Double Cross

The True Story of the D-Day Spies

By: Ben Macintyre

Narrated by: John Lee

Length: 12 hrs and 39 mins

Publisher's summary

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The “superb [and] intensely readable” (The Washington Post) untold story of one of the greatest deceptions of World War II and the extraordinary spies who achieved it—from the bestselling author of Prisoners of the Castle

“Not since Ian Fleming and John le Carré has a spy writer so captivated readers.”—The Hollywood Reporter

On June 6, 1944, 150,000 Allied troops landed on the beaches of Normandy and suffered an astonishingly low rate of casualties. A stunning military achievement, it was also a masterpiece of trickery. Operation Fortitude, which protected and enabled the invasion, and the Double Cross system, which specialized in turning German spies into double agents, tricked the Nazis into believing that the Allied attacks would come in Calais and Norway rather than Normandy. It was the most sophisticated and successful deception operation ever carried out, ensuring Allied victory at the most pivotal moment in the war.

This epic event has never before been told from the perspective of the key individuals in the Double Cross system, until now. These include its director (a brilliant, urbane intelligence officer), a colorful assortment of MI5 handlers (as well as their counterparts in Nazi intelligence), and the five spies who formed Double Cross’s nucleus: a dashing Serbian playboy, a Polish fighter-pilot, a bisexual Peruvian party girl, a deeply eccentric Spaniard, and a volatile Frenchwoman. Together they made up one of the oddest and most brilliant military units ever assembled.

With the same depth of research, eye for the absurd, and masterful storytelling that have made Ben Macintyre an international bestseller, Double Cross is a captivating narrative of the spies who wove a web so intricate it ensnared Hitler’s army and carried thousands of D-Day troops across the Channel in safety.

©2012 Random House Audio (P)2012 Agentstvo Publishing

Critic reviews

2013, Edgar Award, Short-listed

"Ben Macintyre and I work in the same period, and I should be reading him because he is such a scrupulous and insightful writer - a master historian. But, with Double Cross and his other excellent works, I always wind up reading him for pleasure. Double Cross may be his best yet, falling somewhere between top-class entertainment and pure addiction." (Alan Furst, author of A Mission to Paris)

"Ben Macintyre's spellbinding account features an improbable cast of characters who pulled off a counter-intelligence feat that was breathtaking in its audacity. Their deceptions within deceptions - known as the Double Cross - were critical to the success of the D-Day invasion, and continued to mislead the Germans long after Allied troops landed on the beaches of Normandy. A truly bravura performance, as is Macintyre's fast-paced tale." (Andrew Nagorski, author of Hitlerland: American Eyewitnesses to the Nazi Rise to Power)

Incredible story - just not for bedtime listening!

This story is so riveting and so well told you can't stop listening! Don't put it on while you're getting ready for bed thinking you can shut it off and get some shut-eye. You can't! It's an incredible story that is incredibly well told!

Worthwhile overall

Definitely an intriguing look at a lesser known part of WW2 history. One comes away with the impression that the British were vastly better at the spy game during WW2 than the Nazis, which the facts seem to support. You begin to understand why while reading this book. It showcases some colourful characters whose proclivities made them somewhat undesirable in everyday life but well-suited for the duplicitous life of a double agent. Occasionally I found the story dragged, but only until it shifted to a different character or situation. If you like spy stories or stories from WW2, this is a must.

John Lee~ Please BREATHE

I love Ben Mcintyre's work. There were one or two historical glitches in the previous book I read (nothing major, something only a Brit steeped in WW2 history might spot); but this book seemed flawless.
A fascinating story. Worth every dammed moment....and some of the moments were dammed.
I have a mixed "relationship" with the work of the narrator, John Lee. I have found some of his clipped delivery a little irksome, and then I thought that I had become used to his "clippy" ways (for some inexplicable reason, he is the narrator in many of my favoured books).
However, in this reading he doesn't "clip" he gallops!
I've worked with News readers (I work in radio) who trip from one subject to the next without a pause, leaving the audience wondering if they were listening to the same story (The governor is caught up a tree with a cat with his budget??? Really??) ...
It takes the average mind about a second to absorb, settle; and realise that the subject matter has changed.
Important, therefore, to pause...otherwise the mind is momentarily confused. Either John Lee wasn't pausing, or one of the editors cut the recording too tightly, not allowing the brain to grasp the point. Over and over again, I found myself momentarily confused, as the scene had changed, but Lee's intonation hadn't given me a clue; which meant that I frequently had to rewind slightly; which was irritating! It took away from an astounding story, well laid out.
These men and women were fascinating! Not cut-and-paste heroes, they were much flawed, but they were brave, and their story has been written well by Mcintyre.

BUY AGENT ZIG ZAG FIRST - Then This

Zig Zag is a SUPERB book & is just leaves you in awe. buying Zig Zag first will help round your understanding of this book, as this book has many spies in it & is rather interwoven. A great book don't get e wrong but Zig Zag first then this will expand your listing pleasure.

Engaging narrative

I normally listen to audio books in my car while working. "Double Cross," compelled me to listen while doing things around the house and watching the Olympics. It provided a new perspective on WW II.

Fascinating story beautifully told

Ben Macintyre could make the phone book interesting, but when given such fascinating raw materials as this, it’s a story I couldn’t put down.

Double Cross

Too many names to keep track of audibly, it would have been better to have read it.

Double agents revealed

Mr. Macintyre's account of the double agents in WW11 is most interesting and well researched. Unlike "Agent Zigzag" which concentrates pretty much on one man's life and contributions to the war effort, this book is not what I would call "easy listening" by any means however. One must pay attention or soon get lost in an attempt to keep track of the many characters involved, their oddball personalities and the events they participated in. Personally I had to start the book over from the beginning several times before getting a good grasp on each individual's story but then sometimes when listening to an audio book I can get easily distracted, and other listeners may not experience the same problem.

Save England from the spies & me from the narrator

If there is a genre that particularly interests me, it is books about World War II. So I was happy when I found this book and anxious to read it.

The story line is fascinating, if a little too heavy on details. The author does a very good job interweaving the various characters and subplots as they prepare for the Normandy invasion. However, there are just so many characters and plots, that it is sometimes difficult to follow, especially if you are listening in the car where there are distractions. Cut out a third of the less prominent spies and it would be perfect.

But those are all minor complaints. For the first time in the many years that I have been listening to audible books, I absolutely hated the narration. It was awful and took far more away from the story than it added.

First of all, the narrator insists on mimicking accents of the many foreign characters, and doing it badly. It is distracting at best, and painful at worst. The accents were cartoonish -- with the Germans all sounding like Lili von Shtupp from "Blazing Saddles" and the French all sounding like Pepe Le Pew. Russian, Polish, and Slovakian characters all sounded exactly alike.

Secondly, the narrator is British. That is well and fine, but in this particular case his pronunciation was such that it distracted from the narrative. For example, the phrase "Secret Sources," which is liberally sprinkled throughout the book, came out as "Secret Sauces." Tell me of that doesn't interrupt your listening.

So while this would probably be a wonderful paperback to curl up with in front of the fire or in a beach chair, it is just no fun to listen to.

Another great book from Ben Macinyre!

Another great book by Ben Macintyre and excellent performance by John Lee. These two are a great combo. I’m a huge history buff and you just keep feeding my habit. Loved it, sorry it’s over!