Summary
In this thriller by Simmons, who mostly writes science fiction and horror, Ernest Hemingway is rather gung-ho to enter the spy game after the success of "For Whom the Bell Tolls". Living in Havana in the early 1940s, Hemingway meets up with an FBI agent, and together, against a backdrop of international intrigue and jet-setters, they search for Nazi submarines.
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Media Reviews
"You want to see an impressive chunk of imaginative construction and fictive exploration? A major writer sweating with tropical heat, but creating a major work with deceptively smooth effort? THE CROOK FACTORY is definitely a novel from all seasons." -- Edward Bryant
-- Locus
"Capturing a historical persona within the confines of a novel is no easy task. But Simmons does an incredible job. Readers will come away from the tale feeling as if they actually plifies the sort of fiction that Hemingway held in high esteem: writing that is truer than true. Like a firehouse dog chasing a red truck, THE CROOK FACTORY moves at a fast clip. Part literary thriller, part homage to "Papa," Simmons has written a novel that would make Hemingway himself smile with pride." -- Dorman T. Shindler
-- Bloomsbury Review
Bibliographic Details
Publisher: Harpercollins
Published date: 2000
Size: 4.25 x 6.75 inches
Weight: 0.6 pounds
Pages: 576
Publisher's Notes
"Wonderful...brilliantly realized...a gripping narrative."Iain Pears, New York Times bestselling author of An Instance of the Fingerpost At the height of World War Two, the famous writer ErnestHemingway sought permission from the U.S. government to operate a spy ring out of his house in the Cuban countryside.This much is true... It is the summer of '42, and FBI agent Joe Lucas has come to Cuba at the behest of J. Edgar Hoover to keep an eye on Hemingway.The great writer has assembled a ragtag spy ring that he calls the"Crook Factory" to play a dangerous game of amateur espionage.But then Lucas and Hemingway, against all the odds, uncovera critical piece of intelligence--and the game turns deadly.In The Crook Factory, award-winning author Dan Simmonsexpands a little-known fact into a tour de force of gripping historicalsuspense set in the sensual Cuban landscape of the early 1940s. In 1942, at the height of World War II, Ernest Hemingway sought permission form J. Edgar Hoover to operate a spy ring out of his ranch in Cuba. This much is true...In a beautifully realized work of fierce originality, award-winning author DAN SIMMONS expands a little-known fact into a tour de force of historical suspense. It is the summer of '42, and FBI agent Joe Lucas has come to Cuba at the behest of the Director to keep an eye on Ernest Hemingway, who has recklessly decided to play spy in the Caribbean. Lucas has been instructed to somehow gain the great writer's trust and friendship, but all the agent's cool intellect and training has left him unprepared to withstand the human whirlwind known as "Papa." Hemingway has assembled a spy ring that he calls the "Crook Factory"--including an American millionaire, a twelve-year-old Cuban orphan, a Spanish jai alai champion, a priest, and a fisherman, among others--to play a dangerous game of amateur espionage. Then, against all odds, Hemingway uncovers a critical piece of intelligence, and the game turns deadly for himself, Lucas, and for untold innocents. In THE CROOK FACTORY, Dan Simmons weaves an unforgettable tale of riveting suspense, peopled by larger-than-life characters who inhabit the sensual, intoxicating Cuban landscape of the 1940s. It is a novel of honor, passion and chilling conspiracy. And it could very well have happened...In 1942, at the height of World War II, Ernest Hemingway sought permission form J. Edgar Hoover to operate a spy ring out of his ranch in Cuba. This much is true... In a beautifully realized work of fierce originality, award-winning author DAN SIMMONS expands a little-known fact into a tour de force of historical suspense. It is the summer of '42, and FBI agent Joe Lucas has come to Cuba at the behest of the Director to keep an eye on Ernest Hemingway, who has recklessly decided to play spy in the Caribbean. Lucas has been instructed to somehow gain the great writer's trust and friendship, but all the agent's cool intellect and training has left him unprepared to withstand the human whirlwind known as "Papa." Hemingway has assembled a spy ring that he calls the "Crook Factory"--including an American millionaire, a twelve-year-old Cuban orphan, a Spanish jai alai champion, a priest, and a fisherman, among others--to play a dangerous game of amateur espionage. Then, against all odds, Hemingway uncovers a critical piece of intelligence, and the game turns deadly for himself, Lucas, and for untold innocents. In THE CROOK FACTORY, Dan Simmons weaves an unforgettable tale of riveting suspense, peopled by larger-than-life characters who inhabit the sensual, intoxicating Cuban landscape of the 1940s. It is a novel of honor, passion and chilling conspiracy. And it could very well have happened...
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