Publication
Ballantine Books (1996), 384 p.
Original publication date
1995
Collections
Subjects
Description
"LITERATE AND SAVVY . . . BRIMS WITH WARTIME INTRIGUE." --The Washington Post Book World England 1943. Much of the infamous Nazi Enigma code has been cracked. But Shark, the impenetrable operational cipher used by Nazi U-boats, has masked the Germans' movements, allowing them to destroy a record number of Allied vessels. Feeling that the blood of Allied sailors is on their hands, a top-secret team of British cryptographers works feverishly around the clock to break Shark. And when brilliant mathematician Tom Jericho succeeds, it is the stuff of legend. . . . "A TENSE AND THOUGHTFUL THRILLER." --San Francisco Chronicle Until the unthinkable happens: the Germans have somehow learned that Shark has been cracked. And they've changed the code. . . . "SUSPENSEFUL AND FASCINATING." --The Orlando Sentinel As an Allied convoy crosses the U-boat infested North Atlantic . . . as Jericho's ex-lover Claire disappears amid accusations that she is a Nazi collaborator . . . as Jericho strains his last resources to break Shark again, he cannot escape the ultimate truth: There is a traitor among them. . . . "GRIPPING . . . CAPTIVATING ." --New York Daily News "ELEGANTLY RESEARCHED . . . Readers will find themselves perfectly placed to experience one of Britain's finest hours." --People "SATISFYING . . . Harris does a crackerjack job here, playing his characters' lives off historical events in surprising ways." --Entertainment Weekly "SUSPENSEFUL . . . FIENDISHLY CLEVER." --Detroit Free Press… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member markbarnes
I'm a big fan of Robert Harris' thrillers, and fascinated by the story of Bletchley Park. As a thriller, it doesn't quite reach the heights of Fatherland, but it's still a terrific page-turner, and there are sufficient twists to keep you guessing without the plot running away with itself. That
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said, it is fiction, and there were a few times when I thought "that wouldn't have happened" (and Harris repeats the Coventry myth in the closing pages - although as it was written in 1995 before recent scholarship put the myth to bed, that's perhaps excusable). Well-worth reading over a relaxing weekend. Show Less
LibraryThing member FuzzySlippers
It was the subject that attracted me to this book, but once I started reading it, it was the characters that held me. I really like Robert Harris's writing style. It was a good story, drew me in and left me wanting more.
LibraryThing member housecarl
Enigma is a clever little mystery set in the context of the breaking the code for the Enigma machine that the Germans used to communicate with the
LibraryThing member verenka
I read about the Enigma before in Simon Singh's Code Book, which I thought explained the machine better than Robert Harris. It was interesting to read about war time in Great Britain, not from the soldier's point of view but the people who stayed behind.
Growing up and going to school in Austria I
Growing up and going to school in Austria I
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learned a lot about the war in Austria and Germany but I wasn't really aware how badly it affected the eventual winners too. Wartime tea, wartime makeup, wartime soap. Show Less
LibraryThing member Neilsantos
Wasn't exactly bad, but none of the characters are really likeable, the main character is a whiny nancy-boy. The mystery isn't solved, I'm just not sure what the purpose of the book was. I did like the exerpts from the "Lexicon of Cryptography".
LibraryThing member salvadesswaran
Brilliant. Although I must say I was rather disappointed to find fewer references to Turing than expected.
LibraryThing member ohernaes
Picked up this novel set in the codebreaking center Bletchley Park during world war II as a follow-up to reading Stephenson's Cryptonomicon. I learnt less than what I had hoped about cryptography. And I do not find historical fiction in which the protagonists contribute major efforts to historical
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episodes that interesting. Show Less
LibraryThing member paulmorriss
This story inserts itself into some fascinating historical events and is fascinating in itself. A good way of finding out about the role of the Enigma machine in the Second World War whilst also being thoroughly entertained.
LibraryThing member slpenney07
Summary: The British Allies are facing pressure from the American forces to break Enigma again. The return of star codebreaker Thomas Jericho coinsidences with the disappearance of his ex-lover, who he suspects was a traitor.
The Take-Away: Even though the math was over my head, the discussion of it
The two plots don't cross. Jericho doesn't need the missing Claire to crack the code, and it only side tracks him a bit. A very minor plot point was overlooked when Jericho contradicts his supervisor in front of the Americans. It's a temporary conflict that wasn't exploited to the max. I would have rather seen that then all of the doings with Claire.
Recommendation: Good, if you like historical thrillers.
The Take-Away: Even though the math was over my head, the discussion of it
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was built up so expertly, I trusted the characters. And, it only covered a small part of the book. The plot's focus instead was on the missing girl and getting back into Enigma after the Germans change the code books.The two plots don't cross. Jericho doesn't need the missing Claire to crack the code, and it only side tracks him a bit. A very minor plot point was overlooked when Jericho contradicts his supervisor in front of the Americans. It's a temporary conflict that wasn't exploited to the max. I would have rather seen that then all of the doings with Claire.
Recommendation: Good, if you like historical thrillers.
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LibraryThing member oldsetbuilder
I like any story that is about the Enigma encription machine created by Germany during the 2nd World War. I did think the level of detail was a bit excessive, and ponderous, seeing it through to the end proved worthwhile. It may be in English thing.
I definitely felt the frustration of code
I definitely felt the frustration of code
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breaking and now have a better appreciation for the tremendous effort the British went through. If someone hasn't said it in a while, THANKS. Show Less
LibraryThing member wyn
Took me a long time to get into as found expanation of enigma and associated events very technical. Probably too much depth for this kind of novel. However, the interest in all the complex characters soon developed and whilst the story line was flawed enjoyed the insight into this operation.
LibraryThing member Kathleen828
Finished 03/06/07
Entertaining, informative, a good recreational read
Entertaining, informative, a good recreational read
LibraryThing member Eruntane
I read this book in two days flat - having once picked it up I could hardly bring myself to put it down again. Once again Harris's ability to describe a place (in this case Bletchley Park in 1943) in vivid detail comes to the fore in this gripping mystery. And I was also very chuffed with myself
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for guessing who the spy was several chapters before it started to become obvious! I'd be interested to see the film now, although I'm sure it can't be as good as the book. Show Less
LibraryThing member Teresa1966
Exciting book. DNF because of personal circumstances , not because I wasn't enjoying it. Hope to finish one day. 2.5 stars for half a novel.
LibraryThing member uryjm
One of my favourite novels of recent years, and a second reading didn’t disappoint one bit. If anything, I enjoyed it even more this time ‘round, and although I remembered some of the plot I had forgotten the key twists and turns. Harris captures the mood of an era long gone and also highlights
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the quiet heroism and fortitude of a generation. You can’t help but wonder, as you hear Big Brother next door on TV with its crudity, effing and blinding, where we went wrong? Show Less
LibraryThing member alondoner
incredibly interesting - unputdownable
LibraryThing member breic
I enjoy Harris's writing, but his plots don't always add up. This one was extremely involved—too involved—and in the end felt quite similar to his "Fatherland." Not quite the same coverup, but close.
LibraryThing member jercox
A little forced in the plot at times, but enjoyable throughout.
LibraryThing member LARA335
In the late 1970s my uncle told me that he had been based at Bletchley Park during the war. At the time I was more impressed that he had kept a secret for so long than the engineering work he carried out. In my imagination I imagined he was one of the chosen few in a couple of huts. So, I picked
Firstly, it seemed a huge concern, far more people involved than I had been led to believe.
I’m a fan of Robert Harris but found this slow moving. And I found the ‘thriller’ element simply a tool to illuminate the (well-researched) work carried out by cryptographers at the Park during the war years. So, 4*s for shedding light on Bletchley’s role in the 2nd W.W. for civvies like me.
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this book up interested to know more.Firstly, it seemed a huge concern, far more people involved than I had been led to believe.
I’m a fan of Robert Harris but found this slow moving. And I found the ‘thriller’ element simply a tool to illuminate the (well-researched) work carried out by cryptographers at the Park during the war years. So, 4*s for shedding light on Bletchley’s role in the 2nd W.W. for civvies like me.
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LibraryThing member lamour
Harris tells the story of Enigma, the WW II German coding machine, that for a brief time in 1943 stumped the Allied code breakers which in turn led to many Allied vessels being torpedoed in the North Atlantic.
He uses fiction to dramatize the story having the British Intelligence force place a
Mainly a fast moving mystery that is a gripping read.
He uses fiction to dramatize the story having the British Intelligence force place a
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British agent in one of the huts at Bletchley Park to watch for and ferret out any suspicious people who may reveal the Allied knowledge about Enigma to the Germans. The protagonist is brilliant code breaker Thomas Jericho who is recovering from a nervous breakdown as the novel opens and through whose eyes we learn how Enigma works and how the code breakers attempt to break into the messages passing back and forth between U-Boats and German headquarters.Mainly a fast moving mystery that is a gripping read.
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Language
Original language
English
ISBN
9780804115483
Physical description
384 p.; 6.82 inches
Pages
384