Kingdom of Shadows [Import] [Unbound]

Alan Furst (Author)

Product Details

• Unbound
• Publisher: PHOENIX (ORIO) (January 4, 2001)
• ISBN-10: 0375506802
• ISBN-13: 978-0375506802
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (70 customer reviews)

More About the Author

Alan Furst is widely recognized as the master of the historical spy novel. Now translated into seventeen languages, he is the bestselling author of Night Soldiers, Dark Star, The Polish Officer, The World at Night, Red Gold, Kingdom of Shadows, Blood of Victory, Dark Voyage, and The Foreign Correspondent Born in New York, he now lives in Paris and on Long Island.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

35 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Hungarian Diplomat turned Spy, April 12, 2006

By 

Prauge Traveler (Germany) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Kingdom of Shadows (Paperback)

Nicholas Morath, a wealthy Hungarian diplomat residing for years in France experiences the early years of WW2 as he quickly becomes involved in espionage against a rising tide of Nazi aggression directed toward his homeland. Furst makes good use of the railway system across Europe to evoke some great scenes as Morath travels to and from eastern Europe. A aspect of this novel that I liked is that Furst returns to the lesser known peoples and places of Europe in the late 30's, and does so to great effect. This book is probably the best one Furst has written since "The Polish Officer".

Although this novel can easily be read as a stand-alone book, some readers will enjoy beginning their foray into Furst's world with "Night Soldiers", his original and possibly best spy novel. This book introduces several characters who make appearances throughout Furst's other novels set in the same period of time and general geographical local. Because of this fact, I highly recommend reading this novel first, although those that follow can typically be read in any particular order (the exception being the stories involving Jean Casson - World at Night and Red Gold).

What makes Furst's loosely structured series so compelling is that 1; they are very well researched and historical very accurate, especially with regard to spy craft - as I understand it through academic experience only. 2; the characters are extremely flawed, very believable and interesting to empathize with - all of the characters and their adventures provoke much thought. 3; the novels do not attempt to achieve a false sense of conclusion at their end - they always allow the reader to decide for him/herself what happens, and they rarely resolve the feeling of tension that pervades Furst's works. 4; the secondary characters are always very well developed and much more interesting than their sometimes small roles would have the reader believe- so one is always off balance (who will live, who will die - who can be trusted, who cannot?). 5; Furst does an excellent job of setting the atmosphere of terror that resulted from the conflict between fascism and stalinism during the secret wars preceding the outbreak of the Second World War.

You cannot go wrong with this novel. For anyone interested in reading and enjoying spy stories, or stories of world war two, this book is a must read.

75 of 82 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Furst at his best, January 16, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Kingdom of Shadows: A Novel (Hardcover)

Kingdom of Shadows is further proof that Alan Furst has no equal among historical novelists. As he did in World at Night and Red Gold with Jean Casson, Furst's protagonist, Morath, is cast into the pre-WWII spy game almost by accident. But unlike Casson, Morath is less reluctant in accepting his new life of duplicity. Furst once again transports the reader squarely into those dark and uncertain times. Although we know the outcome of WWII, that knowledge is suspended during the read, such is Furst's ability to bring to life the true emotions of the time. Rich in detail (I always learn so much from Furst novels)and characters, this may be his finest effort yet. Considering his past work--especially Dark Star and Night Soldiers--that is high praise indeed. Bravo, Mr. Furst!

27 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding, August 12, 2002

By 

P. Zrimsek "zrim" (Northfield, MN United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Kingdom of Shadows (Paperback)

Nicholas Morath is a minor Hungarian noble living a comfortable, but not quite ostentatious, life in pre WWII Paris. It seems that he has been content with running a small advertising firm and living the cafe life with a young and vivacious Argentian mistress. But this is 1938 and dark clouds are brewing in Germany, Austria, the Sudetenland etc. Morath is called to run various errands for his tight-lipped uncle Polanyi, a true to life Hungarian count. The book chronicles these errands which become ever more dangerous.

The outstanding features of this book are severalfold. The dialogues are crisp, clean and believable. The characters are quirky but nicely sketched. Furst creates a very believable atmosphere of pre-war Europe. Everyone knows that war is coming, yet people still need to live their lives. Thus there is still a cafe society and the titled ex-pats still throw lavish parties. Meanwhile, poorer immigrants running from tyranny barely scratch out a living. Furst delivers his character to many interesting locations that are not prevelant in American fiction. Morath travels through the countryside of Hungary, Roumania and Czechoslavakia meeting up with Poles, Ukranians, Croats. One minute Morath is eating a grand banqet in an elegant eastern European chateau--the next he finds himself chained in a dank Roumanian prison.

Then there are the intrigues that Morath finds himself immersed in upon the bidding of his uncle. Morath never quite knows what the endgame is. Who is pulling the strings. How do his missions fit in the overall scheme. Therefore, the reader is also left guessing. Other reviewers have sited this as a weakness--I, on the other hand, view this as the great strength of the book. There are semi-powerful factions trying to forestall the inevitable and the puppeteers choose not to disclose to Morath how he fits into the larger puzzle. Ultimately, we all know how things turn out here. Nothing Morath and his uncle accomplish is going to save Europe from the calamity of WWII. Yet Morath and the reader are kept on edge trying to figure out what the heck is going on within his smaller universe. There are no tidy answers, because in real life there seldom are tidy little answers. This probably is not a book for someone who likes mystery and intrigue but needs to have the hero figure out all the puzzles and vanquish the badguys with a spine-tingling final flourish. That cannot happen given the historical backdrop to this book, for we all know that no matter what Morath and Uncle Polanyi are able to accomplish--World War II is going to happen: Paris will be occupied, London will be bombed, millions will die. But that does not mean that their effort is wasted or that the book is not extremely worthwhile. For those who are comfortable with unanswered questions and filling is some of the holes themselves, I highly recommend Kingdom of Shadows.