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Deep Blue

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Deep Blue

By: Alan Judd
Narrated by: Michael Fenner
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About this listen

 From the author of Legacy, now a major BBC Film, comes a brilliant new novel for fans of le Carre, Graham Greene and Charles Cumming.

During a time of political disruption and rising anti-nuclear sentiment, MI5 discovers that an extremist fringe group, Action Against Austerity, appears to have links to an established political party while planning sabotage using something or someone called Deep Blue. Banned from investigating British political parties, the head of MI5 seeks advice from Charles Thoroughgood, his opposite number in MI6.

Agreeing to help unofficially with the case, Charles must delve deep into his own past, to an unresolved Cold War case linked to his private life. Using the past as key to the present, he soon finds himself in a race against time to prevent a plot which is politically nuclear …

Authoritative and packed with in-depth knowledge, Deep Blue is a gripping new spy thriller from a master of the genre.

‘Judd infuses his writing with insider knowledge’ New Statesman Suspense Thriller & Suspense Espionage Fiction
All stars
Most relevant
I thought it a good listen, not ground breaking but absorbing enough. Same protaganists as Accidental Agent.

Don't believe the others

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I came to this novel having seen it recommended after reading Tom Bradby's excellent 'Secret Service' and 'Double Agent'.
I was expecting something similar in terms of Russia, MI6, MI5 and our lovely politicians and Spads. All the ingredients were there, especially the snarky competitiveness and snooty rivalry of the establishment figures but it was a very slight plot and the protagonists were a crusty old bunch of duffers especially our own home grown baddies who seemed like something out of 'Mrs Brown's Boys'. To say the spies were like characters from 'Last of the Summer Wine' is praising them in comparison. The end felt like a Benny Hill chase. I will try 'Accidental Agent' as I've purchased it and the sublime Sean Barrett is the narrator. Fingers crossed.

Last of the Summer Wine...

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Advertised as for fans of Le Carre and Cummings and definitely didn’t live up to billing. Dull story with little intrigue or drama. I’ve seen another review describing characters as akin to Last of the Summer Wine and that’s spot on. Narration exacerbates this.

Don’t waste time or money - listen to Sean Barrett narrate Slough House books instead.

Disappointing

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If this book wasn’t for you, who do you think might enjoy it more?

This may satisfy a teenager but it's not for adults

What could Alan Judd have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

He could have created a believable plot and populated it with 3 dimensional characters. He could have written a book that made me want to care

Did Michael Fenner do a good job differentiating each of the characters? How?

Yes, on the whole however there were times when he mixed up the voices and used a femail voice for one of the male characters

You didn’t love this book--but did it have any redeeming qualities?

It was only 6 hrs

Any additional comments?

Although the characterization was passable, it sounded more like Wallace and Grommit than an MI-5 / MI-6 novel. The whole idea that "M" would go driving around the countryside in a classic car chasing a terrorist cell is laughable!

Desperate drivel - Avoid at all costs!

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Whoever wrote the synopsis of this audiobook is either not a reader of good espionage novels or is being paid. This is a poor story with flimsy characters and an air of implausible nonsense that is not at all compelling for a reader. Other reviewers have mentioned flaws they noticed and I agree with them.
The reader is a capable person, but wholly miscast here with his “Mr Kipling does make exceedingly good cakes” narration, ham Russian accent and other character voices. None of this elevates the script. Perhaps the team responsible should listen to the Simon Russell Beale Smiley stories which are at the opposite end of the spectrum from this in every sense. A good narrative doesn’t need funny voices to be exciting and suspenseful. To be fair the reader had only the script to work with and the pickings are thin.
I searched and the author appears to exist, but I was wondering whether this had been created by AI. It seems to include just the sort of thing that an algorithm might decide was an amalgamation of a range of espionage stories.
Don’t waste your time on this tedious stuff.

Far from “a brilliant new novel for fans of le Carre, Graham Greene and Charles Cumming.”

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