Rating: 
Summary: Absorbing at first, but subplots and violence drag on.
Review: The book is very absorbing at first. However, a multitude of subplots, murders and tortures do not make the book any more suspenseful or exciting. Several minor plot mistakes are so obvious, they are annoying. The author obviously had never been to most of the foreign places he is discribing. The characters get conveninetly bashed on the head for a change of scene (they manage to survive quite a few bashes over the head with minimal brain damage). Some passages remind me of bad James Bond movies. As for the political and historic overtones, you just have to accept the author's views to really enjoy the book.
Rating: 
Summary: Best Book I've ever read
Review: This book has everything that you look for in a good book. Action, twists and turns, and a really good plot. Greg Iles also chose a really good subject to write about. The mysterious flight of Rudolf Hess is one of WWII greatest mysteries.
Rating: 
Summary: Spandau Smorgesbord
Review: This book is a page-turner without question. It pits the Arabs against the Israelis, the Americans against the Russians, the East Germans vs. the West Germans, and the British against all of the above. Underlying all this contention is, at essence, the all-too-familiar mad scientist/industrialist/rich guy/Nazi with a weapon to be used to blow up someone/everyone. In this case, its Rudolph Hess -- or is it? Very fast paced adventure story with something for everyone -- conspiracy; evil, unrepentent, and uncaptured Nazis; hardbitten Americans; intelligent, brave, and somehow humane Israelis; stupid but ruthless Russians; and beneath all of this perfidious Albion seeking as ever to protect its long buried secrets.
Rating:
Summary: An absolute rollercoaster of a read!
Review: This book is incredibly well-written and is difficult to put down. A must-read for anyone who enjoys suspenseful stories. Mr. Iles presents a very plausible take on the entire Rudolf Hess situation of World War II and the reasons why several nations felt the need to keep one old man isolated in prison until his death. The book is very long and is all the more powerful for it. This is one story that is worth multiple readings and one I recommend to others
Rating:
Summary: One of the best thrillers I've ever read
Review: This book is really fantastic. It keeps you guessing right to the end when you face the truth (in this case it is only a possible solution of a mistery as the book is a WWII fiction). I've been always fascinated by the Hess-mistery and I was absoulutely content with this story.The book is sometimes extremely violent, but one must remember that Nazis weren't a bunch of school kids. The violence is masterfully portrayed. Iles never uses violence "just for fun", it always has an important role in the storyline. The characters are one by one made of "flesh and bone". They all are easy to imagine. As the story goes along you'll get more and more tied to them. There are no totally positive neither negative characters. That's why they are so believable. Besides the story itself this is the most important strength of the book. I won't tell you anything about the story itself as it was written many times before me, I only want to tell you: if you want a good read and a sleepless night then you'll have to read this.
Rating:
Summary: THE BEST BOOK I HAVE EVER READ
Review: this book was amazing. it was very interesting and exciting. the author tells several different stories and ties them up at the end
Rating:
Summary: Complex and incredibly very fast paced
Review: This is a complex tale of Rudolph Hess' flight from Nazi Germany to Britain in May 1941 and the deep secrecy that surrounds that trip. The public story has always been that Hess was insane and the allies kept him locked up in Spandau Prison in Berlin until he died in 1987. However, Iles notes that the entire Hess mission has been wrapped in the deepest secrecy by the British and that keeping open an entire prison for one man suggests something was going on of present value and not merely historic in nature. Iles proposes a few simple daring concepts: First, there was a faction of the British upper class including the Duke of Windsor who saw Hitler as less dangerous than Stalin and wanted a peace settlement (this is certainly true and both Churchill and Roosevelt knew how totally unreliable the Duke of Windsor was). He simply suggests that the scale of potential betrayal was so great that it was worth a great deal to the British to keep the involvement of Britons in the Hess mission concealed. Next, Iles suggests that the real Hess had a double and it is the double who ended up spending his life in Spandau while Hess survived first in Latin America and then in South Africa. Finally, Iles intimates that the real Hess used Nazi wealth and contacts to create a substantial fortune dedicated to revenge against Israel and a reassertion of Aryan supremacy using nuclear weapons. The plot is complex and incredibly very fast paced. The handful of people trying to stop the phoenix-like rise of a new threat is believable and their predicaments remain human and urgent. All in all this is an interesting tale that raises a lot of questions about one of the few world war two secrets which is still buried behind officially closed files.
Rating:
Summary: One of the Best of the Type
Review: This is by far this author's best book. It takes the Rudolf Hess story and uses it for the base of a wonderful story. The story centers on a chase after a set of papers that may have been written by Hess and it has everybody form the CIA to the Mossad after them. It is just a great thrill ride of a story. I can just not say enough wonderful things about this book; it is well written and fast paced. Even though it is a big book (and you will be glad for that) it is difficult to put down. The characters are very well developed and have rich personalities that come through the writing. The book is just good and it is better the second time you read it. Do your self a favor and buy it today.
Rating:
Summary: Complex but Satisfying
Review: This is my 4th Iles book and I loved it. I agree, however, this book is not for everyone. It has a complex plot and there are MANY characters in this book. Some of the threads in the plot go nowhere and some seemingly key characters are killed off early in the book. There are also no clear heros (perhaps several) but some good bad bad guys (we all love to hate Nazi's). In my opinion, though, The Spandau Phoenix is a great book. It is exciting and fast paced. The reader has to pay careful attention to the detail but the payoff is a book of epic proportions. I highly recommend it for those not looking for the quick and easy read.
Rating:
Summary: Absolutely GREAT!
Review: This is not the usual type of book I read, but the characters, plot, depth and thoughtfulness of the combination caught my attention right in the first 10 pages. The hardest thing to deal with was not having enough uninterrupted time to read, read, read. Very good. I'll buy another of his books right away.
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