This was a brilliant read. As soon as I started reading this book I just knew I was going to love it. Highly recommended

It took me a little while to get into the book but once I did, I really enjoyed it. The dual narrative between past and present worked really well as Anna worked to discover Helen's secrets and how they related to events in the modern day. It kept me hooked throughout and made me want to keep reading.

Having just returned from a trip to Berlin myself I was pleased to be able to read a novel based on the some of the history of the conflict in the area.

The story was set between two different times, one being 1979 Berlin and CIA agent Helen’s work on the safe houses at the time to modern day when Helen and her husband are murdered seemingly by their own son. Daughter Anna soon discovers that the killing of her parents is not all that it seems and there appears to be a lot of secret work going on with her mother leading a double life.

I really enjoyed the story telling of Helens life as a CIA agent in Berlin, however I wasn’t sure on the ending and it felt a bit weak compared to the rest of the story.

Thankyou to NetGalley, Head of Zeus and the author, Dan Fesperman, for the opportunity to read a digital copy of Safe Houses in exchange for an honest and unbiased opinion.
What a cracking good read. The storyline was fast paced and well written with characters that were engaging and realistic.
Well worth a read.

Highly recommended I'm so glad I got to review this book. I enjoyed thoroughly and it kept my attention throughout. I was sorry to have read it so fast!

Hey, I think I said in my last review when I mentioned I was reading this next that I chose it as presumed it was a psychological thriller and liked the cover.....well it wasn’t!
Safe House is about safe houses back in 1979 Berlin and a CIA spy working there, Helen, who is in charge of 4 of these houses....she inadvertently witnesses 2 things in one of the houses which she cannot ‘unsee’ and her integrity then catches up with her in 2014 when her and her husband are shot dead by their son!....enter Anna the daughter, who like her Mother wont let things lie and feels there is ‘more to it’ and delves into her Mum’s secretive and fascinating past
The book switches from 1979 and what happened to Helen and 2014 and Anna’s quest and both are equally mesmerising in detail, plot, reader involvement and enjoyment and mystery
I loved it! It is such a different book for me and have never really been interested in ‘spy’ stories before but it had me engrossed in sub plot after sub plot and the characters I 100% believed in
The descriptions of Berlin post cold war were so well written at times I felt I was there and the then completely different writing needed to take you seamlessly to rural America 2014 clever and ( after an initial ‘settling in to the Americanisms and use of language) equally brilliant
The detail is superb, the research needed commendable and at the end when it is explained parts of the book are based on true depts and ‘happenings’ I was even more thrilled
A truly one of a kind read where I feel I have lived the book and as well as real enjoyment learnt something
I will 100% look for this authors previous books and I know its a clique but trying something different ( even inadvertently ) is recommended
10/10 5 Stars

I'm a big fan of thrillers based around espionage, and this is a fantastic example. With its dual timeline and tastefully drawn main characters, this is a novel full of tension and intrigue. The prose flows effortlessly from one page to the next and makes it very easy to get lost in the story, and before you know it it's over. It explores themes from the Cold War past but also features issues prevalent within today's modern society. The contrast between light and dark, bad and good is expertly managed and creates a balanced book that is compulsively readable and a thrilling experience.

Fesperman ratcheted up the tense atmosphere for the duration of the book, and this culminates in a satisfying conclusion. I appreciated that clues were dropped throughout the story and as I love to puzzle things out this massively appealed to me, but I still got it wrong! That's the sign of a first-class thriller to me. If you enjoy spy novels then this definitely worth your time, and I will be checking out more of Fesperman's books as this really hit the mark.

Many thanks to Head of Zeus for an ARC.

With any good spy book a la Le Carré, I always spend at least 20% of the book thoroughly confused by codenames, attempting to understand why people appear to be doing what they’re doing, trying to work out who is really on whose side and what people are actually saying to one another. This book meets my own personal confusion test.

The book follows two main characters’ stories: half is written in 1970s Cold War Germany following a woman named Helen Abell and the other half is set in contemporary America and follows Helen Abell’s daughter, Anna in her quest to discover why her parents were recently brutally murdered.

The book rings true on many levels. It is clear that the author has spent a significant period of time in the places mentioned and his research is evident in the way the operatives speak to one another and in the type of work they're undertaking.

It is also absolutely clear throughout which period of time we are in, which is not always the case where a novel shifts back and forward.

Once Fesperman winds up the parts, the story really takes off and had me in thrall.

The story isn’t perfect - some of the links and jumps are sometimes a little too convenient and I found an occasional inconsistency within the text (Anna gasping with shock, not knowing where her name came from even though her mother had told her that in 2002). I also had questions (I have been purposely cryptic here for those who have not yet read it): why was Claire carrying the snow globe with her to the apartment? Given the operatives’ knowledge, why didn’t they search for tapes as Helen and Claire did? I also found some elements of the conclusion a little disappointing, though not enough stop me recommending this book!

Overall a very readable novel that I will be recommending to those who enjoy a good spy thriller! Many thanks to NetGalley, Head of Zeus and Dan Fesperman for a copy of this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I haven't read any books by Dan Fesperman for a while but Safe Houses showed me what I was missing and it was an excellent spy thriller.

The book is based in both modern day USA and 1979 West Berlin but the split storytelling adds to the book and does not over confuse matters.

The reader is drawn in as the story develops with information coming to light that either supports or contradicts previous understandings until all is revealed at the end. A sign of a good book in my view

Overall if you like spy novels then this is one for you. Fully recommended.

Cracking espionage thriller
Helen Abell is a relatively junior operative working for the CIA in Berlin at the end of the 70s. Amongst her responsibilities is the care and housekeeping of several safe houses in the shadowy world of espionage. Despite having a misogynist boss, she is a committed employee and feisty individual.
During an unscheduled visit to one of her houses, she overhears a puzzling conversation which she unwittingly tapes but fails to understand its significance. On a second visit, she stops the rape of an agent. Without knowing it she has made dangerous enemies who will stop at nothing to make her pay and to retrieve the potentially damaging recordings.
Fast forward to present day and we meet Anna Shoat who has started to investigate the murder of her parents, apparently by her brother Willard. Something is not right and she teams up with a neighbour, Henry, who has connections and some investigatory experience. The two storylines are then interweaved throughout the novel as we learn more about Helen and Anna and how the events in Berlin are connected to a small town in America many years later.
This is the first book I have read by Dan Fesperman so I didn’t know what to expect. However, I need not have worried. His characterisation was spot on and the dialogue believable. There was a good deal of light and shade as the action progressed and the switch to the different timelines, which can often be so annoying, was seamless and added to the interest. The clues were there for the observant to uncover and the tension heightened through to the very last page.
My one criticism is that the denouement was just a little weak and unsatisfactory and this is reflected in my award of the star rating. Don’t let this put you off though as it’s a first-rate novel by an author to look out for.
mr zorg
Breakaway Reviewers received a copy of the book to review.

A gripping thriller which begins in late 1970s Berlin, where a young female CIA officer, Helen Abell, is responsible for managing the CIA's four safe houses in the city. One evening as she checks out one of the apartments, she is intrigued to overhear two men talking in code in the room below. These men were not authorised to use this safe house and Helen wonders who they are and exactly what they're talking about. Later that night, in the same building, she witnesses a sexual assault being committed by a high ranking agent, Kevin Gilley. A week later, Gilley's assault victim is murdered. Helen tries to report him to her bosses, but Gilley turns out to be a very well connected man at the CIA, someone who does a lot of the agency's dirty work. When she investigates on her own, Helen realises she can trust no-one as she is suddenly treated like a leper by her colleagues. She learns that Gilley has committed other sexual assaults and that other victims ended up dead soon after his attacks. But before she can discover more evidence, her CIA career is ended abruptly.

Fast forward to 2014 and the horrific murder of a couple as they lie asleep in their bed in a small town in Maryland, USA. Police believe that they were killed by their son, Willard and he is arrested and held in jail. His mother's name is Helen Abell Shoat.
The couple’s daughter, Anna, who knows nothing about her mother’s past, doesn’t believe her brother could have killed his parents and hires a local man, Henry Mettick, to investigate as a sort of "private eye", having discovered that he had previously done work for the US Department of Justice. But Mettick is not quite what he seems.

As the action switches between late 1970's Europe still in the grip of the Cold War and present day small town America, Anna gradually learns the truth about her mother's background and a possible reason as to why she was murdered. It transpires that despite losing her job, her mother stayed in contact with other CIA female operatives who also knew of Gilley's crimes against young women. All have tried to bring Gilley to account, but the male-dominated agency has closed ranks.

Dan Fesperman's handful of main characters are beautifully drawn and the dialogue flows effortlessly, heightening the suspense throughout. This is a top notch thriller which confronts both issues from the past and others taken straight from today's news headlines.

My thanks to the publisher Head of Zeus and NetGalley for a copy of this book in return for an unbiased review.

This is my first espionage thriller story that I’ve read. I was gripped by it but found it slightly too long and I did get confused with all the agent names and code names!!

Set in 2 timelines, Berlin in 1979 where Helen looks after the safe houses. She finds herself in the wrong place at the wrong time when she overhears a conversation that will put her life in danger.

In 2014 Helen and her husband are murdered, her daughter Anna strives to find out what her mother had been involved in all those years ago, bringing danger to her door.

This book is full of action and nail biting tension.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy in exchange for a review.