1936 and the huge canvas of Europe in chaos is superbly portrayed by this renowned author of historical fiction. Previously writing about the spy world of the Tudor period we know we are in good hands here. If you have not read one of his John Shakespeare thrillers you should. (I understand TV is on the cards.) This new series introduces Tom Wilde, a Cambridge history don, a bit of a recluse who buries himself in his work and period spy novels. His next door neighbour is self-employed publisher Lydia whose best friend, Nancy, dies mysteriously. Lydia enlists Tom’s help. Then Nancy’s right-wing gentry parents are brutally murdered and a conspiracy seems afoot. Enter a reporter, Eaton, whom Tom believes works for MI5. Now the death toll mounts and so does the danger for Tom and Lydia. But it turns out the real plot is much higher up the international scene. Terrific. An excellent start to what promises to be a cracking series. ~ Sarah Broadhurst
A gripping spy thriller for fans of ROBERT HARRIS and WILLIAM BOYD from award-winning Sunday Times bestseller Rory Clements and author of the 2018 CWA HISTORICAL DAGGER WINNER, NUCLEUS 1936. Europe is in turmoil. The Nazis have marched into the Rhineland. In Russia, Stalin has unleashed his Great Terror. Spain has erupted in civil war. In Berlin, a young Englishwoman evades the Gestapo to deliver vital papers to a Jewish scientist. Within weeks, she is found dead, a silver syringe clutched in her fingers. In an exclusive London club, a conspiracy is launched that threatens the very heart of government. When a renowned society couple with fascist leanings are found brutally murdered, a maverick Cambridge professor is drawn into a world of espionage he knows only from history books. The deeper Thomas Wilde delves, the more he finds to link the murders with the girl with the silver syringe - and even more worryingly to the scandal surrounding the Abdication . . . Set against the gathering drumbeat of war and moving from Berlin to Cambridge, from Whitehall to the Kent countryside, and from the Fens to the Aragon Front in Spain, this big canvas international thriller, like C J Sansom's WINTER IN MADRID, marks the beginning of a brilliant new direction for Rory Clements. Praise for CORPUS 'Dramatic . . . pacy and assured . . . Well crafted, it has all the pleasures of an intriguing lead character, intricate plot and fascinating historical context' Daily Mail 'Rory Clements's timely spy thriller set in the 1930s evokes a period of political polarisation, mistrust and simmering violence. Corpus is fast-paced and there are plenty of red herrings to keep you guessing. This is the first of a promising series and Wilde is a likeable hero' The Times 'This clever novel, rich in deceptions and intrigue, shows the reach of Stalin and Hitler into every class of British society, threatening violence on horrific scale. Corpus is a standout historical novel and spy thriller' Daily Express Praise for RORY CLEMENTS 'Enjoyable, bloody and brutish' Guardian 'Sends a shiver down your spine' Daily Mail 'A colourful history lesson . . . exciting narrative twists' Sunday Telegraph
RORY CLEMENTS is a Sunday Times bestselling author. He won the CWA Ellis Peters Historical Award for his second novel, Revenger, and a TV series of the John Shakespeare novels is currently in development. His latest novel, Hitler's Secret, is a Sunday Times bestseller. Rory lives in Norfolk with his family. Find out more at www.roryclements.co.uk.
