ the techniques he has always abhorred, life for Harry Fielding—the misfit with integrity—becomes a deadly business indeed.

Editorial Reviews

Review

..required reading for fans looking for a little spice in their detective fiction diet. -- Publishers Weekly --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

About the Author

Philip Davison's first Harry Fielding novel, The Crooked Man, is now a film.

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Random House UK (January 23, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0224071173
• ISBN-13: 978-0224071178
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.3 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.1 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,444,161 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Wearing a little thin, January 19, 2009

By 

James S. Brown (Pennsylvania) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: A Burnable Town (Jonathan Cape Original) (Paperback)

I love Philip Davison's work, not only his fairly literary Harry Fielding series of spy/detective novels, but also his earlier work like The Illustrator and Twist and Shout. I rarely reread novels, but I've read the first three Fielding novels two or three times each.

That said, I was rather disappointed with this most recent installation, which struck me as more pedestrian, more by the book if you will. The most interesting parts of these novels have always been Fielding's interactions with normal, everyday life: dealing with his father or his aunt or his exwife, for instance. It has worked better in the earlier novels than it works here. It's possible that Fielding has outlived his usefulness not only to MI-5 but also to his creator.