I received this book for free from my own shelves in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Source: my own shelves
The Peril Ahead
by
John Creasey
spy thriller in a Kindle edition that was published by Ipso Books on March 24, 2017 and has 252 pages.
Explore it on Goodreads or Amazon
Other books by this author which I have reviewed include The Unbegotten, The Toff Goes On, Gideon and the Young Toughs and Other Stories, Introducing the Toff, The Death Miser, Redhead, Carriers of Death, First Came a Murder, Death Round the Corner, Death by Night, Sabotage, A Kind of Prisoner, The Mark of the Crescent
Twenty-second in the Department Z vintage espionage thriller series and revolving around a top-secret group of spies in England. The focus is on Polly Dalton and George Henry George. It was originally published in 1946.
My Take
Ya gotta laugh at these jaunty, foolish lads as they clown around in the face of death.
”They reminded her of a touring cricket eleven which had once stayed for several nights . . .”
The start will make you pity Polly for having to put up with this dull, slow lad. You’ll feel even worse for her when she notes that the Mayberry is crowded with old or middle-aged people and very few young ones. Then, when disaster strikes, I definitely felt for Polly. This could kill her budget!
Creasey is using third person global subjective point-of-view from a number of perspectives — Polly’s is predominant, and it’s good fun as we get to enjoy it through her perspective as she thinks all sorts of wicked things, lol.
It cracks me up how Creasey keeps referring to the plump Polly with such enthusiasm. With today’s obsession with thinness, it’s something of a relief.
Hmm, it seems beer is the staple diet of the Department. It’s understandable when Craigie mentions that he started with nine members, and three are still alive. That five years is a long life for his men.
That brief flurry when the cliff collapsed was both dismaying as people freaked out and then a heartener at how people came out to help.’
Again, what is it with the bad guys thinking they shouldn’t be punished for the things they do? There are always going to be casualties of some sort, on both sides. Although I do draw the line at attacking people’s families.
It’s traps within traps within traps and betrayal after betrayal. On the plus side, I wonder if there’ll be a romance between Hammond and Paula . . .
I rather wish Creasey had played up some of the losses more, although it would be a more tragic drama. Instead The Peril Ahead is more of a fun thriller with its vintage descriptions of bombs, jargon, and that 1940s obsession with Jewish people.
The Story
Professor Toller must be part cat — someone has tried to assassinate him nine times in the past year!
It’s Department Z’s job to keep him alive and his secret formula in British hands.
The Characters
Ethel “Polly” Dalton loves to play tennis and is on vacation in Bournemouth. When not on vacation, she’s an accountant.
George Henry George plays the dull fool quite well and transferred in from MI 9.
Department Z is . . .
. . . a legendary, super-secret group within the Intelligence service. It’s led by Gordon Craigie with Bill Loftus as his assistant. Christine is Loftus’ friendly wife. Other agents include Mark and Mike Errol, cousins; Teddy Dunster; Guy Grey; Bruce Hammond; Hoffman is a Jew with a bad history; Bannister is a good mimic; and, Commyns. Dr “Doc” Little is the department physician.
Scotland Yard
Archibald Chatworth is the assistant commissioner. Superintendent Miller is a useful liaison with Department Z.
The Right Honorable Herbert Mattley is the prime minister. Gilbert Leven is the foreign secretary. Joseph Witticome, an MP for Midland Division, is quite the dupe. Lloyd Lovell makes a censure motion. Hubert Wilberforce Bentley, OBE, is a high official.
Paula Bentley is Hubert’s sister. Gertrude Ryall is Hubert’s expensive girlfriend. May is a maid in Bentley’s flat.
Professor Gabriel Toller has worked with Dr Morritz, who is so slow on the uptake!, on T.N.25, a hellacious explosive.
Bournemouth, England, is . . .
. . . Superintendent Carr is with the Bournemouth Police in the Hampshire Constabulary. The Mayberry Hotel is managed by Eric and his wife, the censorious Emily Lambert. Mr Larkin is an old, hypocritical guest. The Pines is a hotel recently purchased as fully furnished. The Norfolk is another hotel.
Mildmay of Mildmay, Drew and Mildmay is the premier realtor in Bournemouth. Other realtors include Pendleton who sold The Gables; Blue Tiles was sold to Colonel Broderick; Wilson sold Chineside; and, Mountebank.
Arnold Rutter, a.k.a. “Old Iron Face”, Forbeson, and Bradd, is the administrative leader of this band of bad guys — ex-soldiers with bad reputations — and has a score to settle. The supercilious Maurice Mondelle is set to woo Polly. Kelly is their impostor; Lodge and his wife; Peel; and, Percival Algernon Merryweather, a.k.a. “Marmaduke”,who is the inept assassin. Maude appears to be the housekeeper.
The ruthless Hemmingway Noel owns Rostrum, a house in Bournemouth where Croom is his butler. He also owns Hemmingway, Noel and Hemmingway, an armaments firm. Thomas Noel is Hemmingway’s nephew.
Dakers is a cheapskate armament firm in Germany; other such firms include Vickers and the B.S.A. A chine is a deep, narrow ravine formed by running water. Jennie was one of the victims of the collapse. Civil Defence responded. Bruce runs a nursing home.
The Cover and Title
The cover is a mottled deep gray with scientific formulas in black scattered all over the background. I do like the “top secret” appearance of the white rectangle outlining the series info angled on the top right, which is also in white. The author’s name is at the top on the left, in white. Immediately beneath it is the title in a deep fuchsia, which color echos some of the formulas. Beneath that is an info blurb in white.
The title is The Peril Ahead that they all know about and must forge on anyway.
