Visibility (Hardcover)

by Boris Starling (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
At the start of this smart, intriguing puzzle from British author Starling (Vodka), Herbert Smith, "once of the British Army, latterly of MI5" and now a detective with "the Metropolitan Police's Murder Squad," draws the case of a drowned man found in a Hyde Park pond. Normally, this would be a rare occurrence, but it's 1952 and London is gripped in a fog so miasmic that stumbling into a pond can easily be written off as a simple accident. It's not, of course, and Smith's investigations bring him into contact with a scientist who possesses a secret that will change the future; a beautiful, blind police diver, Hannah Mortimer; several Russian spies; British turncoats; and a Nazi so reviled that even today his name evokes absolute evil. Where most thriller writers plumb the depths of imagination for their earth-shattering secrets, Starling does just the opposite by employing the reality of history. It's a difficult trick, but once again he pulls it off with panache. (Mar.)
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From Booklist
Gloomy post-World War II London is brought to life in this combo espionage tale and noir mystery from former kidnap negotiator Starling. In the winter of 1952, the Great Fog has rolled into London, shutting down most transportation routes and sickening the populace with its noxious haze. Herbert Smith, drummed out of MI5 as the patsy for a bungled Soviet spy caper, is now a detective inspector in the murder division at New Scotland Yard, where he is treated with harsh wariness by his fellow policemen. Assigned to investigate a suspicious drowning, Smith discovers that the victim, a young biochemist and son of a highly placed government official, in the hours before his death had claimed to be in possession of a discovery that could change the world. Smith's inquiries create a panic in the covert world as agents from his own MI5 as well as the Soviet Union and U.S. (along with a renegade Nazi mad scientist) intrude into his investigation. Recommended for fans of le Carre and Forsyth along with readers who enjoy English police procedurals. Michael Gannon
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 384 pages
• Publisher: Dutton Adult; 1 edition (March 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0525949968
• ISBN-13: 978-0525949961
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.4 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #965,423 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Okay but the careless anachronisms spoil it., October 28, 2008

By	NTS (Florida, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Visibility (Onyx Novel) (Paperback)

This is an entertaining enough thriller in its way but it is set in 1952 and the anachronisms that pepper the book spoil it - stumbling across them is like biting on tinfoil while enjoying a chocolate bar. For example: in 1952 no British policeman would have described a white person as Caucasian. In fact, they wouldn't even today. That is not part of British police terminology. The British term for an autopsy then was a post mortem. Before the influence of TV, no one would have used the term ID for identification. No one used the word "party" as a verb in those days. The hero of the book would not have been able to remember seeing a potential suicide at Embankment tube station because in 1952 there was no such place. Belmarsh Prison was not opened until 1991. The popular idioms "out of the lop", "up front", "economical with the truth" had not yet come into the language, neither had the practice of making quotation marks in the air with one's fingers when expressing skepticism.

It's a shame the author was not more careful abut getting things right, because these blips spoil what isn't really a bad little novel.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very good, July 19, 2007

By	John B. Goode "JBG" (Seattle, WA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Visibility (Hardcover)

This is my first book by this author Boris Starling, picked up on a whim.

In a way, I'm happy to take a breather from "best sellers". What's in the market today? All the best sellers are same, like one reviewer said "Curse you, Dan Brown". At least 50% of the books are DaVinci types, even 3-4 years after the fact, then you got your serial killers, rapists, your comic book adventure (Cussler/Reilly/DuBrul) types, your Kontz's, Kings, Patterson's, etc. Yawn, yawn, and triple yawn.

Then you got this one, a 1952 England post-WW2 police mystery. Alright, I thought I'd give it a chance. Not much happens in 1952 England, right?

Right away, I realized that Boris is a very good writer. I have to separate my comments into two parts. First are the characters, second is the story. When I say Boris is a good writer, I mean that he has a great talent of writing believeable characters. The characters come across as having realistic 3 dimensional personalities that really come alive from the pages. Not many authors can do that. To many authors, characters are just to move the story along, not much depth to them, but Boris's characters have a lot of depth. I enjoyed reading these characters.

Second is the story. Unfortunately, I'm somewhat right about 1952 England. After reading reams of pages on serial killers, the Vatican, long lost treasures, hunts across 3 continents, long dead acquaintances suddenly leaving e-mail for you, 1952 England is somewhat of a let down. I won't reveal much of the story, all I'll say is that the protagonist is a Scotland Yard Inspector who used to be in MI5 during the war. However, Boris does a very good job of describing 1952 England. In looking at his picture on the back I'm very surprised to find him so young. OK, he's a Londoner, but how does he write such a realistic background. For this and the characters I give him full marks. For the story, I give him an A for effort.

So, to summarize, this book isn't as exciting as many of the books on the best seller list, but Boris' character development somewhat makes up for it. And if you want to lose yourself from 2007 and put yourself in another place, say 1952 England then this book is just great. And to top it off, Boris is a very good writer. I'll definitely read his other books.

5 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "The fog was coming, without and within.", April 4, 2007

By	E. Bukowsky "booklover10" (NY United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

The best spy thrillers go beyond the formulaic to offer thought-provoking psychological, cultural, and political insights. Boris Starling's "Visibility" accomplishes this while it entertains us with a historical and scientific mystery that is as intricate as it is suspenseful. Set during the Great Fog of London in 1952, the novel's atmospheric setting is ominous and frightening. The choking miasma of toxic fumes and the inability of the populace to see more than one foot ahead of their faces are metaphors for the moral decay of society and the failure of good people to distinguish truth from lies.

Thirty-four-year old Herbert Smith was formerly a soldier in the British Army and later a "watcher" (surveillance operative) for MI5, the British Security Service responsible for protecting the UK against threats to national security. He is now a Detective Inspector in New Scotland Yard's Murder Squad. Smith is a reserved and lonely man, whose only relative is his mother, Mary, with whom he has a contentious relationship. Nor do his colleagues have much use for a former spy who made detective without having served his time as a copper.

When Smith catches the case of a floater, he embarks on an investigation that will pit him against devious men who are willing to torture and kill to achieve their goals. The victim is identified as a scientist who possessed vitally important information that would confer great power on whoever acquired it. Smith endangers his life to find the killer, but his understanding of the case is hampered by deceitful, greedy, and ambitious individuals who are anxious to keep Smith from learning the truth. Soon, Smith takes on an unofficial assistant, the beautiful Hannah Mortimer. Although she is blind, Hannah sees people and situations more clearly than most sighted people, and Herbert is immediately entranced by this exotic, intelligent, and compassionate woman.

Boris Starling's descriptive writing is beautifully evocative. His characters are well-rounded, the dialogue is sharp and often dryly humorous, and the narrative is fast-paced and deliciously complex. The author touches on controversial practices during the fifties that, in the light of twenty-first century sensibilities, are somewhat unsettling, such as the discrimination against practicing homosexuals (a policy that forced gay men to go deeply into the closet), and the fear and hatred of communism, which led democratic governments to shelter scientists who were former members of the Nazi party. The book sole flaw is its over-the-top ending that veers dangerously close to melodrama. Still, "Visibility" has many delights to offer: an incisive look at how history and science intersect, an off-beat and touching love story, and a deadly game of spy vs. spy that, much like the book's impenetrable fog, keeps the reader off-balance until the truth is finally revealed.