Description

‘The perfect setting for a dark, nerve-shredding thriller’
Rory Clements, Sunday Times bestselling author of A Cold Wind From Moscow

‘An absolute page-turner: gritty, atmospheric and gripping’
James Swallow, Sunday Times bestselling author of Nomad

THE WALL MAY HAVE FALLEN.
BUT THERE ARE STILL NAZIS IN BERLIN.

Wannsee, 1942
Fifteen of the most powerful men in the Third Reich meet in secret. Their goal: the implementation of the Final Solution.

West Berlin, 1990
Anglo-German journalist Michael Braun makes a living tracking down old Nazis. But since the fall of the Berlin Wall, Fleet Street’s interest has waned, and he needs more than another concentration camp guard or petty bureaucrat to sell a story. Then Braun is offered an improbable assignment: during the storming of the East German Stasi headquarters, files were found that show a Nazi may have been hiding in Berlin for decades. And not just another low-ranking soldier but Heinrich Muller, head of the Gestapo. The only Nazi at the Wannsee Conference whose fate is unknown since he disappeared from Hitler’s bunker in 1945.

Desperate for money, Braun takes the job. But the man he’s hunting – Muller or not – knows how to stay hidden. And how to protect his secrets…

Publisher Review

Brilliantly atmospheric, evocative both of 1990 Berlin and of a bygone age of journalism. A propulsive tale of old-school investigative reporting, made all the more compelling by its irresistible ring of authenticity — Chris Brookmyre, author of BLACK WIDOW Fascinating, and twisted in a most satisfying way, capturing the essence of Berlin so well you can almost smell the dirty pavements and feel the rain. A wonderful sense of end of an era, which perfectly reflects the uncertainties of the time — James Oswald, author of NATURAL CAUSES A vicious Nazi war criminal living in plain sight and the bleak landscape of post-Wall East Germany. William Cook has conjured up the perfect setting for a dark, nerve-shredding thriller — Rory Clements, author of A COLD WIND FROM MOSCOW Cook’s writing has an unmistakable fag-ash and vodka sting of authenticity.The Fifteenth Man is an absolute page-turner: gritty, atmospheric and gripping — James Swallow, author of NOMAD Move over Philip Marlowe because Michael Braun has arrived. Everything a Cold War thriller reader could wish for and as an added bonus it is exceptionally written. A stand-out debut crime novel of the year — Janice Hallett, author of THE APPEAL When someone says they don’t write them like that anymore, point them over to The Fifteenth Man — Ian Moore, author of DEATH AND CROISSANTS A clever and intriguing tale from a fascinating sliver of Cook’s own family’s story. The result is a finely paced and genuinely absorbing novel which easily passes the ‘hard to put down’ threshold — Alex Gerlis, author of EVERY SPY IS A TRAITOR Brilliantly atmospheric, The Fifteenth Man introduces us to Michael Braun – an antihero journalist sent to track down a Nazi last seen in Hitler’s bunker in 1945. But this is Berlin as the wall falls, and Braun finds himself confounded at every turn. Propulsive and punchy — Sam Holland, author of THE ECHO MAN Redolent with the tang of cigarettes, ersatz coffee and Weissbier, this darkly funny journey through the streets and bars of reunification-era Berlin is an ode to the morally grey talents of its journalist protagonist… A spy story that will grab the reader like a front page splash — David Goodman, author of A RELUCTANT SPY The Fifteenth Man continues the rising revival of the modern spy novel with a great twist on the grubby, seedy side of post-Wall Berlin. Demoralised journalists, hidden nazis, cold-hearted women and corrupt policemen fight for survival in an amoral world. What’s not to like? — Trevor Wood, author of THE MAN ON THE STREET