Horse Under Water (Penguin Modern Classics)

I first read this book over 50 years ago, when I was 14 years old. I thought at the time that the author had a great writing style, and that he seemed to be really knowledgeable and COOL. And re-reading the book now (for about the fifth time over the years), my opinion is just the same.When Deighton’s first books were published in the early 1960s, they were welcomed as painting a more realistic picture of the world of espionage than did the fantasy world of James Bond. Whether it is actually a true picture or not, Deighton certainly makes you FEEL as if you are getting a glimpse of the real spy world.In my view, Deighton’s first few spy novels are by far his best: “The Ipcress File”; “Horse Under Water”; and “Funeral in Berlin”. I feel that after this period Deighton went downhill, losing the lightness of touch and sharpness that characterise these early books.This book is Deighton’s second. It is not as well known as “The Ipcress File” and “Funeral in Berlin”, probably because it was not made into a film like those two. (“Billion Dollar Brain” was also turned into a film, but in my view that film is best forgotten.)The atmosphere of these early Deighton spy stories is typified by the pages at the beginning of the 1960s Penguin paperback editions where information about the author is given. They are done as if they were files that some organisation held on Deighton. But the amusing thing is that the physical description and life-story given of Deighton in “Horse Under Water” are totally different from those given in “Funeral in Berlin”. This perfectly conveys the feeling that we are entering a world where nothing can be taken at face value.“The Ipcress File” and “Funeral in Berlin” have plots involving the Cold War between the capitalist West and the so-called “communist” (I would say bureaucratic state capitalist) East. But this book is different in that the plot involves events relating back to the Nazis and the Second World War.The book is best enjoyed as a series of vividly portrayed set pieces, rather than by worrying too much about the plot. For example, there is a really amusing little chapter in which our nameless hero attends a diving course at a naval base. (Deighton has said that this was based on his own experience on just such a course, which the Navy allowed him to attend while he was researching the novel.)It has been rightly pointed out that the nameless narrator (who becomes Michael Caine’s “Harry Palmer” in the films) is reminiscent of Raymond Chandler’s private detective, Philip Marlowe, but transferred from the world of crime to the world of espionage. The two characters certainly both have the same mixture of wise-cracking humour, cynicism, sharpness of mind, and integrity. (Though with Deighton’s character there is less emphasis on the last of these – his job involves more deviousness than Marlowe’s.)The other “realistic” spy story writer who came along at about the same time as Deighton was John Le Carre. But I’ve always preferred Deighton (at least the early Deighton), as I find Le Carre’s books rather humourless and bleak. (Though the TV version of “Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy” with Alec Guinness is brilliant.)These early Deighton spy stories are excellent entertainment, but we also need to remember that the real world of secret services is a nasty one. They do not just spy on each other. They spy on (and often persecute) dissenting voices within their own countries, and they conduct dirty tricks such as the toppling of elected governments (as the CIA did in Chile). There are no heroes or “good guys” in the real secret world: just villains on both sides.Phil Webster.

This is a typical spy story with humour that Michael Caine could deliver perfectly. The plot seems a bit thin but the characters are well drawn.

Horse Under Water is the follow up to The Ipcress File in the Len Deighton books, which I haven't read for over thirty years. It reads well with plenty of Deighton's dry humour and a good plot; only the footnotes detract from the flow of the story.

A lesser known Len Deighton book, compared to The Ipcress File and Funeral in Berlin but still enjoyable. The nameless hero tells a compelling story with links to World War II and is both gripping and interesting. All of Deighton's trademark dialogue is there too.

Len Deighton's put upon, nameless spy returns for a second adventure. Very little has changed in our hero's life since the escapades of The Ipcress File. He remains someone whose role is merely to do the dirty work of HM Government and his boss, Dawlish certainly still views him suspicion and keeps him at arms length. There are, however, some compensations: chief among these being Alice, whose on/off flirtations with our hero remain a constant throughout the early Deighton novels. But there are also other distractions as well as the reader shall discover.For his second bestseller Len Deighton gives the cold war a rest and turns his attention to some unfinished business from World War Two. The war would later, of course, provide Deighton with the inspiration for some of his greatest fiction and non fiction works and like many people of Deighton's generation living through it was clearly a huge formative experience.Horse Under Water concerns a furtive British government attempt at providing covert financial assistance to a group of rebels who aim to overthrow Salazar's Portuguese dictatorship by bringing large amounts of counterfeit currency to the surface from a sunken U Boat. The whole enterprise is dubious to say the least and from the outset you get the feeling that our hero's paymasters in London are not being entirely straight with him.What emerges is a complex tale of deceit, heroin dealing and unlikely ex-Nazis still working in high places. The novel switches between Marrakech, London, Portugal and Gibraltar, where the British commonwealth still interfaced with Franco's Spain and the book remains a timely reminder of just how much Europe has changed within our own lifetimes.Followers of Deighton will love the novel as it contains all of the great man's hallmarks: impeccable research, loving descriptions of all manner of exotic foodstuffs, world weary humour and cutting asides. Horse Under Water remains the only one of the first four Deighton novels not to be turned into a Michael Caine film and it stands apart from the other three due to its non cold war emphasis. Len Deighton's writing remains an exquisite pleasure and I can't see any Deighton fan (or anyone else, really) not enjoying the book.

This follow-up to The Ipcress File does not disappoint. A really good story and interesting characters. Unlike "Harry Palmer" the name given to Michael Caine's character in the films, the narrator is unnamed, clearly in his mid to late 40s (see reference to his time in Lisbon 20 years earlier) and an expert on illegal currency movements among other things - all this adds to the air of authenticity. A very enjoyable read.

I remembered seeing a copy of a Len Deighton book on my Grandads book case - remembered that he liked spy stories and decided to check out the author! I am now on my twelfth Len Deighton book, having read the full Bernard Samson series. This one follows the IPCRESS file and is a brilliant book. Like all his others, this is well written with interesting and realistic characters, and that makes it difficult to put down once you get started!Written in the sixties, this (like his later books) really captures the Cold War feeling and is focussed around key events of the time, without relying on them to deliver a complex plot line.I have become a huge fan of his books and will certainly be reading more of them.