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Inspector Troy #2
Old Flames
At the height of the Cold War, Chief Inspector Troy of Scotland Yard, assigned to both protect and spy on Khrushchev, infiltrates the M16 to investigate the brutal killing of a Royal Navy diver and begins to suspect that one of his own colleagues may be responsible. 50,000 first printing. $50,000 ad/promo.
544 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published July 22, 1996
279 people are currently reading
543 people want to read
About the author
John Lawton
36books318followersJohn Lawton is a producer/director in television who has spent much of his time interpreting the USA to the English, and occasionally vice versa. He has worked with Gore Vidal, Neil Simon, Scott Turow, Noam Chomsky, Fay Weldon, Harold Pinter and Kathy Acker. He thinks he may well be the only TV director ever to be named in a Parliamentary Bill in the British House of Lords as an offender against taste and balance. He has also been denounced from the pulpit in Mississippi as a `Communist,� but thinks that less remarkable.
He spent most of the 90s in New York � among other things attending the writers� sessions at The Actors� Studio under Norman Mailer � and has visited or worked in more than half the 50 states. Since 2000 he has lived in the high, wet hills ofDerbyshire England, with frequent excursions into the high, dry hills of Arizona and Italy.
He is the author of 1963, a social and political history of the Kennedy-Macmillan years, six thrillers in the Troy series and a stand-alone novel, Sweet Sunday.
In 1995 the first Troy novel, Black Out, won the WH Smith Fresh Talent Award. In 2006 Columbia Pictures bought the fourth Troy novel Riptide. In 2007 A Little White Death was a New York Times notable.
In 2008 he was one of only half a dozen living English writers to be named in the London Daily Telegraph‘s `50 Crime Writers to Read before You Die.� He has also edited the poetry of DH Lawrence and the stories of Joseph Conrad. He is devoted to the work of Franz Schubert, Cormac McCarthy, Art Tatum and Barbara Gowdy. (source: )
He was born in 1949 in England.
He spent most of the 90s in New York � among other things attending the writers� sessions at The Actors� Studio under Norman Mailer � and has visited or worked in more than half the 50 states. Since 2000 he has lived in the high, wet hills ofDerbyshire England, with frequent excursions into the high, dry hills of Arizona and Italy.
He is the author of 1963, a social and political history of the Kennedy-Macmillan years, six thrillers in the Troy series and a stand-alone novel, Sweet Sunday.
In 1995 the first Troy novel, Black Out, won the WH Smith Fresh Talent Award. In 2006 Columbia Pictures bought the fourth Troy novel Riptide. In 2007 A Little White Death was a New York Times notable.
In 2008 he was one of only half a dozen living English writers to be named in the London Daily Telegraph‘s `50 Crime Writers to Read before You Die.� He has also edited the poetry of DH Lawrence and the stories of Joseph Conrad. He is devoted to the work of Franz Schubert, Cormac McCarthy, Art Tatum and Barbara Gowdy. (source: )
He was born in 1949 in England.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 112 reviews
August 6, 2020
This isn’t the first book written by Lawton about Inspector Troy, but it is more complicated and, arguably, better than the first. /review/show...
Troy has moved up at Scotland Yard and he is about to be detailed to a special group (outside his direct responsibilities and outside the Metropolitan Police). Lawton starts by giving us England on the cusp of a state visit by those notable Russians, Khrushchev and Bulganin. This is in the timeline about 1956, and Russia is adjusting to life without Stalin.
In some ways, C.I. Troy has changed a bit: �"I don’t suppose you need me to tell you how lucky you’ve been.�
‘Story of my life.�
‘Luck can run out, Troy."
It is important to note that Troy’s father left Russia many years before to become a Brit and make loads of money. This money is now supporting Troy as well as his sisters and brother. They share a country estate as well as their own individual residences.
There is a plot that eventually focuses on the death of a man that Troy has met, but I am almost sure that what Lawton is really about concerns defining the post-war Britain that we find Troy in. In a nutshell, that is what has made writing this review (and, to a lesser extent rating this book) very challenging.
"But times change, the world moves on. England hasn’t. It’s moved backwards, and it’s done that by enshrining the war."
"‘Be the death of this country, you know. Cronyism, clubbable Britain, the nods, the winks, the special handshakes, the blackballing. I used to think the war changed something. In fact I used to think it changed everything. I even thought six years of Socialism had changed something. But they didn’t. We’re still the same old place we were before the war.�"
Ի�
"No—Britannia rules with her civil service. It is an empire of bureaucrats, of assistant district commissioners, of pen pushers and rule-writers. And thus are the rulers ruled, for they end by making as many rules for themselves as they ever did for the rest of us. Hence, your Englishman, hidebound, class-bound, who, given the freedom to have what he wants, will merely ask what the rules permit him to have.�"
There is a lot about Troy and his difficulties with strong women. For a person in his position, this poses some real problems and challenges in both living and getting his job done.
"‘I understand. But what I meant was, “Who Am I?� Capital W, capital A, capital I.� ‘I don’t understand.� ‘Nor me. That’s why I’m asking, Troy. Who Am I?�"
Ի�.
"And all the time the bastard called me “my dear�. I can take all the time I want off work, all they ask is for assurances of my discretion. I felt like he was pretending all the time. Pretending I was one of them, pretending I wasn’t a woman, pretending I mattered in some way, pretending I was part of “the club�, pretending I played by the same rules, for God’s sake pretending I wasn’t Jewish!�"
Troy founders when he tries to respond to such women.
"Janet Cockerell had, he felt, been pretty straight with him. This was no time to allow another person’s honesty to let him stumble into truth. The truth was of no use to her, the truth could do her no good. ‘No,� he lied. ‘I don’t.�"
And some of it humorous�.
"‘Ah me . . . However . . . before we get stuck in, there is one thing I’ve been meaning to ask you. Have you been fucking my wife?�
‘No,� Troy lied.
‘Good. I’m glad you have the decency to lie. ’Cos if you’d tried to brazen it out and tell me it meant nothing, I’d’ve taken off me tin leg and beaten the living shite out of you with it. In fact, for future reference, let me state it plainly. If I catch you sniffing around the old girl again, that’s exactly what I’ll do—in the street, and I don’t care if it bends me leg and frightens the horses. Capiche?�
Troy nodded.
‘Good. That’s that out of the way. Now get the drinks in and tell me what you’re after.�
‘I thought you weren’t drinking.�
‘Look, Troy. Do you want me to thrash you silly or do you want to mind your own damn business and tell me exactly what’s on your mind?"
The book has its conventional tropes. Troy cannot be taken off a case even when he is told so or shot.
"‘What’s the deal?�
‘You’re on sick leave. You stay away from the Yard. When the medics pass you as fit, your return is discretionary. If I think you’re going to stick your nose into this, I can and will prolong your sick leave.�
‘Jack,� he said softly. ‘That’s the most colossal fiddle.� ‘Quite. But it might just keep you alive. It might just keep you away from the spooks."
The book is ostensibly a mystery/thriller and it gets going toward those ends fairly late in its 400+ pages. One of the things that I discovered was that my interest was more captured by:
The portrait of Khrushchev;
The vignettes of post-empire Britain
The good old boy network
The underpinning of British politics
Some of the cultural references
I was less charmed by:
Troy’s family dynamics
The conventionality of the underlying plot
Troy’s “bookshelf� as a way of Lawton telling you what to read
"Troy had never worked in Brighton. His vision of the place was coloured more by Graham Greene and Richard Attenborough than it was by experience."
"‘And now there’s only one thing to do. Get pissed and wait for the end of the fuckin� world. Hiroshima, Nagasaki, Bikini Atoll, and bloody Windscale. Pass the single malt, and don’t let the kiddies drink the milk. The green, green grass of England is no longer green, it glistens in its thousand hues like a Strontium rainbow. We gather in the purple rain, lambs to the atomic slaughter. The centre never held. Things that fell apart have been badly stuck back together by a jealous child armed with a tube of polystyrene glue. What rough beast slouches two-headed and triple-bollocked,"
"‘You’ve been reading too much Raymond Chandler,� he said."
Troy has moved up at Scotland Yard and he is about to be detailed to a special group (outside his direct responsibilities and outside the Metropolitan Police). Lawton starts by giving us England on the cusp of a state visit by those notable Russians, Khrushchev and Bulganin. This is in the timeline about 1956, and Russia is adjusting to life without Stalin.
In some ways, C.I. Troy has changed a bit: �"I don’t suppose you need me to tell you how lucky you’ve been.�
‘Story of my life.�
‘Luck can run out, Troy."
It is important to note that Troy’s father left Russia many years before to become a Brit and make loads of money. This money is now supporting Troy as well as his sisters and brother. They share a country estate as well as their own individual residences.
There is a plot that eventually focuses on the death of a man that Troy has met, but I am almost sure that what Lawton is really about concerns defining the post-war Britain that we find Troy in. In a nutshell, that is what has made writing this review (and, to a lesser extent rating this book) very challenging.
"But times change, the world moves on. England hasn’t. It’s moved backwards, and it’s done that by enshrining the war."
"‘Be the death of this country, you know. Cronyism, clubbable Britain, the nods, the winks, the special handshakes, the blackballing. I used to think the war changed something. In fact I used to think it changed everything. I even thought six years of Socialism had changed something. But they didn’t. We’re still the same old place we were before the war.�"
Ի�
"No—Britannia rules with her civil service. It is an empire of bureaucrats, of assistant district commissioners, of pen pushers and rule-writers. And thus are the rulers ruled, for they end by making as many rules for themselves as they ever did for the rest of us. Hence, your Englishman, hidebound, class-bound, who, given the freedom to have what he wants, will merely ask what the rules permit him to have.�"
There is a lot about Troy and his difficulties with strong women. For a person in his position, this poses some real problems and challenges in both living and getting his job done.
"‘I understand. But what I meant was, “Who Am I?� Capital W, capital A, capital I.� ‘I don’t understand.� ‘Nor me. That’s why I’m asking, Troy. Who Am I?�"
Ի�.
"And all the time the bastard called me “my dear�. I can take all the time I want off work, all they ask is for assurances of my discretion. I felt like he was pretending all the time. Pretending I was one of them, pretending I wasn’t a woman, pretending I mattered in some way, pretending I was part of “the club�, pretending I played by the same rules, for God’s sake pretending I wasn’t Jewish!�"
Troy founders when he tries to respond to such women.
"Janet Cockerell had, he felt, been pretty straight with him. This was no time to allow another person’s honesty to let him stumble into truth. The truth was of no use to her, the truth could do her no good. ‘No,� he lied. ‘I don’t.�"
And some of it humorous�.
"‘Ah me . . . However . . . before we get stuck in, there is one thing I’ve been meaning to ask you. Have you been fucking my wife?�
‘No,� Troy lied.
‘Good. I’m glad you have the decency to lie. ’Cos if you’d tried to brazen it out and tell me it meant nothing, I’d’ve taken off me tin leg and beaten the living shite out of you with it. In fact, for future reference, let me state it plainly. If I catch you sniffing around the old girl again, that’s exactly what I’ll do—in the street, and I don’t care if it bends me leg and frightens the horses. Capiche?�
Troy nodded.
‘Good. That’s that out of the way. Now get the drinks in and tell me what you’re after.�
‘I thought you weren’t drinking.�
‘Look, Troy. Do you want me to thrash you silly or do you want to mind your own damn business and tell me exactly what’s on your mind?"
The book has its conventional tropes. Troy cannot be taken off a case even when he is told so or shot.
"‘What’s the deal?�
‘You’re on sick leave. You stay away from the Yard. When the medics pass you as fit, your return is discretionary. If I think you’re going to stick your nose into this, I can and will prolong your sick leave.�
‘Jack,� he said softly. ‘That’s the most colossal fiddle.� ‘Quite. But it might just keep you alive. It might just keep you away from the spooks."
The book is ostensibly a mystery/thriller and it gets going toward those ends fairly late in its 400+ pages. One of the things that I discovered was that my interest was more captured by:
The portrait of Khrushchev;
The vignettes of post-empire Britain
The good old boy network
The underpinning of British politics
Some of the cultural references
I was less charmed by:
Troy’s family dynamics
The conventionality of the underlying plot
Troy’s “bookshelf� as a way of Lawton telling you what to read
"Troy had never worked in Brighton. His vision of the place was coloured more by Graham Greene and Richard Attenborough than it was by experience."
"‘And now there’s only one thing to do. Get pissed and wait for the end of the fuckin� world. Hiroshima, Nagasaki, Bikini Atoll, and bloody Windscale. Pass the single malt, and don’t let the kiddies drink the milk. The green, green grass of England is no longer green, it glistens in its thousand hues like a Strontium rainbow. We gather in the purple rain, lambs to the atomic slaughter. The centre never held. Things that fell apart have been badly stuck back together by a jealous child armed with a tube of polystyrene glue. What rough beast slouches two-headed and triple-bollocked,"
"‘You’ve been reading too much Raymond Chandler,� he said."
September 29, 2020
The 2nd book in the Inspector Troy series this book starts our awfully slow and then picks up steam. Here we deal with the death of a frogman who is allegedly spying on the Russians during a state dinner by Nikita Khrushchev. The action is very slow for the first 150 pages as we get some main characters and plot, as well as a lot of needless information. And just as you wonder where all is going Lawton begins to tie things together and bring these disparate pieces of information into the the overall plot and we get spies, double agents and a whole lot more. By the end the pages are just flying by, and we are now set up for the next installment of this wonderful espionage series.
April 18, 2018
The year is 1956 and the Cold War is in full bloom when Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev visits England in an attempt to show the “softer� side of the Russian regime three years following Stalin’s death. London is still recovering from the damage caused by German bombing from World War II and the Suez Crisis permeates the background of British politics. This is the setting of John Lawton’s novel, OLD FLAMES, the second iteration of his Inspector Frederick Troy of Scotland Yard Series. The novel opens with the escape of a female spy from Moscow, with the interesting name of “Major.� She disappears from the story until midway through the plot when she reemerges in a very powerful manner.
Lawton’s protagonist is called to return from a three-week vacation and report to his London office. It seems two members of the Special Branch have been killed in an automobile accident and Troy’s talents are needed to become part of the security detail for the upcoming visit of Marshal Nikolai Bulganin and Soviet First Secretary Nikita Khrushchev to London. Troy has been chosen in part because of his Russian language skills, and his spy craft. A number of fascinating characters appear throughout the novel. Historical figures such as Prime Minister Anthony Eden, Winston Churchill, Gamal Abdul Nasser, President Dwight D. Eisenhower, the Cambridge Five, a number of other British officials, in addition to the aforementioned Russian leaders. Lawton creates a series of fictional characters who carry the plot; Rodyon Troy, Frederick Troy’s brother who is the “shadow foreign minister� and member of the British Labour Party, Frederick’s sisters Masha and Sasha, Nikolai Troisty, Frederick’s uncle, Arnold Cockerell, furniture salesman or spy, Masha’s husband, Lawrence, the owner of the Sunday Post, Angus Pakenham, an accountant who was a RAF war hero who lost his leg trying to escape from Colditz, Inspector Norman Cobb of the Special Branch, a man most cannot tolerate, most importantly, Larissa Dimitrovna Tosca, KGB, Fredrick’s former lover, spouse, among many identities.
Lawton provides a view of recent Russian history through the perceptive eyes of Frederick Troy (Troy). Troy reminisces about his Russian roots as he traces the rise of Khrushchev’s rise to power as rumors abound concerning a speech that may have denounced Stalin. Lawton’s command of history is top drawer as is exemplified by his commentary concerning Eden’s rise to 10 Downing Street, a position he trained for and was heir apparent for years until Churchill finally let loose of the reins.
The author’s command of Cold War jargon ie; the bomb is accurate as his description of Khrushchev’s uncouth behavior and folksy peasant persona. The pompousness of British officials is unmistakable as Russian leaders are ferried around London. The accuracy is on further display with the description of the Russian First Secretary’s speech at a state dinner bringing up standard complaints relating to 1919, 1930s appeasement, and facing Hitler by themselves. The British response is fairly even handed, but it will enrage the Soviet leader who storms out of the dinner setting a remarkable interchange between Khrushchev and Troy. After leaving the dinner Troy will comply with the First Secretary’s request with an unofficial tour of London. They will visit the underground, a number of pubs, and many sites. It is a fascinating display of historical dialogue that is one of the most important components of the book as Lawton applies his expertise of artistic license and counter factual history. Lawton’s portrayal of Khrushchev is rather sympathetic in light of his previous history dealing with collectivization under Stalin in the Ukraine and other crimes. The Russian leader will conclude that the British people are somewhat “boring.�
Troy’s own Russian background is explored in detail particularly the role of his father, a former Menshevik, who arrived in London in 1910 and purchased the Hertfordshire mansion, and left his family a significant amount of wealth after he died in 1943. A major question for the Troy family is what role their father played in Russia and was he loyal to his new country or did he spy against England during World War II.
Lawton conveys the plight of the British people in the post war years very accurately throughout the book. Repeated references to the German “blitz� in 1940 and the carnage to historical sites highlight the damage that remains in the mid-1950s in addition to the lack of food staples for the general population. The problems of English “workman� are described in detail and the political debate between Conservative and Labour Party members over their plight is an ongoing theme. As Lawton conveys his story his repeated references to film and literature are a wonderful addition.
There are a number of plot lines that swirl throughout the book that center on the role of Nikolai Troisty, Troy’s father’s younger brother who emigrated from Russia also in 1910 but though retired, was an expert on ships, planes, bombs, and rockets. In addition, a British frogman died while examining the Russian ship that conveyed Russian leaders to London � what was his identity, and was he a British spy? Where was Arnold Cockerell, who was either dead or just disappeared, or did Cockerell kill his auditor George Jessup? What role does MI6 play in the Cockerell fiasco? How do Russian spies and their actions influence events? Further, the appearance of Lois Teale or perhaps her name was M/SGT Larissa Tosca, or a Russian spy named Dimitrovna who knew Troy in Berlin in 1948 and how they renewed their relationship in 1956.
Lawton’s command of history is mostly accurate as he presents Khrushchev’s February 20, 1956 speech to the 20th Communist Party Congress, known as the “Destalinization� speech that denounced the former Soviet dictator. Lawton also discusses details of the developing Suez Crisis as it comes to a head. In general, the author has his facts straight, but his chronology of events is a bit off. President Eisenhower had suspicions about the Sevres Agreement between England, France, and Israel, but the CIA was not certain of its applicability until the Israelis invaded at the end of September. Eisenhower’s conversation with Rodyon before the attack is not totally supported by the documentary evidence, but the gist, especially the actions of the US Treasury Department and the American manipulation of the Conservative Party that replaced Eden with Harold MacMillan in mid-December after the British and French withdraw from Suez is accurate.
Lawton has composed an intriguing novel that reflects his amazing storytelling ability. He tells a number of stories within the larger story and in the end, they come together in a fascinating and meaningful way. Troy is a somewhat broken man at the end of the novel, but Lawton has created a vacuum that will soon be filled. There are eight books in the Inspector Troy series with A LITTLE WHITE DEATH the next in chronological order which has now moved up on my books to read.
Lawton’s protagonist is called to return from a three-week vacation and report to his London office. It seems two members of the Special Branch have been killed in an automobile accident and Troy’s talents are needed to become part of the security detail for the upcoming visit of Marshal Nikolai Bulganin and Soviet First Secretary Nikita Khrushchev to London. Troy has been chosen in part because of his Russian language skills, and his spy craft. A number of fascinating characters appear throughout the novel. Historical figures such as Prime Minister Anthony Eden, Winston Churchill, Gamal Abdul Nasser, President Dwight D. Eisenhower, the Cambridge Five, a number of other British officials, in addition to the aforementioned Russian leaders. Lawton creates a series of fictional characters who carry the plot; Rodyon Troy, Frederick Troy’s brother who is the “shadow foreign minister� and member of the British Labour Party, Frederick’s sisters Masha and Sasha, Nikolai Troisty, Frederick’s uncle, Arnold Cockerell, furniture salesman or spy, Masha’s husband, Lawrence, the owner of the Sunday Post, Angus Pakenham, an accountant who was a RAF war hero who lost his leg trying to escape from Colditz, Inspector Norman Cobb of the Special Branch, a man most cannot tolerate, most importantly, Larissa Dimitrovna Tosca, KGB, Fredrick’s former lover, spouse, among many identities.
Lawton provides a view of recent Russian history through the perceptive eyes of Frederick Troy (Troy). Troy reminisces about his Russian roots as he traces the rise of Khrushchev’s rise to power as rumors abound concerning a speech that may have denounced Stalin. Lawton’s command of history is top drawer as is exemplified by his commentary concerning Eden’s rise to 10 Downing Street, a position he trained for and was heir apparent for years until Churchill finally let loose of the reins.
The author’s command of Cold War jargon ie; the bomb is accurate as his description of Khrushchev’s uncouth behavior and folksy peasant persona. The pompousness of British officials is unmistakable as Russian leaders are ferried around London. The accuracy is on further display with the description of the Russian First Secretary’s speech at a state dinner bringing up standard complaints relating to 1919, 1930s appeasement, and facing Hitler by themselves. The British response is fairly even handed, but it will enrage the Soviet leader who storms out of the dinner setting a remarkable interchange between Khrushchev and Troy. After leaving the dinner Troy will comply with the First Secretary’s request with an unofficial tour of London. They will visit the underground, a number of pubs, and many sites. It is a fascinating display of historical dialogue that is one of the most important components of the book as Lawton applies his expertise of artistic license and counter factual history. Lawton’s portrayal of Khrushchev is rather sympathetic in light of his previous history dealing with collectivization under Stalin in the Ukraine and other crimes. The Russian leader will conclude that the British people are somewhat “boring.�
Troy’s own Russian background is explored in detail particularly the role of his father, a former Menshevik, who arrived in London in 1910 and purchased the Hertfordshire mansion, and left his family a significant amount of wealth after he died in 1943. A major question for the Troy family is what role their father played in Russia and was he loyal to his new country or did he spy against England during World War II.
Lawton conveys the plight of the British people in the post war years very accurately throughout the book. Repeated references to the German “blitz� in 1940 and the carnage to historical sites highlight the damage that remains in the mid-1950s in addition to the lack of food staples for the general population. The problems of English “workman� are described in detail and the political debate between Conservative and Labour Party members over their plight is an ongoing theme. As Lawton conveys his story his repeated references to film and literature are a wonderful addition.
There are a number of plot lines that swirl throughout the book that center on the role of Nikolai Troisty, Troy’s father’s younger brother who emigrated from Russia also in 1910 but though retired, was an expert on ships, planes, bombs, and rockets. In addition, a British frogman died while examining the Russian ship that conveyed Russian leaders to London � what was his identity, and was he a British spy? Where was Arnold Cockerell, who was either dead or just disappeared, or did Cockerell kill his auditor George Jessup? What role does MI6 play in the Cockerell fiasco? How do Russian spies and their actions influence events? Further, the appearance of Lois Teale or perhaps her name was M/SGT Larissa Tosca, or a Russian spy named Dimitrovna who knew Troy in Berlin in 1948 and how they renewed their relationship in 1956.
Lawton’s command of history is mostly accurate as he presents Khrushchev’s February 20, 1956 speech to the 20th Communist Party Congress, known as the “Destalinization� speech that denounced the former Soviet dictator. Lawton also discusses details of the developing Suez Crisis as it comes to a head. In general, the author has his facts straight, but his chronology of events is a bit off. President Eisenhower had suspicions about the Sevres Agreement between England, France, and Israel, but the CIA was not certain of its applicability until the Israelis invaded at the end of September. Eisenhower’s conversation with Rodyon before the attack is not totally supported by the documentary evidence, but the gist, especially the actions of the US Treasury Department and the American manipulation of the Conservative Party that replaced Eden with Harold MacMillan in mid-December after the British and French withdraw from Suez is accurate.
Lawton has composed an intriguing novel that reflects his amazing storytelling ability. He tells a number of stories within the larger story and in the end, they come together in a fascinating and meaningful way. Troy is a somewhat broken man at the end of the novel, but Lawton has created a vacuum that will soon be filled. There are eight books in the Inspector Troy series with A LITTLE WHITE DEATH the next in chronological order which has now moved up on my books to read.
May 8, 2023
John Lawton's Inspector Troy series is a sprawling epic of a work that covers British life in the middle decades of the twentieth century. Somewhat confusingly, the publication order of the series does not follow the chronology of the stories; Blackout, set during the Blitz in wartime London, introduced Troy, but after that Lawton started filling in back story and jumping ahead, going as far back as 1938 and as far ahead as 1960. If you want to read them in chronological order, check here:
It's a big, ambitious project; the books are crime or espionage novels with deep characterization and keen social observation, portraying a Britain profoundly changing under the trauma of a second world war following all too close on the heels of the first.
The hook is that Troy is a very un-English Englishman, being the son of a Russian aristocrat who brought the family to England after the Russian revolution and insisted his children adopt the values of the British upper class. Troy's siblings have done so more successfully than he (his brother becomes a member of Parliament); when Troy decides to join the police force it is a family scandal. Troy retains a skeptical outsider viewpoint that makes him the perfect conduit for Lawton's observations on British society.
Like the other entries in the series, Old Flames folds historical events into a fictional tale. In 1956, on the eve of the Suez crisis, Soviet premier Khrushchev made an official visit to Britain. That much is history; Lawton puts Troy in the story by having him assigned (because of his Russian fluency) to be part of the detatchment guarding Khrushchev while covertly spying on him. Also historical is a botched British spy operation in which a navy frogman was killed while spying on the Soviet destroyer that had brought Khrushchev to Portsmouth. Lawton makes this incident the linchpin of a complicated espionage plot involving a train of murders and leading Troy to dark secrets of the British elite, a rich vein to mine.
It's a fine espionage novel but also a novel of manners, richly detailed, not lightning-paced, requiring a little patience. It features Troy's family entanglements, complicated love life and angst. Lawton is using the form of the spy novel to produce sophisticated fiction about British life in the throes of the twentieth century.
It's a big, ambitious project; the books are crime or espionage novels with deep characterization and keen social observation, portraying a Britain profoundly changing under the trauma of a second world war following all too close on the heels of the first.
The hook is that Troy is a very un-English Englishman, being the son of a Russian aristocrat who brought the family to England after the Russian revolution and insisted his children adopt the values of the British upper class. Troy's siblings have done so more successfully than he (his brother becomes a member of Parliament); when Troy decides to join the police force it is a family scandal. Troy retains a skeptical outsider viewpoint that makes him the perfect conduit for Lawton's observations on British society.
Like the other entries in the series, Old Flames folds historical events into a fictional tale. In 1956, on the eve of the Suez crisis, Soviet premier Khrushchev made an official visit to Britain. That much is history; Lawton puts Troy in the story by having him assigned (because of his Russian fluency) to be part of the detatchment guarding Khrushchev while covertly spying on him. Also historical is a botched British spy operation in which a navy frogman was killed while spying on the Soviet destroyer that had brought Khrushchev to Portsmouth. Lawton makes this incident the linchpin of a complicated espionage plot involving a train of murders and leading Troy to dark secrets of the British elite, a rich vein to mine.
It's a fine espionage novel but also a novel of manners, richly detailed, not lightning-paced, requiring a little patience. It features Troy's family entanglements, complicated love life and angst. Lawton is using the form of the spy novel to produce sophisticated fiction about British life in the throes of the twentieth century.
February 7, 2010
Intricately well-plotted and often slow-paced detective/spy novel in the interesting Inspector Troy series. The six books involved--written out of chronological order--follow the policeman son of a wealthy Russian immigrant to Britian, from before World War 2 into the 1960s. This one takes place in 1956, involving a visit by Khrushchev to London, and spins off from there. It's important to have read the previous book in the series (Bluffing Mr. Churchill) to understand who many of the characters are, and even then a good chart may be necessary. Nevertheless, there's plenty of suspense and action, but the most appealing aspects of this series, to me, is the portrait Lawton paints of Britain, and Lawton's literary writing style, several cuts above the typical action novel. Well worth reading, but take your time.
April 10, 2021
A strange mix of spy mystery and documentary on life in Britain a decade after the end of World War II. Troy is seconded to Special Branch and is asked to spy on Russian premier Nikita Khrushchev during the latter's State visit to Britain.
During the visit the mangled body of a frogman is discovered in Portsmouth Harbour and the British Government admits the dead man is Commander Arnold Cockerell. Troy's investigation leads him to find a cover up involving Special Branch and MI5. It takes almost half the book before the action really speeds up so I hesitate to call this a thriller, but the author effortlessly captures the feel of Britain in the 1950's.
During the visit the mangled body of a frogman is discovered in Portsmouth Harbour and the British Government admits the dead man is Commander Arnold Cockerell. Troy's investigation leads him to find a cover up involving Special Branch and MI5. It takes almost half the book before the action really speeds up so I hesitate to call this a thriller, but the author effortlessly captures the feel of Britain in the 1950's.
April 4, 2018
I think this is a superior thriller set in a most interesting time. At its best it is intriguing and portrays an atmosphere of 1950s British austerity as well as a black and white photo of a greasy spoon in Wolverhampton. It is a shame that an editor was not willing or able to cut out swathes of over-written description. Less would have been more.
February 13, 2011
Lawton's Chief Inspector Fred Troy of the Murder Squad is one of those tortured loners who feels he doesn't fit into any ready-made social class, political party, or group. His alienation persists even though his father, a Russian immigrant, did his best to install Troy as a card-carrying member of the British upper crust. That's a problem in post-WWII Britain, and Troy struggles with it every time he interacts with a family member, an old school friend, or a woman. Especially a woman.
"Old Flames" is the second Troy book I've read, and it really focuses on this sense of dislocation. The time is 1956, the Cold War, there's a visit by Khruschev, and Troy speaks fluent Russian. You could imagine Troy engaging in one of those interminable French philosophical discussions with Albert Camus. (Thankfully, he doesn't.)
I love that Lawton did all his research to fit his character into real historical events. (I love that I read this book, which includes Britain's invasion of Egypt in 1956 when Nasser nationalized the Suez Canal, at the same time the 2011 Tahrir Square liberation demonstrations were taking place) I love that Troy is ambiguous and vulnerable. Troy is so smart and nuanced that it's sometimes a challenge to follow his reasoning as he sorts out the spies and crooks around him. WAY more interesting than, say, James Bond.
About those women. One of my (male) friends says that men don't have left and right brains, only up and down brains. (This was in the context of yet another Republican family values Congressman biting the dust after searching for "friends with benefits" on the Internet.) Troy certainly fits this category. In 1950's Britain, despite his single, hetero status and a healthy income, Troy didn't have as much access to sex as single men have today. Casual sex was almost beyond his capabilities. Every sexually adventurous woman he meets pulls him into helpless attachment, at least for awhile.(I'm happy to report that he turned down a freaky drunk.)
Most male thriller writers are lousy at writing about women (e.g. Grisham, Clancy, Dan Brown), but Lawton does a much better job. If anything, he errs on the side of making each and every one of Troy's women a super-thoughtful and verbally adept intellectual, regardless of her background and class. In this way, Lawton enjoyably upends conventional wisdom. But sometimes the women seem like platforms for Lawton's philosophy. Don't worry, they're also gorgeous and super-sexy.
Enjoy Lawton! Understand that this will enage your intellect as well as generate your guilty pleasure response. I suggest reading "Blackout", the first Troy novel, first, and then progress to "Old Flames".
"Old Flames" is the second Troy book I've read, and it really focuses on this sense of dislocation. The time is 1956, the Cold War, there's a visit by Khruschev, and Troy speaks fluent Russian. You could imagine Troy engaging in one of those interminable French philosophical discussions with Albert Camus. (Thankfully, he doesn't.)
I love that Lawton did all his research to fit his character into real historical events. (I love that I read this book, which includes Britain's invasion of Egypt in 1956 when Nasser nationalized the Suez Canal, at the same time the 2011 Tahrir Square liberation demonstrations were taking place) I love that Troy is ambiguous and vulnerable. Troy is so smart and nuanced that it's sometimes a challenge to follow his reasoning as he sorts out the spies and crooks around him. WAY more interesting than, say, James Bond.
About those women. One of my (male) friends says that men don't have left and right brains, only up and down brains. (This was in the context of yet another Republican family values Congressman biting the dust after searching for "friends with benefits" on the Internet.) Troy certainly fits this category. In 1950's Britain, despite his single, hetero status and a healthy income, Troy didn't have as much access to sex as single men have today. Casual sex was almost beyond his capabilities. Every sexually adventurous woman he meets pulls him into helpless attachment, at least for awhile.(I'm happy to report that he turned down a freaky drunk.)
Most male thriller writers are lousy at writing about women (e.g. Grisham, Clancy, Dan Brown), but Lawton does a much better job. If anything, he errs on the side of making each and every one of Troy's women a super-thoughtful and verbally adept intellectual, regardless of her background and class. In this way, Lawton enjoyably upends conventional wisdom. But sometimes the women seem like platforms for Lawton's philosophy. Don't worry, they're also gorgeous and super-sexy.
Enjoy Lawton! Understand that this will enage your intellect as well as generate your guilty pleasure response. I suggest reading "Blackout", the first Troy novel, first, and then progress to "Old Flames".
August 21, 2021
Old Flames by John Lawton is the second book of the Inspector Troy mystery series, set in 1956 England. Frederick Troy's family emigrated from Russia; Troy speaks and understands Russian as a first language. Chief Inspector Troy (of the Murder Squad at Scotland Yard) is assigned a Special Branch duty: to "escort" (i.e. spy on) Nikita Khrushchev during NK's visit to England.
The state visit ends; the Russian ship departs. A body in a frogman suit washes up on the coast. Police identify the body as Commander Arnold Cockerell. When Cockerell's wife refuses to confirm the dead man is her husband, Troy is summoned. He does not provide the ID, does not allow the police to close the case, as they so urgently want. He has doubts, so he begins to do his job: investigate the murder. Researching Cockerell's life pulls him into a web of false identities, money laundering, murders of the people who provide him clues. Local police cover up; his boss at Scotland Yard orders him to stop. He dreads how far and how deep Cockerell's successful get-rich-quick scheme reaches.
In one of many surprising plot twists, Troy is contacted by someone he was absolutely certain was dead, years ago. Dazed at the revelation, he travels to Amsterdam, returns married. He lacks any explanation, but he's willing to wait for it. Meanwhile he won't let go of the Cockerell case, continuing to investigate even after being shot by a fleeing killer.
The intricately complex plot is educational, multi-layered, fascinating. Fiction interleaved with historic events, atmosphere authentically evoking the 1950s Cold War, speculation on the nature of British-ness, Khrushchev's abrasive personality, Troy's family intrigues, the 'old boy' network, England's politics, the Suez. A compelling page-turner that incorporates events and characters from the first book of the series (Black Out). You may need a Who's Who list to keep track.
The state visit ends; the Russian ship departs. A body in a frogman suit washes up on the coast. Police identify the body as Commander Arnold Cockerell. When Cockerell's wife refuses to confirm the dead man is her husband, Troy is summoned. He does not provide the ID, does not allow the police to close the case, as they so urgently want. He has doubts, so he begins to do his job: investigate the murder. Researching Cockerell's life pulls him into a web of false identities, money laundering, murders of the people who provide him clues. Local police cover up; his boss at Scotland Yard orders him to stop. He dreads how far and how deep Cockerell's successful get-rich-quick scheme reaches.
In one of many surprising plot twists, Troy is contacted by someone he was absolutely certain was dead, years ago. Dazed at the revelation, he travels to Amsterdam, returns married. He lacks any explanation, but he's willing to wait for it. Meanwhile he won't let go of the Cockerell case, continuing to investigate even after being shot by a fleeing killer.
The intricately complex plot is educational, multi-layered, fascinating. Fiction interleaved with historic events, atmosphere authentically evoking the 1950s Cold War, speculation on the nature of British-ness, Khrushchev's abrasive personality, Troy's family intrigues, the 'old boy' network, England's politics, the Suez. A compelling page-turner that incorporates events and characters from the first book of the series (Black Out). You may need a Who's Who list to keep track.
June 4, 2017
Classic spy novel. Incredibly complex with wickedly clever word play. The plot is a delicious onion with layers that you try to anticipate the taste of, but cannot fully fathom.
July 18, 2023
This is an excellent literary detective series set in the early and mid cold war. If you like LeCarre and plot twists this is for you.
It can be a bit slow moving, so thriller readers may have less interest.
It can be a bit slow moving, so thriller readers may have less interest.
February 26, 2016
L'ombra scura, in originale "Old Flames", è un romanzo edito nel 1996 di spionaggio di John Lawton che è un autore di romanzi storici e di spionaggio ambientati principalmente in Inghilterra durante la seconda guerra mondiale e la guerra fredda. Il personaggio principale di questo filone è Frederick Troy: il più giovane figlio di un padre immigrato russo che è diventato un editore molto ricco di giornali e in seguito baronetto. Sfidando le aspettative di classe e della famiglia, l'indipendente Troy si arruola a Scotland Yard, diventando un investigatore della squadra omicidi.
I diritti di questo personaggio sono stati acquistati da Columbia Pictures. Ma per ora non sono stati fatti film in merito.
La trama di questo romanzo è presto scritta: siamo ad aprile del 1956 al culmine della guerra fredda: Chruscev e Bulganin, leader dell'Unione Sovietica, sono in Gran Bretagna in visita ufficiale. L'ispettore capo di Scotland Yard, Troy, figlio di un emigrato russo molto ricco, è assegnato per essere la guardia del corpo di Khrushchev e per spiarlo. Dopo poco, un subacqueo della Royal Navy viene trovato morto e mutilato a Portsmouth Harbor. Cosa stava facendo sotto lo scafo della nave di Krusciov, e che lo ha mandato lì? È il cadavere che di Arnold Cockerell, un venditore di mobili con una misteriosa fonte di reddito. Troy si imbarca in una ricerca che lo porta nel cuore marcio del MI6, ai giorni lontani della sua infanzia e nelle pericolose braccia di una vecchia fiamma, Larissa Tosca, ex spia del KGB di Krusciov. Così il mistero di Cockerell si infittisce: è lui stesso una spia o è una falsa pista? Si tratta forse di un doppio agente?
Il secondo romanzo di John Lawton è splendido, peccato che i diritti in Italia di quest'autore siano stati comperati da questa piccola casa editrice che ne ha pubblicati solo due sui sette scritti dall'autore. Questo thriller ambientato in tempo di guerra annovera quest'esordiente tra i più grandi scrittori di crime della nostra epoca. Attraverso l'ispettore Troy, l'autore evoca brillantemente gli intrighi della guerra fredda e la vita di londra negli anni cinquanta. Il libro è un'emozionante avventura di intrighi e suspense.
La storia prende davvero e la tensione comincia a montare dopo le prime fasi di riscaldamento del libro e si finisce per godere la storia. E ci sono alcuni grandi colpi di scena verso la fine. La sofisticata prosa di Lawton cattura efficacemente un'epoca travagliata: popolata da adulti imperfetti che lottano per conoscere e agire sulla verità in un momento di agitazione morale, questo romanzo è indimenticabile. Il libro di Lawton poi è infarcito di riferimenti letterari, musica e film.
Appassionati di thriller, romanzi di spionaggio e letteratura inglese, questo romanzo è per voi. Si legge facilmente e asi fa divorare, ripeto è davvero un peccato che non sono stati più tradotti altri libri qui in Italia di questo bravo autore.
I diritti di questo personaggio sono stati acquistati da Columbia Pictures. Ma per ora non sono stati fatti film in merito.
La trama di questo romanzo è presto scritta: siamo ad aprile del 1956 al culmine della guerra fredda: Chruscev e Bulganin, leader dell'Unione Sovietica, sono in Gran Bretagna in visita ufficiale. L'ispettore capo di Scotland Yard, Troy, figlio di un emigrato russo molto ricco, è assegnato per essere la guardia del corpo di Khrushchev e per spiarlo. Dopo poco, un subacqueo della Royal Navy viene trovato morto e mutilato a Portsmouth Harbor. Cosa stava facendo sotto lo scafo della nave di Krusciov, e che lo ha mandato lì? È il cadavere che di Arnold Cockerell, un venditore di mobili con una misteriosa fonte di reddito. Troy si imbarca in una ricerca che lo porta nel cuore marcio del MI6, ai giorni lontani della sua infanzia e nelle pericolose braccia di una vecchia fiamma, Larissa Tosca, ex spia del KGB di Krusciov. Così il mistero di Cockerell si infittisce: è lui stesso una spia o è una falsa pista? Si tratta forse di un doppio agente?
Il secondo romanzo di John Lawton è splendido, peccato che i diritti in Italia di quest'autore siano stati comperati da questa piccola casa editrice che ne ha pubblicati solo due sui sette scritti dall'autore. Questo thriller ambientato in tempo di guerra annovera quest'esordiente tra i più grandi scrittori di crime della nostra epoca. Attraverso l'ispettore Troy, l'autore evoca brillantemente gli intrighi della guerra fredda e la vita di londra negli anni cinquanta. Il libro è un'emozionante avventura di intrighi e suspense.
La storia prende davvero e la tensione comincia a montare dopo le prime fasi di riscaldamento del libro e si finisce per godere la storia. E ci sono alcuni grandi colpi di scena verso la fine. La sofisticata prosa di Lawton cattura efficacemente un'epoca travagliata: popolata da adulti imperfetti che lottano per conoscere e agire sulla verità in un momento di agitazione morale, questo romanzo è indimenticabile. Il libro di Lawton poi è infarcito di riferimenti letterari, musica e film.
Appassionati di thriller, romanzi di spionaggio e letteratura inglese, questo romanzo è per voi. Si legge facilmente e asi fa divorare, ripeto è davvero un peccato che non sono stati più tradotti altri libri qui in Italia di questo bravo autore.
August 7, 2012
Lawton is a skilled writer and storyteller. His prose is easy on the eye, evocative, and hooks the reader in early and tugs them along. As a cold war thriller/crime novel, Old Flames works well. The characterisation is good and there is a strong sense of place and history. Where I have a difficulty as a reader is in respect to plausibility. The historical detail, the kinds of relationships between individuals and agencies, the political intrigue, and basics of the plot are all fine in this regard. Rather it is the many coincidences between characters that I find hard to buy. Every character is already known in some capacity to other characters, or has some tangible relationship to them. The coincidences continue all the way to the end of the novel, with even minor characters linked to Troy or others (for example, the bank at which one of the characters has an account just happens to be managed by a close school friend of Troy's who then provides him access, despite the fact that the character lives in a completely different town and there are hundreds of banks in the city). The story really didn’t need this level of interweaving and coincidence, and in many ways it works best when Troy is in territory where there are no such relationships. It’s not that I am against coincidence, but rather excessive coincidence. The story is also a little too long, padded out with some sidebars that could have been trimmed back. That said, I did enjoy Old Flames and will keep an eye out for other books by John Lawton.
June 28, 2012
Spent a lot of time rereading my history from the cold war era to keep straight what was happening in the world. The first part of the book was so full of world events. That plus the England jargon really slowed me down. About half way, it became easier and I finished the book in a couple days. I'm ready for book #3.
November 10, 2017
Thought this was really good. I am liking this series. Lot of spies around here and the appearance of Larissa Tosca who we last saw in the 1940's I think. Very well constructed plot with lots of historical detail setting the time and place well and mixing in real events into a fictional story.
April 30, 2017
Not for me.
April 20, 2025
This is either the third or fourth time I’ve read the entire series, so my review is informed by the knowledge of the later books. I last revisited Old Flames nearly nine months ago, but I’ve just gone through it again with the goal of paying closer attention to the subtle details that are often overlooked during a first read or forgotten over time. For example, early on, when the protagonist meets a friend, it might seem insignificant at first, but later events make it clear how important that moment actually was. This is a perfect example of how well the events in this book are woven together.
Some critics argue that the author relies too heavily on coincidence. While it's true that some key moments in this book hinge on unexpected encounters (like the pivotal event near the end, which occurs because the main character misses a meeting with his superior), I believe coincidences are part of life and don’t detract from the story.
On the other hand, the slow, methodical unraveling of Cockerel’s scam is a satisfying example of solid detective work that doesn’t depend on chance, which contributes greatly to my overall assessment of the book.
The sequence of surprising events in the last 100 pages is absolutely incredible.
One common criticism of Lawton’s books is their abrupt or unresolved endings, which are often clarified in later installments. As I mentioned in my review of the first book in the series, the conclusion left me eager to know more. In this second book, we see the fallout from the villain of the first book, and a brief but relevant paragraph reveals that some influential figures are not entirely supportive of Troy’s pursuit of justice. This skepticism toward Troy from the secret services becomes a recurring theme throughout the series. The ending of this book also leaves certain questions unanswered (the final piece of information on the last page is particularly unexpected), but many of them are addressed in the third book, which I really appreciate.
There are many small but notable moments with interesting dialogues, like Troy’s conversations with his brother about “having knowledge without the power to act on it.�
The integration of the story within historical events, such as the Suez Crisis, also adds a unique flavor to the book.
Overall, this is an outstanding series that benefits from having knowledge of all the books. It allows you to recognize minor characters who will become more significant later on. Of all the book series I’ve read, Edwin Clark stands out as a particularly memorable secondary character.
Finally, I wonder if the book’s title might have worked better as Old (and New) Flames.
September 28, 2023
“Old Flames� is primarily a tale of espionage during the post World War II period in 1956 England. Scotland Yard Inspector, Frederick Troy is the star in this intricate narrative as he maneuvers his way through the MI5, MI6 as well as an assortment of spies and gays.
Freddie is difficult at times to understand, tends to lie a lot, but that’s part of his persona and his job. Fortunately there is always an emotional link to the reader through his descriptive musings. He is the only one of four children to have been English born after his family fled the first Russian Revolution of 1905. Troy’s father constantly reminded “his little Englander� to fold himself into English culture to better assimilate in a foreign country. Troy, educated at Harrow is a “toff�, part of a privileged society, though not considered one of the really privileged, due to his Russian heritage. Choosing to identify with neither England nor Russia; he feels most comfortable in the role of a policeman, a stabilizing force in a disturbed society.
Short in stature, but having been called a “pretty boy�, Troy is not lacking in female relationships. In the past, he shared a sadistic love/hate affair with the upper-class beauty, Diana Brack. At the other extreme, he found common ground with the brash New Yorker, Larissa Tosca, formerly a WAC and later KGB - couldn’t quite understand either relationship, but it does make for an interesting read.
Troy becomes more of a recurrent player for M15, M16 and their go-to agency Special Branch as he escorts Kruschev on an improbable tour of London; Both probably spying on each other. Later, he becomes involved in the disappearance of Commander Cockerell, a frogman/spy, and the identification of a body which may or may not be Cockerell. Oddly enough, some of the spies identified here such as Philby, Burgess and Maclean had been recruited at Cambridge. Similar to Troy they have no feeling of attachment to England. As one character explains their behavior is not a betrayal of one’s country, if one does not feel loyalty to it.
This is a first-class spy story blended with a social/cultural view of England at that time.
Freddie is difficult at times to understand, tends to lie a lot, but that’s part of his persona and his job. Fortunately there is always an emotional link to the reader through his descriptive musings. He is the only one of four children to have been English born after his family fled the first Russian Revolution of 1905. Troy’s father constantly reminded “his little Englander� to fold himself into English culture to better assimilate in a foreign country. Troy, educated at Harrow is a “toff�, part of a privileged society, though not considered one of the really privileged, due to his Russian heritage. Choosing to identify with neither England nor Russia; he feels most comfortable in the role of a policeman, a stabilizing force in a disturbed society.
Short in stature, but having been called a “pretty boy�, Troy is not lacking in female relationships. In the past, he shared a sadistic love/hate affair with the upper-class beauty, Diana Brack. At the other extreme, he found common ground with the brash New Yorker, Larissa Tosca, formerly a WAC and later KGB - couldn’t quite understand either relationship, but it does make for an interesting read.
Troy becomes more of a recurrent player for M15, M16 and their go-to agency Special Branch as he escorts Kruschev on an improbable tour of London; Both probably spying on each other. Later, he becomes involved in the disappearance of Commander Cockerell, a frogman/spy, and the identification of a body which may or may not be Cockerell. Oddly enough, some of the spies identified here such as Philby, Burgess and Maclean had been recruited at Cambridge. Similar to Troy they have no feeling of attachment to England. As one character explains their behavior is not a betrayal of one’s country, if one does not feel loyalty to it.
This is a first-class spy story blended with a social/cultural view of England at that time.
January 2, 2025
Lawton does a tremendous job of depicting European life for a politically engaged aristocratic detective inspector in the mid-fifties, a post-war, sophisticated, jaded, hopeful, dangerous, tedious world - it's all here. Troy is still something of an enigma to the reader, particularly to himself, but an awfully good interpreter of the conflicting forces that drive a petty bureaucrat, secret squirrel, world stage politician, or struggling shopkeeper. For admirers of Slow Horses and LeCarre who wants to understand the history behind the spying, and who likes detectives.
February 27, 2024
If you hate Britain and England and the English in particular, then this book is for you. The writer creates good characters and can evolve the plot nicely but cannot seem to resist chapters of seemingly unnecessary doom and gloom in regards to Britains character and history which becomes quite boring.
April 11, 2025
This book could be so much better. Maybe it needed to be written by someone else. The female characters are ridiculous. The amount of sex the asshole main character has with every woman he meets despite being a complete boring jerk is ridiculous. The endless freaking descriptions are ridiculous. This guy needs an editor so badly.
April 19, 2025
I love this man’s writing. It soars! This was the ninth book of Mr. Lawton’s for me. Despite being an unabashed fanboy, this one lost me at more than one point. And, though I can get caught up in a book with a complex plot, the plot of Old Flames was overwrought for my money. The vast cast of characters exacerbated things. So, buckle up, fellow John Lawton fans, it’s going to be a bumpy ride.
August 11, 2023
Disappointing, I’m sorry to say.
A bit meandering and unfocused. I almost never give up on a book because I choose very carefully and I have enjoyed John Lawton’s work before but this was hard work.
A bit meandering and unfocused. I almost never give up on a book because I choose very carefully and I have enjoyed John Lawton’s work before but this was hard work.
December 8, 2024
These books wander about, but not aimlessly.
April 27, 2025
Good thriller as DCI Troy gets drawn into a Special Branch job to protect Kruschev on his 1956 visit to the UK and the frogman death mystery
November 7, 2010
Lawton has been compared to John Le Carre. Well, they do share a first name and place their fiction in the Cold War spy game. In Old Flames Lawton even steals from Le Carre - a minor character. Perhaps an homage to the master? However, Le Carre is an insider and the American Lawton is an outsider, and it shows. Not that Lawton doesn’t have a handle on the British. His character studies are priceless and spot on. But they’re also cliches. Cliches work to a degree because they’re based on truth, on “types� that everyone recognizes and nods “Yep, got that one to a T.� The best authors, though, get underneath the stereotype, strip the mask, find the spark that makes a character unique. Lawton, in my opinion, doesn’t quite get there. Curiously, his most cliched and unbelievable character is American who talks in an anachronistic argot that feels pulled from the movies. Her Metropolitan Police murder squad detective husband (the hero: public school educated, independently wealthy of White Russian emigre background - how likely is that??? )jarringly calls her “Baby.�
His plotting is not quite "there� either. It’s all a bit too busy and dramatic and improbable. The above mentioned detective, for instance (spoiler alert!) takes Khrushchev (yes, that Khrushchev) on a secret trip (no minder's and K. "disguised" as bloke in a mac) to an East End pub, via the London Underground, so he can meet some real live working-class Englishmen. He ends up arguing with a Polish emigre grouch is also happens to be a pathologist employed by the Met and apparently likes slumming it down the East End.
This thriller is not quite spy story not quite police procedural - a sort of messy mix which allows the author to hop between the Met, Special Branch and the two MI’s, 5 & 6 and the KGB. Lots of double crossing going on. Oh, and then there’s the political stuff. Our upper-class, White Russian/English policeman’s brother is the Shadow Foreign Secretary (Labour) who is so pally with Ike (as in Dwight D. the Pres. ) that he receives weekly private phone calls from the 19th hole! The brothers� father, by the way, may or may not have been a Communist Party agent. See? A bit too busy and not terribly believable. Also not quite believable are the gorgeous young women eager to pull off their clothes and seduce not particularly attractive middle-aged men.
Still, despite its faults the storytelling is pretty compelling and you do want to know what know who dunnit.
His plotting is not quite "there� either. It’s all a bit too busy and dramatic and improbable. The above mentioned detective, for instance (spoiler alert!) takes Khrushchev (yes, that Khrushchev) on a secret trip (no minder's and K. "disguised" as bloke in a mac) to an East End pub, via the London Underground, so he can meet some real live working-class Englishmen. He ends up arguing with a Polish emigre grouch is also happens to be a pathologist employed by the Met and apparently likes slumming it down the East End.
This thriller is not quite spy story not quite police procedural - a sort of messy mix which allows the author to hop between the Met, Special Branch and the two MI’s, 5 & 6 and the KGB. Lots of double crossing going on. Oh, and then there’s the political stuff. Our upper-class, White Russian/English policeman’s brother is the Shadow Foreign Secretary (Labour) who is so pally with Ike (as in Dwight D. the Pres. ) that he receives weekly private phone calls from the 19th hole! The brothers� father, by the way, may or may not have been a Communist Party agent. See? A bit too busy and not terribly believable. Also not quite believable are the gorgeous young women eager to pull off their clothes and seduce not particularly attractive middle-aged men.
Still, despite its faults the storytelling is pretty compelling and you do want to know what know who dunnit.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 29, 2018
You will want to read Books 1 (BLACKOUT) and 4 (...MR. CHURCHILL) before this because Charlie appears first—chronologically—in Book 4. Muriel Edge appears first in Book 1, then again in Book 2.
Trying to keep all the characters straight is a real challenge because Lawton reveals only a bit at a time, at least that’s what I found in reading Books 4, 1, and 2. I started taking notes because my memory isn’t the greatest, and my knowledge of British politics was zilch. I was familiar with many British English words and expressions from having lived in England for 3 years, but that was during the 1980s, and not in London or Derbyshire or Lancashire.
Normally I zip through thrillers, but most are not as multilayered as Lawton’s. He interjects philosophical ideas into the dialog and historical events, and I found that I just wanted to understand *everything*—which required taking the time to look things up, like “Phoney War�, a term I’d never heard of before.
If you compare the average thriller with one of Lawton’s novels, it’s like comparing fast food with a gourmet meal at a top restaurant in the company of your favorite people. In order to appreciate everything, you don’t mind spending hours hours savoring the food, the wine, the ambience, the stimulating conversation, and being with friends. I don’t expect that everyone will feel this way after reading this book! The nearest similar experience I can think of is spending an hour or two in a lively discussion in a university course; stimulating and rewarding, because it made you THINK.
______________________________
I read this in ebook format and I’m glad I did, because it’s so easy to highlight text, Bookmark pages, scroll through all Bookmarks later, and Search the entire book for words/names if you have forgotten something. For me, it’s the only way to read books now; I can also change background color from white to pale yellow to black (w/white text) for nighttime reading. Ebooks are also weightless, and take up no physical space—you don’t even need a separate e-reader because you can read them on your smartphone. Text too small? Zoom in and out, or adjust font size in Settings. I LOVE being able to tailor text size and background color to protect my eyes.
Trying to keep all the characters straight is a real challenge because Lawton reveals only a bit at a time, at least that’s what I found in reading Books 4, 1, and 2. I started taking notes because my memory isn’t the greatest, and my knowledge of British politics was zilch. I was familiar with many British English words and expressions from having lived in England for 3 years, but that was during the 1980s, and not in London or Derbyshire or Lancashire.
Normally I zip through thrillers, but most are not as multilayered as Lawton’s. He interjects philosophical ideas into the dialog and historical events, and I found that I just wanted to understand *everything*—which required taking the time to look things up, like “Phoney War�, a term I’d never heard of before.
If you compare the average thriller with one of Lawton’s novels, it’s like comparing fast food with a gourmet meal at a top restaurant in the company of your favorite people. In order to appreciate everything, you don’t mind spending hours hours savoring the food, the wine, the ambience, the stimulating conversation, and being with friends. I don’t expect that everyone will feel this way after reading this book! The nearest similar experience I can think of is spending an hour or two in a lively discussion in a university course; stimulating and rewarding, because it made you THINK.
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I read this in ebook format and I’m glad I did, because it’s so easy to highlight text, Bookmark pages, scroll through all Bookmarks later, and Search the entire book for words/names if you have forgotten something. For me, it’s the only way to read books now; I can also change background color from white to pale yellow to black (w/white text) for nighttime reading. Ebooks are also weightless, and take up no physical space—you don’t even need a separate e-reader because you can read them on your smartphone. Text too small? Zoom in and out, or adjust font size in Settings. I LOVE being able to tailor text size and background color to protect my eyes.
June 1, 2014
Now a Detective Chief Inspector, Troy is seconded to the detested “plods� of Special Branch to guard diminutive, volcanic, crude Nikita Khrushchev, during the First Secretary of the Communist Party of the USSR’s 1956 state visit to Britain. Sadly, the victorious British citizenry are still expecting the war to have changed everything--but it hasn’t, even after a decade has passed. The story clarifies some of the earlier plot points since 1946 and features details of Troy’s very odd Russo-Brit childhood. The reader will find lots of references to BLACK OUT (1995), including an explanation of what Troy did with that revolver he was pointing in the closing scene.
More than midway through OLD FLAMES, we have a couple of corpses but no verifiable murder yet--which is peculiar for a novel about the head of the Murder Squad at Scotland Yard. In fact, not a whole heckuva lot goes on, plot-wise, for much of OLD FLAMES. Forty-one-year-old Troy meanders about, takes long weekends in the country, muses about his family and tries to ignore the many symptoms of the Cold War and his history of romantic calamities. However, as the finale approached, the action picks up dramatically and actually induces a breakneck “can’t put it down� reaction until the last page of OLD FLAMES.
Throughout his career, Troy has “hated spooks and spookery� (p87), but he can’t resist bearding the clandestine lions in their secretive dens. We are told: “The fate of the spy is to know impotence� (p289), to bear knowledge without the ability to act--which is antithetical to Troy’s nature. As a copper, he acquires knowledge so it can empower action. But, because his world is extraordinarily complex, action at Troy’s endgame can variously mean nicking the villains, shooting him/her dead (despite hating guns and being a self-confessed poor shot), blackmailing them to protect his own family, or keeping a scrupulous silence. Whatever defines Troy’s sense of justice, it is never driven by Queen, flag, class or country.
More than midway through OLD FLAMES, we have a couple of corpses but no verifiable murder yet--which is peculiar for a novel about the head of the Murder Squad at Scotland Yard. In fact, not a whole heckuva lot goes on, plot-wise, for much of OLD FLAMES. Forty-one-year-old Troy meanders about, takes long weekends in the country, muses about his family and tries to ignore the many symptoms of the Cold War and his history of romantic calamities. However, as the finale approached, the action picks up dramatically and actually induces a breakneck “can’t put it down� reaction until the last page of OLD FLAMES.
Throughout his career, Troy has “hated spooks and spookery� (p87), but he can’t resist bearding the clandestine lions in their secretive dens. We are told: “The fate of the spy is to know impotence� (p289), to bear knowledge without the ability to act--which is antithetical to Troy’s nature. As a copper, he acquires knowledge so it can empower action. But, because his world is extraordinarily complex, action at Troy’s endgame can variously mean nicking the villains, shooting him/her dead (despite hating guns and being a self-confessed poor shot), blackmailing them to protect his own family, or keeping a scrupulous silence. Whatever defines Troy’s sense of justice, it is never driven by Queen, flag, class or country.
March 13, 2017
Inspector Troy is back, although not so insufferable this time. Perhaps that’s because the book takes place 15 years after the first one. He’s an older, more mature version of his indestructible self. The story is sufficiently convoluted to make you wonder what’s going on for the first quarter. Plot line after plot line starts with no apparent connection to anything else. Then, magically, everything comes together in a way that makes you wonder if all the preamble was worth it.
What Iliked
You really get a sense of post-war England and the minor characters that populate it. Everything from the accents to the food was re-created with great care.
Once you figure out what Troy is supposed to be doing, things move quickly. The book was hard to put down for the last sixty percent or so.
Lawton does a great job incorporating his characters into historical events. The thought of Khrushchev wanting to sneak out of his hotel for a night visiting real Londoners is quite funny.
What I didn’tlike
The first quarter of the book was heavy on prose. Whether it was descriptions of the country estate or the introspective thoughts of Troy, I found myself struggling to pay attention to every word.
There were, perhaps, too many subplots. They were integrated well, but I do wonder if they added value to the story overall.
Recommendation
On the whole, I enjoyed Old Flames more than Blackout. The plot was better, if only because it wasn’t your standard murder mystery. There were all sorts of political and intelligence implications. If you’re a fan of those things, go for it. Otherwise, I’d aim for something lighter.
What Iliked
You really get a sense of post-war England and the minor characters that populate it. Everything from the accents to the food was re-created with great care.
Once you figure out what Troy is supposed to be doing, things move quickly. The book was hard to put down for the last sixty percent or so.
Lawton does a great job incorporating his characters into historical events. The thought of Khrushchev wanting to sneak out of his hotel for a night visiting real Londoners is quite funny.
What I didn’tlike
The first quarter of the book was heavy on prose. Whether it was descriptions of the country estate or the introspective thoughts of Troy, I found myself struggling to pay attention to every word.
There were, perhaps, too many subplots. They were integrated well, but I do wonder if they added value to the story overall.
Recommendation
On the whole, I enjoyed Old Flames more than Blackout. The plot was better, if only because it wasn’t your standard murder mystery. There were all sorts of political and intelligence implications. If you’re a fan of those things, go for it. Otherwise, I’d aim for something lighter.
June 23, 2021
This writer had a good story....character, plot, time and place, but the problem is, he doesn't know how to write a story. I judge books by asking myself...was that a good story? If the author can't write something where you enjoy it, then they have wasted your time and tried your patience. This author is just not a storyteller and is one of the worst I have ever tried to read. The book doesn't have any flow to it and is all over the place with a lot and I do mean a lot of added unnecessary verbiage. I kept thinking.....get on with the story! I keep thinking and hoping, will this book ever end. It was very, very tedious. I liked the main character from his first book in this series, but he seems to have transformed him into someone unrecognizable and unbelievable in this sequel. I now know why it was so long between me reading the first and now, this second book. My subconscious kept telling me the second could be more of the first, and it sadly was a lot more and a lot worse. I, sadly, will give up on this series. Too bad in that it had such good potential but fell flat on its face and I don't have any confidence the author can get it back on its feet again, must less off and running.
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