The High Wire: Difference between revisions
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'''The High Wire''' is a 1963 suspense novel by the British author [[William Haggard]] published in England by [[Cassell (publisher)|Cassell]] and in the United States by [[Ives Washburn]]. It was Haggard's fifth of 21 books involving his protagonist [[Colonel Charles Russell]], the head of the unobtrusive but lethal Security Executive, a government counter-intelligence agency clearly based on the actual [[MI5]] or Security Service, where he moves easily and gracefully along [[C.P. Snow|C.P. Snow's]] [[Corridors of Power (novel)|Corridors of Power]] in [[Whitehall]]. It has noticeably less detailed examinations of character and motivation than Haggard's four earlier books and considerably more elements of standard suspense thrillers, particularly regarding action and gun-play. Haggard had achieved a certain critical reputation by | '''The High Wire''' is a 1963 suspense novel by the British author [[William Haggard]] published in England by [[Cassell (publisher)|Cassell]] and in the United States by [[Ives Washburn]]. It was Haggard's fifth of 21 books involving his protagonist [[Colonel Charles Russell]], the head of the unobtrusive but lethal Security Executive, a government counter-intelligence agency clearly based on the actual [[MI5]] or Security Service, where he moves easily and gracefully along [[C.P. Snow|C.P. Snow's]] [[Corridors of Power (novel)|Corridors of Power]] in [[Whitehall]]. It has noticeably less detailed examinations of character and motivation than Haggard's four earlier books and considerably more elements of standard suspense thrillers, particularly regarding action and gun-play. Haggard had achieved a certain critical reputation by 1963, and '''High Wire''' only added to it: the [[Crime Writers' Association]] of the United Kingdom gave it runner-up status for that year's [[Gold Dagger]], their annual award for the best crime novel of the year. '''[[Gun Before Butter]]''' by [[Nicolas Freeling]] was the other runner-up, while the Gold Dagger itself went to one of the most famous thrillers ever written, '''[[The Spy Who Came in from the Cold]]''' by [[John le Carré]]. | ||
==Plot== | ==Plot== | ||
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The High Wire is a 1963 suspense novel by the British author William Haggard published in England by Cassell and in the United States by Ives Washburn. It was Haggard's fifth of 21 books involving his protagonist Colonel Charles Russell, the head of the unobtrusive but lethal Security Executive, a government counter-intelligence agency clearly based on the actual MI5 or Security Service, where he moves easily and gracefully along C.P. Snow's Corridors of Power in Whitehall. It has noticeably less detailed examinations of character and motivation than Haggard's four earlier books and considerably more elements of standard suspense thrillers, particularly regarding action and gun-play. Haggard had achieved a certain critical reputation by 1963, and High Wire only added to it: the Crime Writers' Association of the United Kingdom gave it runner-up status for that year's Gold Dagger, their annual award for the best crime novel of the year. Gun Before Butter by Nicolas Freeling was the other runner-up, while the Gold Dagger itself went to one of the most famous thrillers ever written, The Spy Who Came in from the Cold by John le Carré.
Plot
Protagonist is perhaps too strong a word to describe Colonel Russell. As Haggard himself wrote about his fiction:
My novels are chiefly novels of suspense with a background of international politics. A Colonel Charles Russell of the Security Executive, a not entirely imaginary British counter-espionage organization, while not a protagonist in the technical sense, holds the story line together in the background by his operations, while the characters in the foreground carry the action."[1]
Reception and/or Appraisal
Reviews were favorable:
The New York Times: xxxxxx [2]
Kirkus Reviews: xxxxxx [3]