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Typhoon [Paperback]

Charles Cumming
4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (28 customer reviews)
RRP: £7.99
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Book Description

26 Feb 2009

Hong Kong 1997. Only a few short months of British sovereignty left before the territory returns to Chinese rule.

It's a feverish city. And the spooks are hard at work, jostling for position and influence. So when an elderly man emerges from the sea, claiming to know secrets he will share only with the Governor, a young MI6 agent, Joe Lennox, sees the chance to make his reputation.

But when the old man, a high-profile Chinese professor, is spirited away in the middle of the night by Joe's superiors and the CIA, it's clear that there's a great deal more at stake than a young spy's career.

The professor holds the key to a sinister and ambitious plan that could have catastrophic repercussions for the world in the next century . . .


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Product details

  • Paperback: 512 pages
  • Publisher: Penguin (26 Feb 2009)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 014101802X
  • ISBN-13: 978-0141018027
  • Product Dimensions: 12.9 x 3 x 19.8 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (28 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 11,276 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Review

A wholly compelling and sophisticated spy novel - vivid and disturbing - immacutely researched and full of harrowing contemporary relevance. -- William Boyd

Cumming gives us complex characters and a world-weariness that owe more to Smiley than Bond and mark him out as in the first rank of the new generation of espionage writers. -- The Times - Top 10 Thrillers of 2008

It's hard to pull off the combination of thriller and romance but Cumming does it seamlessly - plus he's working on a big canvas. He has already establised his reputation with his modern take on the spy novel but here he vaults to another level. Great stuff. -- The Observer

Sharp . . . complex . . . vivid. -- The Economist

The comparison is a heavy one for a young author, but Typhoon, with its deep plotting, flawed characters, climactic conclusion and undercurrent of mistrust is another step in the footprints of the master, John le Carre.
-- The Times

Review

A wholly compelling and sophisticated spy novel - vivid and disturbing - immacutely researched and full of harrowing contemporary relevance.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
18 of 20 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Another Winner! 11 Mar 2009
Format:Paperback
Once more Charles Cumming does not disappoint. Typhoon is a fast moving and fascinating insight into a side of China that is for the most part unknown. Few had heard of the Uighur minority in the North Western part of this vast country. Strangely life imitated art in that some months after the launch of the book there were indeed troubles in the region. This serves to confirm the detailed research which Cumming always exhibits in his novels and which, combined with his considerable powers of description confirm his position as one of our leading young writers of today. A fascinating story.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Sex, Politics and Espionage - it has to be read! 22 Nov 2010
Format:Paperback
From the opening pages of Typhoon, Charles Cumming captures his audience with his best novel so far. Typhoon is set in Hong Kong in the final months of British rule with politics and espionage at the forefront of this brilliantly written novel. Cumming has a unique way of combining clever character profiles with his familiarly well researched plot and a sexy love triangle thrown into the mix. A thoroughly excellent book which can only be recommended and I look forward to more great things from a fine author.
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22 of 25 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars UK's new spy thriller master 2 Jun 2008
Format:Mass Market Paperback
If John Le Carré modernized the image of the seedier image of the British Secret Service, then Cumming's new book Typhoon combines the traditional with the contemporary of the spying game. It also signifies Cumming as perhaps the most noteworthy writer to arrive since, say, Le Carré or Frederick Forsyth.

With the end of the Cold War, writers have had to look for other political arenas for their character to perform in. Some naturally led to confrontations with Al Qaeda or other terrorist but many have focused on the glamorous (if it can be called that) side. In Typhoon, Cumming's approaches an old "enemy" from a new angle with great sensitivity. Basically Typhoon is a political thriller about a CIA plot to destabilize China on the eve of the Beijing Olympics. British SIS are involved from the start as the novel begins at the time of the handing over sovereignty of Hong Kong and spans a decade. The novel also focuses on the plight of the Muslim inhabitants of the Xinhiang region of the People's Republic of China, and it is used as a pawn by the CIA to bring about this destablization. The question is: how can the SIS prevent this?

It is also a story of three main characters whose lives are inextricably entwined, making for a novel that's poignant without ever giving into outright happiness. You get the feeling from the outset that SIS agent Joe Lennox's relationship with Isabella is doomed from the start. Basically because if something is coveted so much, there is a price to pay. And the thorn in his side is CIA agent Miles Coolidge. It is the dynamics of these characters that drives the novel.

Cumming has a knack of description that brings the novel alive, capturing Shanghai or Hong Kong so visually you actually feel you are there. If the spy novel and the characters that people them have to change with the times to appeal to an audience with ever increasing access to information, then Charles Cumming has managed to recall why people read Greene, Ambler, Forysth, Le Carré et al. The tag-line "master of the modern spy thriller" is a deserved one.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars A brilliant read.
Charles Cumming's characters are perfectly believable and the story lines are always unusual. A brilliant read and very well researched.
Published 10 days ago by patricia a. lauren
3.0 out of 5 stars Classic espionage
A great espionage thriller in the classic Le Carre style! Strong and engaging characters. Vary authentic feel to the locations.
Published 25 days ago by Mr. S. M. Teal
5.0 out of 5 stars New location for Charles Cumming
A new location ( Hongkong/
China) and a new younger character. Gripping plot driven by personal and poltical storylines. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Ms Avid Reader
2.0 out of 5 stars Dull and predictable, why all the fuss?
The publishers have put a quote on the cover about this following in the footsteps of Le Carre; I needed no further encouragement and parted with my cash. Read more
Published 10 months ago by Jez
4.0 out of 5 stars the book
the book arrived today. i am concerned that the book is an ex HAMMERSMITH LIBARY book when it was decribed as USED GOOD. the libary lending form is still in the inside cover. Read more
Published 16 months ago by barry w ray
5.0 out of 5 stars a truly credible spy thriller a la le carre
it is not common to find a spy thriller which is like real life. many ,actualy most, arent.typhoon is it. Read more
Published 20 months ago by N. Barkan
5.0 out of 5 stars Very enjoyable
I have read two other novels from this author and this is, so far, the most entertaining.

The early section of the novel seemed to echo "The Honourable Schoolboy", but... Read more
Published 22 months ago by E. Weatherup
5.0 out of 5 stars A Towering Achievement
This novel works on so many different levels.
It's a character study, a love story, a political thriller, a history of the transfer of Hong Kong and a straight spy story -... Read more
Published on 18 Feb 2011 by David Craggs
1.0 out of 5 stars not great
After having read his previous novels I was disappointed with this one, so much so I found it quite difficult to carry on reading it. Read more
Published on 26 Sep 2010 by ben bone
4.0 out of 5 stars Very Plausible Story Line
Not a lot of car chase excitement, actually none, but that's probably what the spook business is all about....moments of excitement, but hours, days and weeks of boredom. Read more
Published on 15 Feb 2010 by Kim W. Rellahan
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