Rating: 
Summary: Literary Espionage
Review: At last there is an espionage writer to rival LeCarre, Greene and Maugham. Smith, like the trinity of fine writers he rivals, does not rely solely on plot to win his readers. He creates remarkable, unforgettable characters who draw the reader into their lives. Anne/Andrea and Karl Voss are truly original characters who don't always behave as expected and who think for themselves. This increases the suspense in the story because the reader will not unfailingly predict their every move. The plot is complex and tightly structured; the narrative covering three eras in espionage: WW2, the late Cold War during the beginning of detente and after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Anne and Karl come together during these three eras, forging a lifelong impossible love affair as they carry out their spycraft. There is genius in the plotting. Above all, there is genius in the prose. Wilson uses new and arresting metaphors that will give the reader pause to appreciate their finely-tuned perfection. Unlike, for example E. Annie Proulx who is known for original metaphors, Wilson's are not only original, they are apt. In one example, he describes a character covering his face with his hands and wiping down his face, crumpling his tirednes like paper and tossing it to the floor. If you read that, you not only see it visually, you will recall doing the same motion. He makes you see things through a new lens. The book is filled with this kind of original writing -- making it one to reread just for the pleasure of his writing craft.
Rating:
Summary: Exceptional
Review: Author Robert Wilson has written 5 novels; unfortunately for readers this is only the second that has been offered The U.S. His debut, 'A Small Death Is Lisbon', was a very good book and was recognized with literary honors. 'The Company Of Strangers', elevates his work to an even higher level, which if he continues to maintain will place him amongst the great writers of espionage/thriller/mystery. For those unfamiliar with his work I believe the best comparison would be Mr. John LeCarre's earlier works, and some of the best that Mr. Robert Ludlum ever wrote. These are not techno-thrillers where plot and theme are replaced by endless descriptions of military hardware. Mr. Wilson writes detailed character studies that are as complex as the situations he places them in; when these aspects are combined with the talent to tell a great story that spans decades, this is an author who gives a reader all that can be expected from a great novel. The time line will take you from London of WWII, to the dawning of Glasnost in The Soviet Union, with stops in Berlin East and West, Lisbon and other locales. The book is about spies, very human, not the 007 Hollywood varieties. The motivation of why they work for a cause or country, what may make them turn, and sometimes turn once again is beautifully written and marvelously complex. The writer explores what takes place when an agent during a war finds that the country he once served, or perhaps betrayed, once the war concludes is now in the enemy's camp. Who is his new master, who does he deceive this time if deception is the choice? Does an agent serving a foreign power that becomes the victor continue to serve, or are the ideals he thought were being served prove to have been a fraud and new choices are made? The agents that take center stage in this book are all presented in various levels of detail, however none are vague. In the midst of the wild swings in world politics a variety of people have their beliefs confirmed, betrayed, and have their personal motives subjected to doubt. Do they spy as an act of revenge, a perceived wrong that was inflicted, is the spying based on theology, or is it monetary, or is it the game itself that is the attraction? In addition to all that I have mentioned, there is much more, and there are few authors who could carry out the complexity of plot without it become cloudy, and he includes revelations that in most hands would be cliché at best, and more than likely laughable. 'The Company Of Strangers', does not wind down as the end arrives. The author literally brings his story to the conclusion on the final page. Mr. Wilson also has not succumbed to churning out work and presenting it in a brief and incomplete manner. He takes all the time he needs, and if that requires the better part of 500 pages, that is what he uses. You have the sense that you are reading exactly what the writer intended. His goal was to produce a great book, not a shallow utilitarian read, written with an eye toward a screenplay, or any other secondary use. This man is a brilliant writer; I recommend his work without condition.
Rating: 
Summary: I wish I could have liked this book
Review: but the story was so plodding, and improbable, and the characters so thin . . .
The opening chapters are terrific, showing the inner workings of the Abwehr in WW II-- but the other chapters are anti climactic and do not build on one another--
Rating: 
Summary: exciting espionage thriller
Review: During World War II, British intelligence hires Andrea Aspinall, a mathematical wizard who thinks numbers are perfect. Andrea is to use her numerical skills to learn German atomic weaponry secrets. In Lisbon, Andrea vanishes under a new identity. She also meets German attaché Karl Voss, who believes the Nazis are losing the war and destroying Germany in their efforts to keep fighting. Karl and Andrea share a delightful night of lovemaking while violence flares everywhere. However, by morning's light Andrea has a secret to hide and an addict's thirst for more clandestine operations even if espionage is such an imperfect realm to this numerical expert. As the war ends and the Cold War heats up in places like divided Berlin, Andrea remains a prime player, whose past will soon catch up to her. Andrea is the numero uno of this exciting espionage thriller. From the beginning readers understand her as she joyfully explains the world in terms of the perfection of mathematical systems even if she fails to include the number six as a divisor into itself. The story line spans several decades, but though interesting and insightful also acts like a suspense thinner. Still readers will enjoy this action packed tale mindful of The Third Man because the novel contains people, including those individuals still out in the cold, that seem real. Readers will enjoy THE COMPANY OF STRANGERS and seek other works from Robert Wilson (see A SMALL DEATH IN LISBON). Harriet Klausner
Rating:
Summary: An exceptional slice of the 20C
Review: For anyone interested in 20th century history, who has a romantic streak and reads thrillers: This is the Book for You. On a train, plane, beach - you'll be lost in a 'movie' of Europe from the 1940s through the 1960s. With accurate, written imagery of the sights, sounds and (almost) smells of Portugal, Nazi Germany and finally East Germany and Britain in the 60's, Wilson paints an exceptional "feel" of what it was like. He has the fear of Facism, the grey of Communism and in the end, the cynicism of Capitalism wrapped around the lives of 3D characters. By no means a polemic lecture, he tells the period's history & politics from the vantage of people living through it. This book, although slow to start, is one of the best I have read in 20 years.
Rating:
Summary: A romance for men
Review: I am new to Robert Wilson. This book is the third Wilson book I have read. All I have read are entertaining and informative because they put a human face on historical events. The Company of Strangers is very interesting. The only negative, if it is a negative, is the life long love at a distance between the two main characters reads like a "romance novel" for men.
Rating:
Summary: Superb spy fiction isn't dead! Read this one!!
Review: If you thought good spy fiction was dead, think again; Robert Wilson has come to our rescue and he is finest kind. This novel spans 1942 to 1993; Berlin to London to Lisbon to Berlin to London and more. The best espionage novel I've read in ages. Smart and exceptionally well written/bitten but not without the occasional verbal over-reach. Wilson brings to life the convoluted history of Britain's intelligence operations during WWII and how those merged with the MI5 and MI6 that we know from Le Carre in their counter Soviet efforts. Mighty fine book; superb read. Most satisfiying.
Rating:
Summary: An Epic Story of Intrigue
Review: In 1944, Kurt Voss is sent to Lisbon, Portugal as a member of the Abwehr, the German Secret Service. He's there to as military attaché to the German Legation, but he is also embittered by the deaths of his brother and father. Andrea Aspinall has led a sheltered life in London, but she is a skilled mathematician who speaks Portuguese and has been sent to Lisbon as a spy. Lisbon during the end of the Second World War is a hotbed of spies. German or Allied, it doesn't matter, everyone's watching everyone else and information is passed back and forth. The race is on to produce the first atomic bomb and it's in Lisbon that deals are being made to provide the funding for research. For Andrea, she witnesses acts of violence firsthand for the first time, and takes with her, secrets which are to stay with her for the rest of her life. From the tension of wartime Lisbon, we cut to the late 1960's and early 1970's and the focus is back on Andrea and Karl. We're provided with a thrilling yet draining ending to their story. This is a spy novel that is full of intrigue, double-dealings and mystery. We are introduced to, and then given intimate knowledge of, the two main characters. The detailed characterisation is a real feature of this story; we are left in no doubt what motivates each character. But more than just a spy story, it's a love story that tells of impossibly difficult decisions that the clandestine life imposes. It's an epic story of intrigue that keeps delivering.
Rating:
Summary: Small Death Redux
Review: In writing this novel, Robert Wilson has worked very hard to develop a special writing style that approaches that of Lecarre. However, I wish he had paid more attention to his plotting. As soon as I finished I couldn't help but conclude that in producing Company he took his successful plotting from A Small Death In Lisbon and merged with The Spy Who Came In From The Cold.
After being completely enthralled by A Small Death, I looked forward to the same entrancement from Company. Didn't happen. While we're back in Portugal, Wilson doesn't work the magic this time. In fact the book doesn't become particularly interesting until the last quarter. Up to that point I was tempted to lay it aside.
Wilson's female protagonist is a somewhat reluctant British spy who behaves completely out of character with the person we are first introduced to. His male protagonist is stronger but likewise behaves inconsistantly, even implausibly at times.
This novel demonstrates that even a superb novelist can't hit a home run each time. Nevertheless, based on A Small Death, I'll certainly give him another try.
Rating:
Summary: Melancholy Thriller
Review: Not a thrill a minute page turner, but a thoughtfully crafted look at the inner lives of spies and double agents. The book spans an era from late World War II through the collapse of the Berlin Wall. There are two compelling characters, Andrea, the savvy yet naive British twenty year old, and Kurt, the disillusioned German intelligence officer. Both get caught in events they do not fully understand. They share a brief, but intense love-affair in Portugal and then everything goes to hell. The surrounding cast are multi-dimensional including very odd aristocrats in Lisbon, very cruel Nazis, KGBers and Stasis and very staid British intelligence officers. I for one never really knew what game these supporting characters were playing, but it is a fun puzzle to see Andrea twist and turn beginning in 1944, overwhelmed by people and events beyond her control with the pieces of the puzzle only coming together in the early 1990s. It is hard to review the book without giving away the plot, but suffice it to say that Wilson puts his hero and heroine through the wringer and the reader should not expect a jolly happy ending where the prince and princess float off into the sunset. Wilson doesn't let any of his characters off lightly. Secrets beget further deeper secrets which beget tragedy. It seems that everyone has sinned and Wilson makes sure they all get their just reward--except for the biggest villain of all, who is allowed to pass quietly away in relative comfort and anonymity. If you can figure out who that villain is before the end--you are way beyond me.
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