The Polish Officer

A Novel

by Alan Furst

Alan Furst, widely acknowledged to be one of the best practitioners of the WWII espionage thriller, writes about an intelligence officer in the Polish underground. During the hard winter of 1939-1940, Captain Alexander de Milja is assigned the delicate task of getting the nation's gold reserve out of Warsaw and safely into hiding. Upon the successful completion of this assignment, his adventures expand to include the French black market, guerrilla resistance in Ukraine, and the fall of Paris, where de Milja works with the underground to defeat the Germans. Furst's fertile imagination creates the situations, but his impeccable research brings them to vibrant life, as he recreates the period, transforming it into the irresistible atmosphere of an artful, romantic, noirish black-and-white film.

Editions of The Polish Officer

ISBN 9780006511298	Binding/Format Paperback	Publisher Trafalgar Square	Date 1998	Price $10.15	Used - Good
ISBN 9780679413127	Binding/Format Hardcover	Publisher Random House Inc	Date 1995	Price $9.95	Used - Good
ISBN 9780375758270	Binding/Format Paperback	Publisher Random House Inc	Date 2001	Price $3.97	Very Good

Publisher Notes

September 1939. As Warsaw falls to Hitler’s Wehrmacht, Captain Alexander de Milja is recruited by the intelligence service of the Polish underground. His mission: to transport the national gold reserve to safety, hidden on a refugee train to Bucharest. Then, in the back alleys and black-market bistros of Paris, in the tenements of Warsaw, with partizan guerrillas in the frozen forests of the Ukraine, and at Calais Harbor during an attack by British bombers, de Milja fights in the war of the shadows in a world without rules, a world of danger, treachery, and betrayal.

Media Reviews

"With clear, reticent prose and his trademark mastery of historical detail, Furst (Shadow Trade; Night Soldiers) brings vividly to life this WWII-era tale of espionage and bravery....Throughout these dramatic events, Furst's understated narrative is insightful and convincing. The unassuming de Milja...proves an engaging protagonist. His exploits and the courageous sacrifices of the ordinary patriots who help him are both thrilling and at times inspiring."

First Line

In Poland, on the night of 11 September 1939, Wehrmacht scout and commando units--elements of Kuechler's Third Army Corps--moved silently around the defenses of Novy Dvor, crossed the Vistula over the partly demolished Jablonka Bridge, and attempted to capture the Warsaw Telephone Exchange at the northern edge of the city.

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