3.75 stars

Although this is billed as an Inspector Troy novel, his part in the story is relatively minor. The meat of the book is three characters and their interactions at the end of World War II: a Jewish Brit, an Auschwitz survivor, and a former German soldier.

The story has an elaborate and complex plot featuring not just one but several identity switches, and ranging from Germany to England to South America to the Middle East over the course of a decade.

The storyline is well done but can be confusing given the time and place changes and the identity issues. But it's worth reading and maybe even re-reading parts to absorb the nuances and layers of the plot. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Carefully plotted and well researched, SMOKE AND EMBERS will be a surefire hit for fans of espionage fiction. I'll admit I'm not expert in this genre and I haven't read John Lawton before. But I found this novel to be gripping and suspenseful, with a memorable cast of characters. The author manages to effortlessly span time periods and different countries, taking the reader on a wild ride. This fun read will grab you and keep you guessing.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advance e-galley; all opinions in my review are 100% my own.

I've not read this series before, but that wasn't a big problem (after wondering what actually led to the murder mentioned early on). What did confuse me, and makes me think I should reread it, was that I had trouble keeping track of all of the switching identities. There was at least one too many Sams for me to keep them all straight in the end.

That said, I found it an engrossing and compelling read, though hardly comfortable given its subject matter. The picture of post-war Germany was vivid and informative, and I appreciated the way that, in the end, the lines between the good guys and the bad guys blurred, which seemed especially relevant to our present moment. I also enjoyed the languages included. My Russian is not at all adequate, but it was fun to recognize words here and there. There are scenes that will stay with me, includng one that I wish wouldn't, but overall it was an impressive if at times confusing picture of a time we tend to gloss over when we think of the victorious end of World War II.

A new book by John Lawton is a rare and welcome treat given the quality of his writing, characters, plotting and research.

What makes this one even more alluring is that after a spell in the Wilderness, Inspector Troy plays a far greater role in the proceedings.

This is a vast shaggy dog story of a book which ranges from post war Berlin, a brief interlude in Auschwitz,, London in 1950 and even Israel a decade later.

So many of Lawton’s vast array of memorable characters also make welcome returns even in brief cameo roles.

The story is wide ranging and full of deceptions which demand the reader’s full attention as who is exactly who is a question that keeps occurring.

As always with Lawton the best answer is just to surrender to the delights of his prose and enjoy.

John Lawton does a fantastic job in writing this entry in the Inspector Troy series, it had that overall feel that I was looking for and enjoyed the concept. The characters had that overall feel that I wanted and enjoyed how they worked in this universe. John Lawton was able to weave a great tale and was everything that I wanted from a espionage story.

Though extremely interesting (particularly Berlin at the very end of WWII), I found the novel a bit confusing which I very seldom feel while reading. After reading a long part of the novel about what was happening in London (also interesting), the next long part of the book took place in Berlin. While getting lost in the Berlin story, I found it difficult to get back to London and follow the connections between both stories. A bit of a shame as the theme sounded very promising indeed.
I received a digital copy of this novel from NetGalley and I have voluntarily written an honest review.