Silesian Station [Paperback]

David Downing (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 2009

“Grade: A. . . . Downing’s mingling of history and thrills makes this a must read.”—Rocky Mountain News

“Russell is a canny and likable protagonist.”—BookPage

“Wry, secretive and clever. . . . Russell is good company in this intelligent thriller.”—Hadassah Magazine

“Twists and turns aplenty make this espionage novel a superb read full of tension and suspense. . . . An amazing piece of fiction which I hope is part of a much larger series.”—Crimespree Magazine

Summer, 1939. British journalist John Russell has just been granted American citizenship in exchange for agreeing to work for American intelligence when his girlfriend Effi is arrested by the Gestapo. Russell hoped his new nationality would let him safely stay in Berlin with Effi and his son, but now he’s being blackmailed. To free Effi, he must agree to work for the Nazis. They know he has Soviet connections and want him to pass on false intelligence. Russell consents but secretly offers his services to the Soviets instead.

It’s a good plan, but soon things become complicated. A Jewish girl has vanished, and Russell feels compelled to search for her. A woman from his past, a Communist, reappears, insisting he help her reconnect with the Soviets. Meanwhile, Europe lurches toward war, and he must follow the latest stories—to places where American intelligence assignments await him.

David Downing is the author of numerous works of fiction and nonfiction for both adults and children, including Zoo Station, the first novel featuring John Russell. He lives in Guildford, England.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In Downing's quiet sequel to Zoo Station, set mostly in Berlin in 1939, British journalist John Russell gets involved in multiple intrigues while working as an amateur spy for the intelligence services of assorted major powers. When Miriam Rosenfeld, a young Jewish woman dispatched from provincial Silesia by her Uncle Thomas, who's Russell's ex-brother-in-law, fails to arrive in Berlin, Thomas asks Russell to help find her. Meanwhile, the Nazis blackmail Russell into passing disinformation to the Soviets by arresting his actress girlfriend, Effi Koenen; he agrees to spy for the Americans in order to get a U.S. passport; and he offers to spy for the Russians if they'll help him leave Europe when the time comes. While these various narrative threads, in particular Rosenfeld's disappearance, do generate suspense, thriller fans should be prepared for a dearth of exciting action scenes. Full of period detail, this novel effectively captures life in the police state of Berlin on the brink of war. (May)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

John Russell’s life is complicated. The half-English, half-American journalist, who lives in Berlin, has a son from a German ex-wife and is dating a German film actress. His work is made difficult by Germany’s imminent invasion of Poland—but that’s not the half of it. Although he is an amateur at espionage, circumstances force him to become a spy for the Americans, the Germans, and the Russians. And he has taken a personal interest in the case of a Jewish country girl who’s gone missing in the big city, too. Three-fourths espionage novel, one-fourth mystery, Downing’s sequel to Zoo Station (2007) vividly evokes Europe before World War II, both the larger political picture and the routines of daily life under dictatorship. His research shows—sometimes the details slow the storytelling (so many railway timetables, so many landmarks)—and the characters aren’t quite as interesting as they could be. The story eventually picks up steam, though, and while Downing isn’t the best of this breed, he is a solid recommendation to readers who have finished their Fursts. --Keir Graff --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Soho Press (May 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1569475733
• ISBN-13: 978-1569475737
• Product Dimensions: 5 x 0.9 x 7.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #33,739 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

61 of 62 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Pre-WWII tour de force, June 13, 2008

By 

Blue in Washington "Barry Ballow" (Washington, DC United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Silesian Station (John Russell, Book 2) (Hardcover)

"Silesian Station" is a fast-paced account of the Third Reich's march toward all out war in the summer and fall of 1939. Author David Downing's protagonist, John Russell, is an Anglo-American journalist who winds up with a foot in every political camp as he tries to protect his German family from being swept up in the coming onslaught. The plot line in this book is driven forward with an almost breathless narrative that includes many intriguing details of how ordinary Germans were living and coping in the pre-war years of Hitler's Reich.

A lot of first-rate research had to have been done by author Downing to put together the exciting and persuasive story that runs from page one. There are fascinating details about the Silesian border areas where the German invasion of Poland eventually takes place--including credible descriptions of how local Nazi party offiicials dominated social life down to the village level. This inevitably involved the state-sponsored bullying and eventual destruction of Jewish communities and individuals. That persecution and the many other forms of it practiced by the Nazis is threaded carefully throughout this account of espionage and international duplicity by the various governments that employ protagonist Russell in this story.

"Silesian Station" is right up there with the writing of Alan Furst, Philip Kerr and, at times, even William Shirer. An excellent read with few false notes by a gifted writer.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars more a historical tale rather than a suspense thriller, May 6, 2008

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Silesian Station (John Russell, Book 2) (Hardcover)

In 1939, British journalist John Russell hopes to remain in Berlin if war breaks out between his homeland and the Nazis. However, the Gestapo arrests his girlfriend, actress Effi Koenen, accusing her of spying. They use her as a pawn to get Russell to work for them passing misinformation to the Russians. He already has a deal with the Americans to spy for them in exchange for a passport and offers a deal with the Soviet if they help him flee the Nazis if he needs to escape suddenly.

While he is wheeling and dealing, the parents of Jewish Miriam Rosenfeld worry about the safety of their daughter in Silesia. They send her to live with her Uncle Thomas in Berlin where many more Jews reside; safety in numbers being their theory. When she fails to arrive, Thomas visits his former brother-in-law, Russell asking him to find her as the police refuse to look for a Jew. John agrees.

Though well written and exciting, SILESIAN STATION is more a historical tale rather than a suspense thriller. The espionage segues serve more to bring out life in Nazi Germany's police state whereas the search for Miriam is the exhilarating suspenseful subplot. Fans will enjoy the return of Russell (see ZOO STATION) as he navigates life as a journalist covering the Third Reich.

Harriet Klausner

25 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars At the Far Edge of WWII, April 8, 2008

By 

Jonathan Pearce "Omnivorous Reader" (CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Silesian Station (John Russell, Book 2) (Hardcover)

David Downing's novel (Zoo Station) proceeds with breakneck speed, pausing only for food and sex, but not an overabundance of either. Zoo Station is an apt title, for it captures metaphorically the odd mix of politically caged creatures that populated Germany in 1939.

Downing's research is remarkably intensive, for if one reviews a map of pre-war Berlin, it becomes evident that he describes in accurate detail the geography of the old Berlin. Protagonist John Russell is a journalist, a thoroughly good man and long-time Berlin resident who is an Englishman with an American mother, a German ex-wife, a German son, a German girlfriend, and a communist past.

Downing's sympathetic characters reveal a confusing combination of hope and disbelief that Adolf Hitler's new German is headed in the right direction. Downing's Nazis commit unspeakable acts, as might be expected. Plenty of derring-do on the menu, as Russell finds himself arranging for the escape from Germany of a Jewish family, shedding light on one of the horrendous "medical" plans of the Hitler government, and knuckling under to the demands of Russians who can expose his communist connections.

The plot is complex, the language literate and easy to read, hard to put down. The mood is reminiscent of the works of Alan Furst.