SS-GB

It’s 1941. Germany has won the war, Churchill has been executed, the king is a captive in the Tower, and Great Britain is an occupied country. Our ‘hero’ is a young, gifted police superintendent who now comes under the authority of the Abwehr (German military intelligence). But then Standartenführer Huth arrives to take over a murder investigation for the SS and the scene is set for a vicious – literally – power play between the two organisations.

I’m not sure it’s possible to write a ‘fun’ book about the Nazi occupation of a country. And if it is then SS-GB isn’t it. For all its readability, it’s also grim, gloomy and depressing. Nobody trusts anybody. Nobody can trust anybody. Innocence and enthusiasm are betrayed or murdered. Or both. The Gestapo are everywhere. Food is scarce.

I think it's because it’s so well written – and researched – that the book has such an effect. You can feel the cold, and the hunger, and the ever-present fear that comes from never knowing who you can trust, or whether you’ll be picked up in the next round of reprisals. I suppose that’s it, really; Len Deighton’s done too good a job. This is no cheery adventure where plucky heroes dice with danger for ultimate victory. It’s a portrait of a country ruled by fear, shortages and the ever-present threat of death. With no end, none, in sight.