There are lots of books about special forces going into Germany or France during World War II to pull off some vital operation: blow up a dam, kidnap a German general, rescue an Allied officer whom knows the D-Day plan, etc. In "The Long Fuse" the goal of the British force's operation is a propaganda coup. The plot is above average, and the unexpected snags that arise build up suspense nicely. The two key characters, team leader Captain Colson and the propaganda man David Hinton, are refreshing complex for this genre. The rest of the cast - British brass, oddball special forces troops, heroic French resistance fighters, dumkopf Germans, sexy Nazi temptress - are stock characters. The element of the novel that for me lifts it above the standard adventure story is the theme of class distinction that runs throughout the book. It's the Oxbridge gents versus the commoners conflict that permeates so much British writing, and Alan White integrates it very well into "The Long Fuse".
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