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Leaving Berlin

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Leaving Berlin

By: Joseph Kanon
Narrated by: Corey Brill
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About this listen

 'Up there with the very best . . . Kanon writes beautifully, superbly . . . He is the master of the shadows of the era' THE TIMES

From the author of The Good German (made into a film starring George Clooney), Leaving Berlin is a sweeping post-war story and an international bestseller.

Berlin is still in ruins almost four years after the war, caught between political idealism and the harsh realities of Soviet occupation. Alex Meier is a young Jewish writer who fled the Nazis for America before the war. Now, the politics of his youth have left him embroiled in the McCarthy witch-hunts. Faced with deportation and the loss of his family, Alex makes a desperate bargain with the fledgling CIA: he will earn his way back to America by acting as their agent in his native Berlin.

But almost from the start things go fatally wrong. Espionage, like the black market, is still a way of life.

PRAISE FOR LEAVING BERLIN:

'An unforgettable picture of a city wrecked by defeat and betrayal. Brilliant' THE TIMES

'Leaving Berlin is hauntingly and beautifully written. You’re going to love it . . . Falling into the book is like falling into a vice; it grips you, pitilessly, until the last page' RICHARD & JUDY BOOK CLUB

'Hugely exciting' DAILY TELEGRAPH

'One of the most exciting books I’ve read in years' ALEXANDER MCCALL SMITH, author of The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series

'Brings the hardships and moral decay of post-war Berlin to life in glorious detail' DAILY EXPRESS Espionage Historical Spies & Politics Suspense Thriller & Suspense Fiction War
All stars
Most relevant
I am a big Bernie Gunther fan and this was on the same level. Less humour and history but intricate plot line and a pleasure to listen to.

Great characters and plot

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really liked the book, great story and insights into post war Germany. found it gripping enough in places to sail past my exit on the motorway. would wish the narrator had done some basic googling before reading the book though and not quite butchered the German so much, however he is great at doing the different characters and conveying the mood of the book.

good with room for improvement

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The first hour or so, almost seems unneeded. Once the story gets going it is worth it, twists and turns of post war Berlin.

Give it time

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One of those rare audiobooks where you are furious if anything interrupts it.
Brilliant narration, fantastic twisty plot, so atmospheric of post war Berlin.
I’m off to buy everything else Joseph Kanon ever wrote.

Gripping

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This is the most boring listen I’ve ever experienced from Audible, the narrator is slow and totally boring and brings no spark to the book

Slow

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