The Old Enemy

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What to expect

Heart-stopping international spy thriller from 'An espionage master' (Charles Cumming) starring ex-MI6 officer Paul Samson for fans of Mick Herron, Lee Child and John le Carre

Ex-MI6 officer Paul Samson has been tasked with secretly guarding a gifted young woman, Zoe Freemantle. He is just beginning to tire of the job when he is attacked in the street by a freakish looking knifeman. It's clear the target is on his back not hers. What he doesn't know is who put it there.

At that moment, his mentor, the MI6 legend Robert Harland lies dead on a remote stretch of the Baltic coastline. Who needed to end the old spy's life when he was, in any case, dying from a terminal illness? And what or who is Berlin Blue, the name scratched in the sketchbook beside his body?

A few hours later, Samson watches footage from the US Congress where billionaire philanthropist Denis Hisami is poisoned with a nerve agent while testifying - an attack that is as spectacular as it is lethal, but spares Anastasia Hisami, the love of Samson's life.

Two things become clear. One, it was a big mistake to lose the mysterious Zoe Freemantle. And two, Robert Harland is making a final play from beyond the grave.

Critics Review

Porter skilfully tugs the taut threads of his global conspiracy towards a stirring climax
The Times
The story is complex and the sense of danger spreading across the world gives it urgency
Literary Review
At once an up-to-the-minute political novel about an emergent second Cold War, a timeless, ripping, espionage yarn and a continuation of the lives of characters who become richer with each appearance. An impressive achievement and, as ever with Porter, told in an addictive blend of tangy dialogue and polished prose
Sunday Times Thriller of the Month
Porter has an extra human depth to his stories that gives him the edge over others. Tense and packed with action, intrigue and great characters, you'll be hard pressed to find a better spy novel
Weekend Sport
Fast paced, uber-topical thriller... a roller-coaster ride of a story ... Porter deftly mixes well-structured storytelling with complex, engaging characters
Financial Times Best Thrillers of 2019 on White Hot Silence
Henry Porter is now one of the most accomplished practitioners of the modern thriller
Crime Time
Porter is both his own man and the proud carrier of the flag first unfurled by John le Carre more than fifty years ago. British espionage fiction is the best in the world, and Porter is part of the reason why
Lee Child
Enigmatic, pacy and international
Strong Words magazine

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