Vagabond by Gerald Seymour Review

Reviewed by Amanda Hayes

I hadn’t read a Gerald Seymour book for years so I was looking forward to reading the new book of his. Gerald is the master of espionage thrillers but I was surprised to find when I looked him up his first book was published way back in 1975. As an ITN newscaster for fifteen years he has plenty of experience to back up his writing which is what gives it the edge over some other books of this genre.

This book is in a similar vein to his others with links to MI5, terrorism and the IRA. It took me a while to really get stuck into it as it’s not an easy read by any means. Each character has their own story running alongside the main one and they are portrayed in depth, with a great level of detail. While that draws you into the book it takes concentration to follow the plot, especially when the main character Danny has 3 separate aliases including his army nickname and his call sign Vagabond.

The plot focuses on Danny as the main character who absconded from the army some fifteen years earlier and is living with a former colleague in relative isolation. It expands well on his current situation and that of his colleague Dusty who followed him out of the army in a case of hero worship. The two men are working together as guides showing tourists what really happened on the D Day beaches of Normandy, a nice quiet life, until Matthew Bentinick, Danny’s old boss contacts him.

Against Danny’s better judgement he sets off to Prague with Matthew and here the story unfolds. Running parallel so you are constantly wondering when the two stories will join is the side story of Matthew’s assistant from the M15, Gaby, and her double agent Ralph Exton. Ralph is in deep with the Russians, the middle man for an arms deal, and Gaby supposedly his protector.

It’s hard to give away anymore of the plot without ruining it, but rest assured that this is a fast paced book where you never know who to trust. There is anticipation on every page turn as you really don’t know what’s going to happen next or who is going to end up being betrayed.

It’s not a book to pick up and put down as it is complicated, and fairly long at 426 pages, but it’s a great read so worth taking on holiday and spending some time on it. You won’t be disappointed.

Rating: 4.5/5

RRP: £7.99 (Paperback) / £14.99 (Hardback) / £4.99 (Kindle)

Available to buy from Amazon here.