Ashenden, Or: The British AgentAshenden: The British Agent is founded on Maugham's experiences in the English Intelligence Department during World War I, but rearranged for the purposes of fiction. This fascinating book contains the most expert stories of espionage ever written. For a period of time after it was first published the book became official required reading for persons entering the secret service. The plot follows the imaginary John Ashenden who during World War I is a spy for British Intelligence. He is sent first to Geneva and later to Russia. Instead of one story from start to finish, the chapters contain individual stories involving many different characters. All of the people whom Ashenden meets during his travels have their own reason for being involved in the spy game, and each are more complex than they first look. |
From inside the book
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Page 79
... turned my face away when I drew the knife with all my strength across her lovely throat . Without awaking she passed from sleep to death . " He stopped and stared frowning at the four cards that still lay , their backs upward , waiting ...
... turned my face away when I drew the knife with all my strength across her lovely throat . Without awaking she passed from sleep to death . " He stopped and stared frowning at the four cards that still lay , their backs upward , waiting ...
Page 106
... turned to the orderly . " I don't want to be disturbed . " The secretary , a sub - lieutenant in the thirties , obvi- ously a civilian with a temporary commission , gathered up a mass of papers and left the room . As the orderly was ...
... turned to the orderly . " I don't want to be disturbed . " The secretary , a sub - lieutenant in the thirties , obvi- ously a civilian with a temporary commission , gathered up a mass of papers and left the room . As the orderly was ...
Page 144
... turned frightfully pale ( " I should never have thought an Indian could turn that colour , " he said ) and turned it over and over in his hand as though he could not understand what his own letter was doing there . Tears sprang to his ...
... turned frightfully pale ( " I should never have thought an Indian could turn that colour , " he said ) and turned it over and over in his hand as though he could not understand what his own letter was doing there . Tears sprang to his ...
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Common terms and phrases
agent Alix ambassador Anastasia Alexandrovna answer Ashen Ashenden felt Ashenden knew Ashenden looked Ashenden saw Ashenden thought asked Ashenden baroness bassador Bolsheviks Brindisi Byring Caypor chance Chandra Colonel course cried Delilah detective dine dinner door enden English everything eyes face Fafner feeling fellow fool France Fritzi gave Geneva German Giulia give glance Gustav Hairless Mexican hand Harrington head heart Herbert Witherspoon Holzminden hour humour lake laughed Lausanne Lazzari letter Lucerne married Mexican opened mind Miss King Monsieur morning neutral country never night notion O'Malley once opened Paris passport Petrograd play round Russian scrambled eggs seemed shoulders shrugged Sir Herbert sitting smile Somerville stood story Swiss Switzerland talk tell there's thing Thonon tion told took train turned Vladimir wait walked watched wife woman wondered word write