The Partisan
The explosive debut thriller for fans of Robert Harris and Charles Cumming
Published on 6. July 2023
Book
Paperback/Softback
496 pages
978-1-5291-7617-9 (ISBN)
Description
'Remarkedly assured debut ... the advent of a real talent...One to watch' Sunday Times
'Immersive, intriguing, and intelligent - incredibly impressive, up there with the best in the genre' Lee Child
________________________
It is the summer of 1961 and the brutal Cold War between East and West is becoming ever more perilous.
Two young prodigies from either side of the Iron Curtain, Yulia and Michael, meet at a chess tournament in London. They don't know it, but they are about to compete in the deadliest game ever played.
Shadowing them is Greta, a ruthless resistance fighter who grew up the hard way in the forests of Lithuania, but who is now hunting down some of the most dangerous men in the world.
Men who are also on the radar of Vassily, perhaps the Soviet Union's greatest spymaster. A man of cunning and influence, Vassily was Yulia's minder during her visit to the West, but even he could not foresee the consequences of her meeting Michael.
When the world is accelerating towards an inevitable and catastrophic conflict, what can just four people do to prevent it?
Epic in scope, The Partisan is a thrill ride like no other, taking you from the hallowed halls of Cambridge to the grimy depths of the Moscow underworld, from 1960s London to the Eastern Front in the Second World War.
'Immersive, intriguing, and intelligent - incredibly impressive, up there with the best in the genre' Lee Child
________________________
It is the summer of 1961 and the brutal Cold War between East and West is becoming ever more perilous.
Two young prodigies from either side of the Iron Curtain, Yulia and Michael, meet at a chess tournament in London. They don't know it, but they are about to compete in the deadliest game ever played.
Shadowing them is Greta, a ruthless resistance fighter who grew up the hard way in the forests of Lithuania, but who is now hunting down some of the most dangerous men in the world.
Men who are also on the radar of Vassily, perhaps the Soviet Union's greatest spymaster. A man of cunning and influence, Vassily was Yulia's minder during her visit to the West, but even he could not foresee the consequences of her meeting Michael.
When the world is accelerating towards an inevitable and catastrophic conflict, what can just four people do to prevent it?
Epic in scope, The Partisan is a thrill ride like no other, taking you from the hallowed halls of Cambridge to the grimy depths of the Moscow underworld, from 1960s London to the Eastern Front in the Second World War.
Reviews / Votes
Immersive, intriguing, and intelligent - incredibly impressive, up there with the best in the genre * Lee Child * A taut, sophisticated, and hugely satisfying thriller. With a multi-layered and ingenious plot, this is a superb and immensely enjoyable read from an excitingly fresh and original new voice. Wartime resistance, Cold War espionage, a world on the cusp of nuclear catastrophe and a cast of deftly drawn and believable characters combine to make this a hugely compelling, unputdownable and fast-paced read that takes the reader on a journey from the forests of Lithuania, to the Kremlin and back streets of Moscow, to the jazz bars of early 1960s London and the colleges of Cambridge to the bleak realities of the GDR and post-war Vienna. * James Holland * Patrick Worrall has produced a constantly fascinating and emotionally authentic thriller that moves effortlessly and atmospherically from one decade to another and one location to another as the story's devious secrets are revealed. * Robert Goddard * Fast-paced, intriguing and deeply atmospheric. The Kremlin sequences in particular are mighty evocative. * Tom Bradby * A dazzlingly confident debut...Whether he's evoking the Spanish Civil War, the scheming and counter-scheming in Khrushchev's Kremlin or two brainy teenagers falling in love, Worrall rises impressively to every challenge * The Sunday Times (Thriller of the Month) * 'Patrick Worrall's remarkedly assured debut, The Partisan, marks the advent of a real talent...What truly impresses is the way he confidently handles a vast and immersive canvas...One to watch' * Sunday Times * It's a masterly tale that is also impressive for being Worrall's debut * Sun * If you're a fan of Len Deighton and John le Carre then this nerve-jangling thriller is for you...The characters are skilfully drawn and complex threads masterfully combined into a gripping read * Yours * Impressive ... The scene-setting is finely detailed and evocative, the characters skilfully drawn * Financial Times *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Transworld Publishers Ltd
Product notice
Paperback (UK-B)
Dimensions
Height: 197 mm
Width: 125 mm
Thickness: 36 mm
Weight
340 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-5291-7617-9 (9781529176179)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Patrick Worrall
The Partisan
The explosive debut thriller for fans of Robert Harris and Charles Cumming
E-Book
06/2022
Transworld Digital
€8.99
Available for download
Person
Patrick Worrall was educated at a comprehensive school in Worcestershire and King's College, Cambridge. He has worked as a teacher in eastern Europe and Asia, a newspaper journalist, a court reporter at the Old Bailey, and the head of the Channel 4 News FactCheck blog. His first novel, The Partisan, was inspired by a World War Two photograph of three young female freedom fighters he saw in a museum in Kaunas, Lithuania. The Exile, his second novel, is a prequel to The Partisan. The Aristocracy is his third novel.