Lying with the Enemy: A Novel

Rating:
Summary: Excellent
Review: "Lying With the Enemy" is a mystery at its core, but it is so much more than that, especially given the setting it takes place in. That setting is the Channel Island of Guernsey during World War II.

Germany has occupied this and the other Channel Islands for several years at the time this novel opens, and there is an uneasy peace between the island's inhabitants and their temporary German masters. Then the daughter of one of the island's most influential families is found murdered, beginning a chain of events that threatens to literally blow the lid off of the fragile truce.

Aside from the exploration and investigation of the murder, there is a fascinating interplay between the Germans and the islanders. Not all of the Germans view themselves as conquerors, the so-called "Master Race" - and not all of the islanders view themselves as conquered. Indeed, some are quite ready to live with the current situation - but not all.

I was also fascinated by the fact that Hitler is not mentioned by name from the German point of view for most of the book. Instead, the German characters refer to him in the Biblical sense - that is, when they think of Hitler at all they refer to him as Him or He, with a capital H. From my own point of view that is, admittedly, quite repellent, but looking at it from their standpoint it was quite understandable.

This is definitely not a book for everyone. But if you're willing to take the time to get into it you won't be disappointed.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent
Review: I agree with the reviewers here who thought the proofreading was atrocious, the writing hard to follow, and the story meandering. I never finished it.

Rating:
Summary: Good summer read, though a bit sad....
Review: I've had a copy of LYING WITH THE ENEMY in a stack of books next to my reading chair since it was first published in 1998. I finally read it to prove to myself that my addiction to book buying is justified. When I bought the book and read the information on the dust jacket, I thought it would prove to be one of those delicious treats one sometimes experiences reading works of fiction in late summer and it has. These days, I tend to find nonfiction and history more fulfilling than fiction, and when you reach my age and the "so many books, so little time" problem becomes evident, you don't want to waste time on an inferior book. Lately, I've found reading mysteries disappointing lately because the current penchant for forensics can only take one so far. Plot is still as important to me as is character development, though many writers of mysteries have difficulty developing a plot.

I used to be able to count on British mystery writers, but many of the good ones are dead, and the few I admire don't tend to crank out a book a year, thus I run out of fiction fairly rapidly. Tim Binding's novel is therefore welcome, and I can honestly say that I don't feel that I wasted my time reading his book. I hope his protagonist Ned will turn up again in later books, not only because Binding left a number of loose ends remaining at the end of his book, but because Ned is a likeable fellow who is good to his mum. More importantly, Binding knows how to develop a tight and believable plot.

Binding has selected a tumultuous era for the setting of his story, and done a great job of describing life on one of the channel islands during the Nazi occupation. I don't know a lot about these islands, except that they are the last remnants of the British holdings in France dating from the days of Agincourt. His title is a double entendre involving lying as a form of making up untrue stories and lying as something you do in bed.

Any illusions one has about the Nazis is dispelled by Binding's characterization of their behavior on Guernsey Island. Unfortunately, some of the local girls (including Ned's old love) find the Nazi officers attractive - to the point of virtually prostituting themselves. Undoubtedly, these girls will be treated by their countrymen as collaborators after the war. Most of the islanders are starving so it might be understandable that some women turned to prostitution for the purpose of acquiring food for loved ones. Smuggling and making a profit at the expense of those in dire straights is harder to understand, however. According to Binding, some of the girls who became involved with the Nazis may have thought of their relationships as a `step up' and/or a chance to escape the tedium of island living. Perhaps some of them thought they were "in love."

The novel reads well with hardly a glitch. The only criticism I have is this, what mother would accept her son's involvement with a girl she detested before the war as a positive outcome after the girl had served as a Nazi concubine, even if the girl in question learned to cook! Binding may be good to his own mother, but I think he has a way to go before he understands women, at least women of the WWII era. Otherwise, this book is a good summer read.


Rating:
Summary: Identifying With The Aggressor
Review: It is 1943 and the German army maintains its relatively peaceful occupation of the British island of Guernsey. How do citizens react to such life when their only real hardship seems to be a lack of certain foods? Surprisingly many women become collaborators, and indeed do "lie" with the enemy. The most evident male vice during these times seems to be greed, as they industriously establish a black market industry, and again collaborate with the enemy as they do so. No one much seems interested in emulating the nearby French Resistance. A prime example of Guernsey sabotage is when one local mows the grass landing strip extra short so that plane wheels won't get quite so good a purchase on the ground.

The book involves a murder, which flows through the book more as an undercurrent than as the prime plot. Much of this tale involves getting to know the characters, German as well as British. I quite enjoyed this story of what life might have been like in a backwater setting during this global catastrophe. That is not to say that I wasn't also a bit disappointed. We get to know a few of the women who become intimately involved with German officers, but we never are led to an understanding of what motivates them. One gets the feeling that they simply lacked much choice among the Guernsey men, but the population of the island isn't that small. Getting to know people isn't necessarily the same as understanding what makes them tick.

Thriller lovers beware; this book bears no resemblance to a Jack Higgins escapade. It's a well-written book that moves along at a leisurely pace.

Rating:
Summary: A struggle to get through
Review: Not having much background into WWII history, I did have to "stop and review" a few places but was well worth it. This is a wonderful story about ordinary people living in an extraordinary time and situation. Both the Germans and the English are presented as real people struggling with the times. Will look for more by this author.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent
Review: Suberbly written and fascinating, this novel is a wonderful mystery as well as a study of human nature during wartime. The characters are well developed and complex and the situation they find themselves in is finely described. One of the better novels I've read in some time and one that left me thinking about just what enemy occupation can do to one's soul.

Rating:
Summary: A different kind of war story!
Review: The island of Guernsey in the English Channel between England and France is the setting of this mid-World War II whodunit. This is probably the most subtle mystery I have ever read. I had no idea who the killer was until the last few pages (no peeking!)

Scotland Yard trained Ned Luscombe stayed on Guernsey to bury his father rather than retreat to England and escape life under Nazi occupation. When Isobel, the young beautiful daughter of a Nazi collaborator and the lover of Nazi Major Lentsch, is found murdered, Ned is called upon to solve the crime.

Tim Binding has written a terrific book. It is unique in the relationships among the Germans, the roles played by the islanders and, again, the subtlety of the plot. You gotta read it!

Rating:
Summary: A different kind of war story!
Review: The island of Guernsey in the English Channel between England and France is the setting of this mid-World War II whodunit. This is probably the most subtle mystery I have ever read. I had no idea who the killer was until the last few pages (no peeking!)

Scotland Yard trained Ned Luscombe stayed on Guernsey to bury his father rather than retreat to England and escape life under Nazi occupation. When Isobel, the young beautiful daughter of a Nazi collaborator and the lover of Nazi Major Lentsch, is found murdered, Ned is called upon to solve the crime.

Tim Binding has written a terrific book. It is unique in the relationships among the Germans, the roles played by the islanders and, again, the subtlety of the plot. You gotta read it!

Rating:
Summary: War makes for strange bedfellows.
Review: World War II is raging on all fronts in Europe. The Nazis have set up camp on the tranquil Island of Guernsey off the coast of England. The island people have succumbed to the enemy, and exist to the best of their ability during a time of food rationing, shortages, and at times occupation of their homes. Adaptation is a necessity and the black market is in full gear.

Our story revolves around a gruesome murder. The possibilities are endless as the author introduces you to the many characters on the stage he sets. There is much fraternization with the Nazis and many people on the island hold grudges. The story turns into a tangled web of espionage and intrigue that culminates in a satisfying finish.

I would rate this book a 3.5 if I had that option. In the reading of it I found some chapters to be fragmented and disjointed making for a loss of that smooth transition I enjoy when an author writes from the perspective of many different characters. Kelsana 6/14/01