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Yesterday's Spy

By: Tom Bradby
Narrated by: George Weightman
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Summary

Brought to you by Penguin.

Nothing good ever comes from a midnight phone call. For washed-up spy Harry Tower, it is the worst news at the worst possible time. His son, Sean, has gone missing in troubled Iran after writing an exposé about government corruption.

Their relationship has never recovered since Harry's wife's suicide, for which Sean holds his father responsible. And Harry, with his career on the verge of disintegration, needs to find him and put things right.

When Harry arrives in Tehran, he finds a city on the cusp of revolution. Foreign powers are jockeying for influence, money and, most importantly, oil. The CIA are conspiring to undermine the government with an impending coup, and there are dark mutterings about opium smuggling. But the reasons for Sean's disappearance may be even more sinister than Harry first suspected.

Before long, he is on the run—not only from a faceless enemy, but from his own past. Which will catch up with him first?

Yesterday's Spy is Tom Bradby at his very best, delivering a cunning espionage novel rich in intrigue and history that will keep you guessing until the final stages.

©2022 Tom Bradby (P)2022 Penguin Audio
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What listeners say about Yesterday's Spy

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Taut and Twisty Tale

This novel is about an interesting man and his son set in an intriguing time in post WW2 world politics. The characters are credible and the action is really exciting. I'd be interested in what his son did next...

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1 person found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Interesting and intriguing

Very enjoyable story, well researched and put into historical context. Great spy story with a human touch too.
Enjoyed the narrator too.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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Overlong

Overall I enjoyed this up to the minute political spy thriller. But there are parts where it seemed to drag, weighed down by too much unnecessary detail.

Harry Tower’s son goes missing in Iran after exposing government corruption. He goes to look for him and is drawn in to numerous troubling events and hints of opium smuggling. He rattles a few skeletons and is soon on the run himself.

It has all the elements for a fast paced spy thriller, but it’s not Bradby at his best. It’s interesting from
an historical point as it explains the background to a coup in 1953 which influenced western attitudes towards the country for some decades.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Excellent book

My first Tom Bradby novel. Overall a well written and fast paced paced story. Well defined characters. Thoroughly enjoyed this book.
I will definitely read more of his work.

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Another cracking read

It's really interesting to read a story set in a region and historical timeframe which is now searingly central to daily life now. Sobering and thought provoking. Recommended.

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Another great book from Tom Bradby

I was totally engrossed in this book. I have walked miles listening to it. What a great story with so many twists and turns. It is so good to listen to a spy story that the protagonists are not surrounded by technology and have to use real wit and cunning. Bradby weaves in the complicated relationships that both he and his son’s girlfriend have gone through in an interesting and thoughtful way. Good twist at the end. Can’t wait for another book by Bradby.
Great Narration as well which always helps.

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Absolutely superb - brilliant thrilling espionage

Exciting, realistic, compelling, interesting, knowledgable… I could go on - this book is brilliant.

It’s like taking a trip back in time to 1950s Iran, with superbly absorbing characters.

Highly recommend.

Narrator is also brilliantly unnoticeable, which is what you want from an audiobook.

Loved it.

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    3 out of 5 stars
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Great history - weaker plot

I agree with others - this is not Bradby’s best. The plot follows a too well-trodden path and becomes erratic and overly derring do towards the end. But it does shine an important light on a neglected piece of history. The 1953 coup in Iran underpins continuing antipathy towards the US and U.K. from Iran today. It is doubtful the 1979 revolution would have happened if Mossadegh had remained in power. Bradby also reminds us of the consequences of what may appear to be initially smart intervention leading to long term difficulty - cf Iraq and 1980s Afghanistan for similar examples.

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    4 out of 5 stars
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A slow paced Spy novel

A very interesting and educational story. Nicely paced and well narrated. Definitely worth a listen.

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    3 out of 5 stars
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weak plot

felt as though it lacked cohesion flashes of interest but wears its history too heavy extra words here for 15 word limit

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