From an author whose books have been described as “one of the great pleasures of modern spy fiction” by Slow Horses author Mick Herron and compared to the works of Alan Furst, Phillip Kerr, and Joseph Kanon, in Smoke and Embers John Lawton turns to the murky days, weeks and years following the end of World War II in Germany, Britain, and beyond.

Smoke and Embers is the ninth installment of the beloved Inspector Troy series, and opens in 1950, when a file lands on Scotland Yard Chief Inspector Troy’s desk, indicating that his boss has been conducting an affair with the known mistress of West London’s infamous runner of rackets, Otto Ohnherz. Ohnherz has mostly preoccupied himself with taking dubious care of the Jewish refugees arriving in Europe—finding them jobs and skimming their wages—but the line-item that gives Troy pause is the mysterious origins of Ohnherz’s second-in-command, Jay Fabian, who claims to have survived the concentration camps. Smoke and Embers is a highly surprising and intricately woven novel of the opportunity of reinvention after World War II, where identities swap, and smoke covers all tracks.

With a twisting plotline, crackling dialogue, characteristic humor, and the return of beloved characters, Smoke and Embers is an exciting new addition to John Lawton’s masterful canon.

Praise for John Lawton:

“Lawton’s ongoing recreation of Cold War chicanery is one of the great pleasures of modern spy fiction.”—Mick Herron

“Meticulously researched, tautly plotted, historical thrillers in the mold of World War II and Cold War fiction by novelists like Alan Furst, Philip Kerr, Eric Ambler, David Downing and Joseph Kanon.”—Wall Street Journal

“Wickedly seductive entertainment . . . John Lawton is creating some of our finest, and some of our most enjoyably ambiguous historical fiction.”—Washington Post

“Lawton’s gift for memorable atmosphere and characters, intelligent plotting and wry prose put him solidly at the top of anyone’s A-list of contemporary spy novelists.”—Seattle Times

“Lawton is a master of the genre, and his writing is not only historically accurate, but also rich, ribald, cynical, informed, inventive, and hilarious.”—Christian Science Monitor

“[Lawton] is a master of creating a feeling of time and place, of amalgamating true-life events into his imaginative plot, of bringing every character, real or fictitious, major or minor, vividly to life.”—Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

“Intricate plotting, colorful characters, and a brilliant prose style put Lawton in the front rank of historical thriller writers.”—Publishers Weekly

“Constantly entertaining . . . The spying is well mixed with humor.”—Times (UK)

“Lawton’s books contain such a wealth of period detail, character depiction, and background information that they are lifted out of any category. Every word is enriched by the author’s sophistication and irreverent intelligence, by his meticulous research and his wit.”—Literary Review