Product Description

March 1943, the war hangs in the balance, and at Bletchley Park a brilliant young codebreaker is facing a double nightmare. The Germans have unaccountably changed their U-boat Enigma code, threatening a massive Allied defeat. And as suspicion grows that there may be a spy inside Bletchley, Jericho's girlfriend, the beautiful and mysterious Claire Romilly suddenly disappears.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #4340 in Books
• Published on: 1996-05-02
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 464 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
A gripping World War II mystery novel with a cryptographic twist, Enigma's hero is Tom Jericho, a brilliant British mathematician working as a member of the team struggling to crack the Nazi Enigma code. Jericho's own struggles include nerve-wracking mental labour, the mysterious disappearance of a former girlfriend, the suspicions of his coworkers within the paranoid high-security project, and the certainty that someone close to him, perhaps the missing girl, is a Nazi spy. The plot is pure fiction but the historical background, Alan Turing's famous wartime computing project that cracked the German U-boat communications code, is real and accurately portrayed. Enigma is convincingly plotted, forcefully written, and filled with well-drawn characters; in short, it's everything a good techno-mystery should be. --James Early

Review
"After the stunning success of his first novel, "Fatherland," the question was what would Robert Harris do for an encore? This is his ersounding answer." -- Phillip Knightley, "Mail on Sunday"
"Extraordinarily good -- and undoubtedly the best thriller of the year, and perhaps of several years to come." -- T.J. Binyon, "Evening Standard"
"I finished the book regretful it had ended, and full of wonder at the extraordinary world, people and achievements it evoked." -- David Cannadine, "Observer"
"Altogether top-class stuff" -- Peter Millar, "The Times"

Evening Standard
‘Extraordinarily good - undoubtedly the best thriller of the year, and perhaps of several years to come’

Customer Reviews

An excellent novel
I would like to start this review by saying that I dont usually read crime-thrillers. I would normally read books by people such as J.M. Coetzee and Franz Kafka, but I decided to start reading some Robert Harris after I got Archangel as a gift and was interested in reading an interpretation of modern Russia. Since Enigma is the 4th Robert Harris novel I've read, it means I obviously enjoyed the other 3 very much!

My first comment on his books is that there seems to be a similarity between Xavier March (Fatherland), Tom Jericho (Enigma), Fluke Kelso (Archangel) and Marcus Attilius (Pompeii). They seem to be, in a way, extensions of Harris' fantasies of what he himself would be do in these situations. Some people may say that is too simple for an author, but I personally think it's perfect for this kind of book as it allows him to show his fullest extent of interest in what the characters are doing, and it really shines throughout.

The Amazon.co.uk editorial will give you what you need to know about the story before reading it, so all I can say is to just buy this book and after 5 or 6 chapters you'll be deep in the world of Bletchley Park. I finished this book in 4 days, actually feeling depressed that it had finished. It was the deepest I had ever been brought into a story, and it felt strange to be gone from it.

Buy, and read.

Getting caught up in the Enigma world.
Enigma, is the second novel from former political reporter Robert Harris. The book is hugely entertaining and packed full of facts. Harris' attention to detail is quite remarkable. Though Enigma dosn't have the pace of Harris' previous novel Fatherland, I just could'nt put it down. The historical facts make this book believable. A must read for everyone.

A holiday book
A bookish young man is found shattered; physically and emotionally. But, who is he and why is he in Cambridge? Enigma was recommended to me, and I recommend it to you. Jericho, the protagonist, persues what he thinks is his love in a page-turning race, twists and turns await the reader - all in the setting of industrious Bletchley Park. All the charachters are plausible and emotive - but there are some stereotypes about Oxbridge types, which really must be dismissed. Enigma gripped me, and must be the second brilliant invention from the wonderful family that made my tweed jacket.