| Revision as of 04:54, 9 September 2015 editMandarax (talk | contribs)Autopatrolled, Extended confirmed users, Pending changes reviewers, Rollbackers388,559 editsm Replace apostrophes per WP:PUNC; also rm some erroneous italics. (But I got tired of all of this, and only did the first part of the article.)← Previous edit | Latest revision as of 14:45, 13 August 2023 edit undoJosvebot (talk | contribs)Bots105,329 editsm adding {{R to ...}} or {{R from ...}} template to redirect pageTag: AWB | ||
| (31 intermediate revisions by 7 users not shown) | |||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
| #REDIRECT ] {{R from other capitalisation}} | |||
| {{Infobox book | |||
| | image = | |||
| | name = Secrets of the Last Nazi | |||
| | author = ] | |||
| | publisher = Bookouture | |||
| | release date = 9 July 2015 (UK)<br />14 July 2015 (US) | |||
| | page count = 456 pages (Paperback UK)<ref></ref> 454 pages (paperback US) <ref></ref> 395 (Kindle edition) <ref></ref> | |||
| | dedicated to = "The Real Helen Bridle" | |||
| | story timeline = 9 July 1945 (prologue)<br />9 July 2015 – 16 July 2015 | |||
| | isbn = 1910751103 | |||
| | ASIN = B00WWRPVHQ | |||
| | followed by = The Last Prophecy of Rome | |||
| | chapter count = 70 | |||
| }} | |||
| '''''Secrets of the Last Nazi''''' is the first novel in the Myles Munro series, and the ] from ] author Iain King. The plot follows Myles Munro, an eccentric lecturer in military history, asked to investigate papers belonging to the late Werner Stolz, formerly an SS Captain. As part of an international team comprising representatives from ], the ] and ], Munro faces dangers from an unseen foe who is also trying to capture the dead Nazi’s secrets.<ref>Tom Wright, in a review for '']'', published on page 54 of the 16th July 2015 edition of the newspaper, summarised the book in this sentence: ''"A brilliant but unconventional academic races shadowy agents, a deranged killer and power-mad priests to expose a vast conspiracy."'' Review accessed 24th August 2015.</ref> | |||
| The book was published on 9 July 2015 by Bookouture<ref>Bookouture's two-book deal with King was reported in the Bookseller magazine. Their report, from February 2015, is available online in , accessed 24th August 2015.</ref> in ], with copies made available in paperback and electronic form in the UK and USA.<ref>The US edition was made available five days later, on July 14, 2015, as shown on , accessed 24th August 2015.</ref> Within one month, the novel had become the best-selling spy story in the UK,<ref>This news was reported in several places. In Writing Belle of ] notes that "Secrets of the Last Nazi has just become the bestselling spy story in the UK, and been classified by Amazon USA as a 'Number One New Release'." Accessed 24th August 2015.</ref><ref>Literary Agent Clare Hulton wrote: ''"Hugely exciting to see Iain King's debut conspiracy thriller Secrets of the Last Nazi receiving rave reviews on amazon.co.uk, reaching the number one slot in its categories, and on amazon.com where it is the number one new release in its category."'' – taken from http://www.clarehulton.com/ and accessed on 24th August 2015.</ref><ref> shows the best seller table on 2nd August 2015 with ''Secrets of the Last Nazi'' in the number one position.</ref> outselling books by ], ], ] and ].<ref>In , accessed 24th August 2015, ''Secrets of the Last Nazi'' is shown outselling books by Chris Ryan, Ken Follett and Wilbur Smith; John Le Carre is mentioned in the post titled, , accessed 24th August 2015.</ref> It also achieved number one new release status on Amazon in the USA.<ref>Lane, S. 14th August 2015: "''Secrets of the Last Nazi'' has just … been classified by Amazon USA as a 'Number One New Release'." – taken from , and accessed on 24th August 2015.</ref><ref>Literary Agent Clare Hulton wrote: "Iain King's debut conspiracy thriller Secrets of the Last Nazi… is the number one new release in its category." – taken from and accessed on 24th August 2015; with confirmation offered by graphics on , from 9th August 2015, accessed 24th August 2015.</ref> | |||
| Most critics wrote favourable reviews of the book.<ref>One of the earliest commentaries on the book seems to be in with author Renita D'Silva, where she describes the book as "Fabulous".</ref><ref>Several commentators mentioned the book on ] before it was published – examples are , also , and . These examples are representative: as of 28th August 2015, there were no critical or negative reviews of Secrets of the Last Nazi on twitter (this fact verifiable by searching ''Secrets of the Last Nazi'' on twitter).</ref><ref>For a collection of early reviews of the book, see: , accessed 27th August 2015.</ref><ref>Of the first twenty reviews of the book, nineteen readers awarded it five stars out of five, and one reader gave it four. , accessed 28th August 2015.</ref> Positive comments were made about the book's pace,<ref>Wright, T, 16th July 2015, ''The Sun'' page 54: "(Secrets of the Last Nazi) romps along at a ferocious pace". Also, - from a reviewer for libraries in ]. Accessed 28th August 2015.</ref><ref>Author Sue Fortin said the book had "A good pace all the way through, building up and racing to an exciting finish." Fortin is quoted , accessed 28th August 2015.</ref><ref>Former ] journalist Terry Stiastny says the book "races across Europe" on accessed 28th August 2015.</ref><ref>"That's another amazing thing about this novel, while it's definitely a complex story, it reads easy (to certain extent) and is a real page turner." – taken from , accessed 28th August 2015.</ref> the characters,<ref>''"The characters are so different and memorable, especially Myles Munro, the agent UK government sends…. Amazing, ballsy and unique characters you'll root for while on the quest to reveal the big secret,"'' according to the , accessed 28th August 2015.</ref> and the story as a whole.<ref>Accio Adventure website, on 29th May 2015, concluded: . Also, on 15th July, Paul Lane described the book as , (accessed 28th August 2015)</ref> Negative comments included a suggestion that the story was "burdened by detail,"<ref>This critique is drawn from this paragraph: ''"I… must admit some parts and all their reference added some burden to the story and made it more difficult to read. I’m not saying they felt dragging, however they did seem a bit too much to digest. Or maybe it’s just me and my state of mind when I was reading this book. Overall, it’s an enjoyable, fast paced political thriller full of action that will definitely appeal to fans of Dan Brown."'' This excerpt is taken from </ref> and that it was unnecessary for the time to be shown at the start of each chapter.<ref>Criticism made by a former ] member who reviewed the book in the USA. The full quote is: ''"While I fail to understand why we, as readers, need to know the specific time of the start of each chapter, I found the book enjoyable, enticing, and informative."'' The review can be accessed (accessed 28th August 2015).</ref> King was also criticised for including a ''"graphic torture scene"'' early in the book.<ref>''Secrets of the Last Nazi'' contains ''"quite graphic torture scenes"'' according to , June 2015, accessed 29th August 2015.</ref> Some reviewers described the book as "controversial",<ref>'This Chick Reads' commented: . The book was also introduced as by talk radio host Hannah Murray, on 13th August 2015, on the (audio downloadable from the site).</ref> while others concluded it could change profoundly the way people think.<ref>In an interview, Author Renita D'Silva said: Also, on 17th July 2015, the American literary critic ‘Book Bitch’ wrote: </ref><ref>Also, David Boyle of The Guardian concluded: ''Iain King has come up with a thrilling plot and an ingenious idea that has the possibility to turn everyone's ideas upside down and back to front.'' This quote is accessible in several places.</ref><ref>On 29th May 2015, the concluded: ''"This 392 paged novel… at once a thriller, a mystery, a treasure hunt, and an incredible revelationary work that may just change the way you look at the world."''</ref> | |||
| ==Synopsis== | |||
| ===Plot=== | |||
| As the title suggest, the plot centres on secrets held by one of the last men to work for ]. The story starts in ], two months after the end of World War Two, where SS Captain Werner Stolz is being questioned by Allied soldiers about Nazi research programmes. The interrogation goes badly. | |||
| Seventy years later, Werner Stolz, now over one hundred years old, prepares to die in his nursing home near Berlin.<ref>The age of Stolz at his death was calculated by ‘Men Reading Books’ as 102. The full quote is: in , accessed 28th August 2015.</ref> Since the war, he’s lived a very full, accomplished and varied life. | |||
| At this point, we meet the hero, Myles Munro, who is helping his old friend, Frank Wellesley. Wellesley shows Munro his new exhibition at London’s ], when they find someone stealing papers from the archives. Munro chases the thief out into the road, where the thief is killed in traffic and Munro badly injures his knee; he remains injured throughout the story. | |||
| Stolz is found dead, with a bullet wound to the head and a ] capsule in his mouth. It is initially thought to be suicide, emulating Hitler’s death, but suspicions are raised by forensic tests, which indicate he was killed. | |||
| Russian diplomat Zenyalena Androvsky issues a ] to the USA, evoking a clause in the ] that requires that all information from the ] to be shared between the Allies, and demanding an investigation into Stolz’s wartime research. The Americans agree, and nominees from the old ] – the USA, Russia, France and the UK – are selected for the mission. When Myles Munro learns the museum thief had been stealing papers about Stolz, he accepts Britain’s place on the team. | |||
| ] | |||
| The four-person team gather at the historic ]<ref>The international investigation team have exclusive access to the hotel in the Cecilienhof Palace, which was also used to host the 1945 ], because the hotel was closed to normal guests after 2014, as shown on the hotel website, , accessed 28th August 2015.</ref> to examine Stolz’s papers, then visit the man’s surprisingly sparse apartment in East Berlin. Munro faces an attempt on his life in the building. | |||
| The team are divided by Stolz’s papers: the Russian, Zenylena, thinks they indicate the Nazis made a huge scientific advance,<ref>According to Page 7 of "The Esoteric Codex: Nazism and the Occult" By Hans Tridle, ISBN 978-1-312-99589-5, this advance relates to using science to make occult practices more accurate. Tridle’s book states ''"Secrets of the Last Nazi by Iain King examines the Third Reich's fascination with astrology and predicting the future"''. Tridle's book also gives further details on Nazi research in related areas.</ref> while the American, Glenn, suggests it was probably a trick. That night one of the team is killed by a psychotic assassin under the pay of Father Samuel, an enigmatic figure who is tracking the international team, determined to keep Stolz’s secrets hidden.<ref>One literary critic states Accessed 28th August 2015.</ref> | |||
| Realising Stolz had hidden further papers in four locations, the team travel first to ], uncovering substantial material from Stolz in the ]. But fire engulfs the upper reading room, and they only just manage to escape. Further clues take them to two other locations, both of which were highly significant in the early years of the Nazi party, stopping at a ] in between to treat one of their team, who becomes seriously wounded.<ref>According to , ''"As the investigatory team moves from the Berlin area to Austria, Italy, France, and back to Berlin, it become apparent that someone else is watching their progress."'' From 30th July 2015, accessed 28th August 2015.</ref> | |||
| The final scenes take place back in Berlin, where the team unearths Stolz’s most impressive wartime achievement, and each team member is confronted with a terrifying revelation. Meanwhile, Father Samuel enacts his plan to keep Stolz’s secret ‘hidden in public view.’<ref>Samuel’s plan only emerges in the penultimate chapter of the book, Chapter 69.</ref> | |||
| ===Themes=== | |||
| ''Secrets of the Last Nazi'' explores whether our character and choices can really change our fate,<ref>This is made most explicit in chapter 59 of the book.</ref> and suggests it is best for us to believe we have ], even if we don’t.<ref>''Secrets of the Last Nazi'', Chapter 70, page 412, ''"If people knew their future they’d stop trying…. (It would) hurt every human being who ever wanted to make a decision for themselves."''</ref> It also examines what someone working for the Nazis can do to redeem themselves.<ref>''Secrets of the Last Nazi'', page 414.</ref> | |||
| ==Main Characters== | |||
| ], who also led secret research programmes for Hitler during WWII, pictured here with ].]] | |||
| '''''Werner Stolz''''' – a former Captain in the SS interrogated by the Allies in the book’s opening scene. Stolz lived an unusually fortunate life after 1945, and was able to retire early and become a philanthropist and a VIP at the ]. Stolz is ‘The Last Nazi’, and dies in Chapter One. | |||
| '''''Myles Munro''''' – a ‘brilliant but unconventional academic’,<ref>This is ''The Sun’s'' description of Myles Munro, from their review on 16th July 2015, page 54.</ref> with a sharp distrust of bureaucrats, described as a misfit and "not recommended for leadership positions",<ref>In Chapter 9, where is also described as having ''"issues with authority,"'' and a post-it notes reveals he turned down an assignment when the person asking him admitted she was a bureaucrat.</ref> There are suggestions that Munro was falsely accused of association with terrorists in the past.<ref>On page 46 of the book, the report on Munro’s previous assignment simply states the word ''"exonerated".''</ref> Myles is clumsy,<ref>In the book, assistant deployments manager Simon Charfield notes ''"Myles Munro may be healthy and physically fit. But I don’t know how the hell he passed his driving test – he can barely tie his shoelaces. He’s less coordinated than a kitten on Youtube".''</ref> and is hampered by a knee injury throughout ''Secrets of the Last Nazi''. | |||
| '''''Helen Bridle''''' – Munro’s partner, a spirited American TV journalist. Helen Bridle was named after a real person, who, while dying from cancer, encouraged King to switch to fiction writing, and to name a heroine after her.<ref>In a US magazine interview, in August 2015, King said: ''"I used to write non-fiction, but a friend – on her deathbed – told me to switch to fiction, and make her one of the characters in my stories. I dedicated ‘Secrets of the Last Nazi’ to her, and yes, as promised, the heroine has her name."'' The text of the interview is , accessed 28th August 2015.</ref> ''Secrets of the Last Nazi'' is dedicated "To the real Helen Bridle". | |||
| '''''Glenn''''' – a sarcastic, secretive American.<ref>''The Sun'' describes him as "Shadowy" (July 16th 2015, page 54).</ref> There are several indications that Glenn has a background in military intelligence. | |||
| '''''Zenyalena Androvsky''''' – A Russian diplomat keen to ''"win one over on the yanks"''<ref>When she was a teenager, Zenyalena’s father was killed while serving in ] by a surface-to-air missile supplied by the ]. The quote ''"win one over on the yanks"'' is from , retrieved on 28th August 2015.</ref> and determined to follow the investigation through to the end. | |||
| '''''Jean-Francoise Pigou''''' – A flight lieutenant in the ], seconded to the ]. | |||
| '''''Lieutenant Colonel Pascal''''' – A Frenchman recommended by Jean-Francoise, and an expert in statistics and history. | |||
| '''''Heike-Ann Hassenbacher''''' – The team’s German assistant. Heike-Ann is employed by the German diplomatic police, and is four months pregnant. | |||
| '''''Frank Wellesley''''' – The hapless curator of the Imperial War Museum, and a university friend of Myles Munro. Frank had childhood ], giving him a permanent limp. | |||
| '''''Dieter''''' – a psychopath with a criminal past, fond of Nazi ideology.<ref>According to ''The Sun'' (July 16th 2015, page 54), Dieter is "deranged".</ref> | |||
| '''''Father Samuel''''' – a rotund religious figure, determined to keep Stolz’s secrets hidden.<ref>''The Sun'' (July 16th 2015, page 54) describes him as "power-mad".</ref> Samuel later meets with the arrogant Professor Cromwell, a "professional atheist" who has made his career from mocking religion, and the multi-millionaire Philip Ford. | |||
| ==Inspiration, Research and Writing== | |||
| ===Inspiration=== | |||
| Iain King had previously written non-fiction books on ], foreign affairs and military history, which had sold well, but which had earned little money.<ref>Source: from July 2014.</ref><ref>Details of his previous books: , which chronicles the Kosovo intervention; , which is about life working in Afghan warzones; and , which is about moral philosophy.</ref> He switched from writing non-fiction to fiction at the request of his friend, Helen Bridle, who was dying from cancer and asked for a heroine to be named after her. King said that keeping his promise to Helen motivated him to write,<ref>In , published in California in August 2015, King said: ''"I used to write non-fiction, but a friend – on her deathbed – told me to switch to fiction, and make her one of the characters in my stories. I dedicated ‘Secrets of the Last Nazi’ to her, and yes, as promised, the heroine has her name."''</ref> and ‘’Secrets of the Last Nazi’’ is dedicated ''‘To the Real Helen Bridle’''.<ref>The dedication on page 5 of the UK paperback reads ''‘To the real Helen Bridle’''. Note that King said he was also inspired by the ''‘very kind reviews’'' he received for his first book, ‘Peace at Any Price’ which was about Kosovo. In , which was published in the USA in August 2015, King said: ''"Peace at Any Price my first book, co-written with a friend. It’s a modern history of Kosovo, where I spent four years working for the UN. The book tries to make sense of the Kosovo war and the international intervention which followed, including what worked, what didn’t, and why. The very kind reviews for the book inspired me to keep writing."'' Accessed 28th August 2015.</ref> | |||
| King chose to make the main hero a military historian because he wanted to challenge the way ''"World War Two still dominates the way modern society thinks about war,"'' which he said was wrong, given the nature of 21st century wars in Africa and the Middle East.<ref>From </ref> But nevertheless, he chose ] as the backdrop for his first book because it was ''"exciting and fascinating,"'' and because ''"Nazis are the ultimate ‘baddies’"''.<ref>Iain King explained that: ''"World War Two still dominates the way modern society thinks about war – just look at any programming schedule for the History Channel. I don’t think it should, as most people who’ve been in 21st century wars, in Africa or the Middle East, will agree. But World War Two was exciting and fascinating, and Nazis are the ultimate ‘baddies’."'' – taken from , August 2015.</ref> | |||
| ==Research and Writing== | |||
| ].</ref>]] | |||
| In a magazine interview, King revealed he spent more time researching than writing the book,<ref>Taken from , August 2015.</ref> seeking non-fiction elements which would merit reading in their own right as the basis for a thriller.<ref>See , August 2015.</ref> King’s research has been accepted as meticulous and substantial;<ref>For example, Stacy Alesi's 'Book Bitch' review concludes: From July 2015.</ref> one reviewer warned that ''"reading this book may make you wish to spend several hours on Google doing research on topics you never imagined your interest in."''<ref>The full quote says: ''"I will caution you that reading this book may make you wish to spend several hours on Google doing research on topics you never imagined your interest in."'' Taken from , posted in May 2015.</ref> | |||
| ] | |||
| Based on Iain King’s research,<ref>Iain King has credited some of his research findings to Tomas Weber’s book ''Hitler’s First War'', ISBN 9780199226382. See </ref> the book claims that Hitler’s supposed heroics as a young soldier in ] were propaganda, and that "several respected Western journalists colluded in the myth" that Hitler was brave.<ref>This quote is from page 418 of ''‘Secrets of the Last Nazi’''.</ref> During the course of the story, reflecting King’s research, characters discover evidence that Hitler dodged the draft for ] at least three times before World War One;<ref>On page 185 of the book, chapter 33, the allegation is made that ''"Hitler lied in Mein Kampf"'' by pretending to have left Vienna in 1912, whereas in fact he left later and was draft dodging in 1912 and 1913. The allegation is repeated elsewhere in the book, for example on page 418 of ''Secrets of the Last Nazi''.</ref> that the dictator-to-be spent less time in the trenches than almost any other private in his regiment,<ref>''Secrets of the Last Nazi'', page 418.</ref> implying that his ] was undeserved<ref>''Secrets of the Last Nazi,'' page 418.</ref> and that Hitler was not really blinded by a ] attack in October 1918, as Hitler claimed in his ], but by a mental collapse.<ref>''Secrets of the Last Nazi'' page 290.</ref> The book alleges that a ] tried to blackmail Hitler with the real medical report which made this clear, but Hitler had the ].<ref>See page 290 of ''Secrets of the Last Nazi''. More details are set out on the official ''Secrets of the Last Nazi'' webpage, in from 17th June, 2015.</ref> | |||
| King also alleges that Hitler’s personal book collection contained ''"books on magic… which had almost certainly been thumbed through by the dictator himself,"''<ref>Ryback, Timothy W., writing in ] corroborates this assertion. In his article, , he writes: ''"One of the most heavily marked books (in Hitler’s book collection) is Magic: History, Theory and Practice (1923), by Ernst Schertel… Hitler's copy of Magic bears a handwritten dedication from Schertel, scrawled on the title page in pencil. … The book has been thoroughly read, and its margins scored repeatedly. I found a particularly thick pencil line beside the passage "He who does not carry demonic seeds within him will never give birth to a new world."''</ref> and provides details on how other top Nazis, notably ] and ], tried to apply science to occult topics in their efforts to strengthen the Reich.<ref>Tridle, Hans, ''"The Esoteric Codex: Nazism and the Occult"'' Page 7., ISBN 978-1-312-99589-5: ''"Secrets of the Last Nazi by Iain King examines the Third Reich's fascination with… predicting the future"''.</ref> Twenty-seven pages from Stolz, which offer detail on the research, are provided at the back of the book.<ref>Pages 421-448 of ''‘Secrets of the Last Nazi’''.</ref> | |||
| In a magazine interview, Iain King remarked: ''"Secrets of the Last Nazi involved a great deal of detailed research, and what I discovered was profoundly shocking. I know many people will find it hard to believe, or refuse to believe it. The book is my attempt to wrap those truly amazing facts in a clever tale."''<ref>Comments made by King in February 2015, quoted in </ref> | |||
| ==Publication and Reception== | |||
| Bookouture bought rights to ‘Secrets of the Last Nazi’ in February 2015.<ref>Reported by on 16th Feburary 2015, and in , accessed 29th August 2015.</ref> Artwork for the book’s cover was designed by Tom Sanderson, formerly design manager at ] and ].<ref>Tom Sanderson’s role is credited on the book cover, with further details at accessed 28th August 2015.</ref> | |||
| The book was published on 9 July 2015 by Bookouture<ref>Bookouture’s two-book deal with King was reported in the Bookseller magazine. Their report, from February 2015, is available online in , accessed 24th August 2015.</ref> in London, with copies made available in paperback and electronic form in the UK and USA.<ref>The US edition was made available five days later, on July 14, 2015, as shown , accessed 24th August 2015.</ref> Within one month, the novel had become the best-selling spy story in the UK,<ref>This news was reported in several places. American interviewer Summer Lane wrote that - accessed on 24th August 2015.</ref><ref>Literary Agent Clare Hulton wrote: Accessed on 24th August 2015.</ref><ref> shows the best seller table on 2nd August 2015 with Secrets of the Last Nazi in the number one position.</ref> outselling books by John Le Carre, Chris Ryan, Ken Follett and Wilbur Smith,<ref>In , accessed 24th August 2015, ‘Secrets of the Last Nazi’ is shown outselling books by Chris Ryan, Ken Follett and Wilbur Smith; John Le Carre is mentioned in the post titled, , accessed 24th August 2015.</ref> The book also achieved number one new release status in the USA,<ref>On 14th August 2015, Writing Belle wrote that ''"Secrets of the Last Nazi has just … been classified by Amazon USA as a ‘Number One New Release’"'' – taken from , and accessed on 24th August 2015.</ref><ref>Literary Agent Clare Hulton wrote: ''"Iain King's debut conspiracy thriller Secrets of the Last Nazi… is the number one new release in its category."'' – taken from and accessed on 24th August 2015; and , from 9th August 2015, accessed 24th August 2015.</ref> where Kindle sales would later top the thriller category.<ref>See: , accessed 3rd September 2015.</ref> | |||
| Most critics wrote favourable reviews of the book.<ref>One of the earliest commentaries on the book seems to be in with author Renita D’Silva, where she describes the book as "Fabulous".</ref><ref>Several commentators mentioned the book on twitter before it was published – examples are , also , and . These examples are representative: as of 28th August 2015, there were no critical or negative reviews of Secrets of the Last Nazi on twitter (this fact verifiable by searching ‘Secrets of the Last Nazi’ on twitter).</ref><ref>For a collection of early reviews of the book, see: , accessed 27th August 2015.</ref><ref>Of the first twenty reviews of the book, nineteen readers awarded it five stars out of five, and one reader gave it four. , accessed 28th August 2015.</ref> Positive comments were made about the book’s pace,<ref>Wright, T, 16th July 2015, 'The Sun' page 54: "(Secrets of the Last Nazi) romps along at a ferocious pace". Also, - from a reviewer for libraries in Wales. Accessed 28th August 2015.</ref><ref>Author Sue Fortin said the book had ''"A good pace all the way through, building up and racing to an exciting finish."'' Fortin is quoted , accessed 28th August 2015.</ref><ref>Former BBC News journalist Terry Stiastny says the book ''"races across Europe"'' on accessed 28th August 2015.</ref><ref>"''That’s another amazing thing about this novel, while it’s definitely a complex story, it reads easy (to certain extent) and is a real page turner."'' – taken from , accessed 28th August 2015.</ref> the characters,<ref>''"The characters are so different and memorable, especially Myles Munro, the agent UK government sends…. Amazing, ballsy and unique characters you’ll root for while on the quest to reveal the big secret,"'' according to the , accessed 28th August 2015.</ref> and the story as a whole.<ref>Accio Adventure website, on 29th May 2015, concluded: . Also, on 15th July, Paul Lane described the book as , accessed 28th August 2015</ref> Negative comments included a suggestion that the story was "burdened by detail,"<ref>This critique is drawn from this paragraph: ''"I… must admit some parts and all their reference added some burden to the story and made it more difficult to read. I’m not saying they felt dragging, however they did seem a bit too much to digest. Or maybe it’s just me and my state of mind when I was reading this book. Overall, it’s an enjoyable, fast paced political thriller full of action that will definitely appeal to fans of Dan Brown."'' This excerpt is taken from </ref> and that it was a mistake to state the time at the start of each chapter.<ref>Criticism made by a former US Peace Corps member who reviewed the book in the USA. The full quote is: ''"While I fail to understand why we, as readers, need to know the specific time of the start of each chapter, I found the book enjoyable, enticing, and informative."'' The review can be accessed (accessed 28th August 2015).</ref> Several critics described the book as "controversial".<ref>'This Chick Reads' commented: . The book was also introduced as by talk radio host Hannah Murray, on 13th August 2015, on the (audio downloadable from the site).</ref> | |||
| ] of ] described the book as ‘‘addictive’’<ref>Sam Kiley said of the book: ''This is a remarkable and chilling book - a clever blend of addictive fiction and astonishing revelation.'' Kiley’s review is available </ref> while ] of ] suggested the book was ‘’thrilling… and ingenious’’.<ref>David Boyle’s full quote is: accessed 28th August 2015.</ref> A number of reviewers remarked that the book "had a little bit of everything in it,"<ref>This an excerpt from an independent literary reviewer. The full review reads: accessed 29th August 2015.</ref> and that it was at ''"once a thriller, a mystery, a treasure hunt (which offered) a little bit of something for everyone"''<ref>This is from – the full quote reads: ''"This book offered a little bit of something for everyone… It is at once a thriller, a mystery, a treasure hunt, and an incredible revelationary work that may just change the way you look at the world. I found the book enjoyable, enticing, and informative…I would recommend this book to history lovers and mystery/thriller lovers alike."''</ref> King’s fiction writing was compared widely, and usually favourably, with ],<ref> (from the ‘’Men Reading Books’’ collective, 30th July 2015, accessed 28th August 2015), and (from ‘Best International Book Blogger’ Prof Dr Ananda on 9th July 2015, accessed 28th August 2015).</ref> ], ], and ].<ref>These comparisons are made in several places, including by author Sue Fortin, who remarked: and also in and on and also . Comparisons with these authors are also made in several online reader reviews, for example .</ref> Many reviewers suggested ‘Secrets of the Last Nazi’ should be made into a film.<ref>For example, and The suggestion is also made in social media, and on several consumer review websites.</ref> | |||
| In August 2015, talk radio host Hannah Murray described the book as ''"controversial"'',<ref>On 13th August 2015, on .</ref> and King was criticised for including a ''"graphic torture scene"'' early in the book.<ref>''Secrets of the Last Nazi'' contains ''"quite graphic torture scenes"'' according to , June 2015, accessed 29th August 2015.</ref> | |||
| Many reviewers concluded the book could change profoundly the way people think.<ref>In an interview, Author Renita D'Silva said: Also, on 17th July 2015, this American reviewer wrote: </ref><ref>Also, David Boyle of The Guardian concluded: ''Iain King has come up with a thrilling plot and an ingenious idea that has the possibility to turn everyone's ideas upside down and back to front.'' This quote is accessible in several places.</ref><ref>On 29th May 2015, the concluded: ''"This 392 paged novel… at once a thriller, a mystery, a treasure hunt, and an incredible revelationary work that may just change the way you look at the world."''</ref> | |||
| ==Epilogue and Sequel== | |||
| ] | |||
| Secrets of the Last Nazi ends in Myles Munro’s lecturer’s apartment in ], seven months after the events in Berlin. Myles Munro, fully recovered and able to run again, is reunited with Helen Bridle. He receives a call from the government official who had sent him to Berlin, and learns that terrorists have been ]. Munro is asked to investigate. The sequel to ''Secrets of the Last Nazi'' is titled ''The Last Prophecy of Rome''.<ref>The title ''The Last Prophecy of Rome'' is revealed on page 419 of the UK paperback of ''Secrets of the Last Nazi''.</ref><ref>On , Iain King revealed he was working on two more books.</ref><ref>According to the 16th February 2015 article in Booktrade magazine, ''"…the second book in the series (follows) in early Spring 2016."''</ref> | |||
| ==References== | |||
| {{Reflist|30em}} | |||
| ==External links== | |||
| * | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
Latest revision as of 14:45, 13 August 2023
Redirect to:
- From other capitalisation: This is a redirect from a title with another method of capitalisation. It leads to the title in accordance with the Misplaced Pages naming conventions for capitalisation, or it leads to a title that is associated in some way with the conventional capitalisation of this redirect title. This may help writing, searching and international language issues.
- If this redirect is an incorrect capitalisation, then {{R from miscapitalisation}} should be used instead, and pages that use this link should be updated to link directly to the target. Miscapitalisations can be tagged in any namespace.
- Use this rcat to tag only mainspace redirects; when other capitalisations are in other namespaces, use {{R from modification}} instead.