The Other Side of Silence
A twisty tale of espionage and betrayal
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4.2 • 5 Ratings
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- $13.99
Publisher Description
Blackmail, espionage and a mass murderer from his wartime past await Bernie Gunther on the French Riviera.
'A brilliantly twisting tale of espionage and betrayal' Sunday Times
THE FRENCH RIVIERA, 1956.
A world-weary Bernie Gunther is working under a false name as a hotel concierge. His attempts to keep his nose clean go horribly awry when a wartime acquaintance sucks him into a blackmail plot involving Somerset Maugham, one of the most famous British writers of the 20th century, and the notorious Cambridge Spies. All of them have dark pasts and plenty to hide - ideal candidates for a seasoned blackmailer.
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PRAISE FOR PHILIP KERR
'Kerr leads us through the facts of history and the vagaries of human nature' TOM HANKS
'One of the greatest master story-tellers in English' ALAN FURST
'One of the most memorable and original characters' SUNDAY TIMES
'Bitterly, darkly funny' SUNDAY HERALD
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Set in 1956 on the French Riviera, Kerr's assured 11th Bernie Gunther novel (after 2015's The Lady from Zagreb) opens on a dark note, with Bernie's confessing to a failed suicide attempt after his wife abandoned him. Bored by his current job as a hotel concierge, Bernie is brought back into action by bestselling writer and former spy Somerset Maugham, who lives in a nearby villa. Maugham, who's gay at a time when that was still a criminal offense in Britain, needs Bernie's help in dealing with a blackmailer who's threatening to publish a compromising photograph. Meanwhile, an attractive American journalist keen on writing Maugham's biography turns to Bernie for assistance in gaining access to him. The plot takes a surprising turn, but most compelling are the occasional flashbacks in which Kerr's hero tries to do the right thing while serving as a cop under the Nazi regime. Author tour.
