The Man in the Corduroy Suit

(Paperback)

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Description

British intelligence is in a state of panic. Cracks are appearing, or so a run of disciplinary cases would suggest. To cap it all, Willa Karlsson, a retired MI5 officer collapses, the victim of what looks like a Russian poisoning. Leonard Flood is ordered to investigate and quickly. Notorious for his sharp elbows and blunt manner, Leonards only objective is to get the job done, whatever the cost. When Leonard discovers that he is also a suspect in the investigation and that Willas story is less a story of betrayal than one of friendship and a deep sense of duty, he must decide whether to hand her to her masters or to help her to escape.

'A wonderful, artful, absorbing espionage novel.' Adam Brookes, author of Night Heron

Reviews

Beside the Syrian Sea Reviews: "A superb debut... fascinating. The writer has obviously been somewhere or something in the spy business.""--The Times Crime Book of the Month "Superb: an adventure from London to Lebanon to Syria and the desperate struggle for survival in the face of war and betrayal. Wolff is a new maestro." --Simon Sebag Montefiore, Evening Standard, Best Books of 2018 "'Best new spy novel by a mile. Don't let this one pass you byif you are a fan of intelligent, complex spy thrillers."--NB Magazine, Top Noir Novels of 2018 "Wolff writes masterfully about the badlands of Beirut, suggesting that he knows what he is talking about - plots and counterplots, secret agents, ISIS, Hezbollah, the CIA and our own secret services."--Literary Review "A great read with characters that are developed and multidimensional."--San Francisco Book Review
How to Betray Your Country Reviews: PW STARRED REVIEW: "Brilliant sequel to 2018's Beside the Syrian Sea. James Wolff skillfully portrays an espionage agent on the verge of losing himself to his demons. This is spy fiction like no other." --Publishers Weekly "The story's Turkish setting is evocatively portrayed, and the prose throughout manages to be of the highest caliber yet elegantly inconspicuous. Two bull's-eyes from two throws suggest the arrival of a major talent."-- Spectator Top Five books of 2021: "Wolff has written a brilliant exploration of loyalty and grief that paradoxically manages to be life-affirming."--Crime Fiction Lover Best New Thrillers for April 2021: "Wolff's examination of the crises of conscience caused by spying, however, makes this a distinctly more thought-provoking novel than is customary in the genre. Turkish delight." --The Times "The story is skillfully, and credibly told. Wolff has a fine eye for detail, both of people and places, and his portrayal of Istanbul as a spy capital is evocative and convincing."--- Financial Times

Author Bio

James Wolff worked for the British government for over ten years before leaving to write spy fiction. His first novel, Beside the Syrian Sea, was a Times Crime Book of the Month and an Evening Standard Book of the Year. Of his second novel, How to Betray Your Country, the Spectator wrote that it marked 'the arrival of a major talent.' James Wolff lives in London.