'A POWERFUL, PANORAMIC NOVEL OF WAR AND ITS AFTERMATH' SUNDAY TIMES
'What a love story' Elizabeth Buchan
'Gripping and heartfelt' Elisabeth Gifford
'Entirely convincing and authentic' Leonora Nattrass
UNITED BY WAR. DIVIDED BY A SECRET.
From silent era Hollywood and the nightclubs of pre-war Vienna to the ruins of Soviet Berlin, discover a moving, ambitious story of an enduring love amidst the devastation of war . . .
In 1938, English spy Harry Taverner and Jewish photographer Anna Cantrell spend the night dancing at Berlin's most elegant hotel. Anna is married to another man, the Nazi shadow is rising over Europe and neither expects to ever meet again.
But once peace is declared, they reunite in the ruins of Berlin, where Anna is searching for her missing children. With the blockade tightening and the Soviets set on conquest, Harry and Anna walk a treacherous line between love and duty, integrity and survival, loyalty and betrayal. And as the Cold War dawns, they are bound together by a secret that will only be revealed decades later, when Berlin finds itself on the cusp of another transformation...
Berlin Duet is a sweeping, unforgettable historical epic from the Kindle-bestselling author of The Angel's Mark. Perfect for fans of Sebastian Faulks and William Boyd.
About the Author
S W Perry worked as a broadcast journalist with several radio stations, including Independent Radio News and LBC, before retraining as an airline pilot. He then spent almost three decades flying holidaymakers to sunny climes before turning to writing novels. He is the author of six books in the highly acclaimed Jackdaw Mysteries series. His debut novel, The Angel's Mark, was shortlisted for the CWA Historical Dagger and was a Walter Scott Prize Academy Recommended Read 2019.
Industry Reviews
A powerful, panoramic novel of war and its aftermath -- Sunday Times
What a love story and what a setting. Engrossing, superbly detailed, unsentimental but very moving, it brilliantly deconstructs the chaos and blight that war and its aftermath brings -- Elizabeth Buchan, bestselling author of The New Mrs Clifton and Bonjour, Sophie
I've loved S W Perry's Jackdaw series, but this second-world-war novel is something apart. Beautifully written, humane, entirely convincing and authentic. I admired and loved it. Highly recommended. -- Leonora Nattrass, author of Black Drop
A gripping and heartfelt story, brilliantly imagined, filled with fascinating characters living through some of the greatest turmoils of the twentieth century -- Elisabeth Gifford, author of The Good Doctor of Warsaw
'Perry effortlessly weaves a captivating tale of love, loss, and resilience set against the backdrop of a world forever changed by war. A wonderful book. Hugely satisfying. Beautifully written evoking a lost age and which finally reveals a long-held secret. Berlin Duet is pitch perfect.' -- David Gilman, author of Night Flight to Paris
This novel swept me to several enthralling historical locations. I was particularly taken by the wonderfully evoked silent film era in Hollywood; I loved the pre-war setting of Vienna with Hitler's reach hanging over every step, southern France, its nature, a refreshing balance to the Vichy regime, and then the exuberance, chaos and revelations in Berlin as the Wall came down in 1989. Perry is meticulous in his research. His novel is a complex and ambitious story of lovers and spies and Jewish survivors. It will keep you page-turning all through the night. -- Carol Drinkwater, bestselling author of An Act of Love
