Red Gold: A Novel (Night Soldiers)

Red Gold has ratings and reviews. Cphe said: Enjoyed this novel more than the previous book (World at Night). This continues the story of Jean.
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In telling the story, Furst spotlights the tension and distrust among the several factions involved in the Resistance, from the loyal army officers on the staff of the puppet Petain to the Gaullist forces headquartered in London and the well-organized Communist underground. Even minor characters leap off the page, fully formed. Apr 14, William rated it really liked it. If his plots are not quite as memorable as McCarry and Ambler in particular, his command of detail is amazing. I have read a fair number of Furst's novels and liked them all. I am challenged to say how this compares to the others, since all are very good and none quite at the level of Ambler or early McCarry whose "The Secret Lovers" is a masterpiece.

In general, the characters do not in general seem to appear in more than one novel though I gather that the central character in this one, Jean Casson, appears in two others which I have not read , but one roots for each protagonist. My memory may be inaccurate, but the only recurring item seems to be a bullet hole in a mirror in the Heininger restaurant from a pre-war incident. While the book is not quite a mastepiece, it's a very good read, and far more than mere "beach-reading. Oct 20, Simon Mcleish rated it really liked it.

Originally published on my blog here in February Following on from The World at Night , Red Gold continues to chronicle the exploits of Hugh Casson, one time film producer, as he becomes reluctantly involved with the various anti-German factions of occupied Paris. While definitely wanting the Germans ruling France, Casson is not a hero and probably would have kept his head down and stayed far away from de Gaullists, disgruntled Vichy Regime secret service and certainly the Communists if circ Originally published on my blog here in February While definitely wanting the Germans ruling France, Casson is not a hero and probably would have kept his head down and stayed far away from de Gaullists, disgruntled Vichy Regime secret service and certainly the Communists if circumstances has allowed.

Red Gold is basically more of the same, as you might expect of a sequel; The World at Night set a high standard which is maintained here. May 30, Lianne added it. It is a year later October The Occupation is underway and the main character John Casson has assumed a new identity. He is hiding from the Gestapo, living on a few francs during the "darkest hour" of the war when the Germans have decisive momentum. The political motives of the characters Casson meets become murky. It becomes difficult to know whether they are as they say, or double agents with other agendas.

Casson becomes drawn into an alliance with the French Communist party to run arms for the resistance. Times are bleak under the Vichy government while in England, De Gaulle is beginning to build support. Internecine rivalries between factions complicate the mission. Victory seems too much to hope for. At most the resistance works to slow down the Nazi advance elsewhere. Pearl Harbor happens and now the French and Casson hang on through a hopeless time.

Small and large acts of courage give meaning to each day. Once again the main character is Jean Casson, who was a well known film producer before the war. After a run in with the Gestapo, and a missed chance to flee the continent, Casson finds himself inhabiting the seedier side of Parisian life. He becomes embroiled with the French Resistance, and starts to act as a go between between two differing resistance factions This is the 5th book in Alan Furst's "Night Soldiers" series, but it is also a continuation from the previous book "The World At Night".


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He becomes embroiled with the French Resistance, and starts to act as a go between between two differing resistance factions. On one side there is the resistance loyal to DeGaulle, and on the other there is the French Communists. The two factions deeply distrust each other, but seemily have to co-operate in the effort to provide an effective resistance.

Could this merging be managed with the help of Casson? Once again this book has plenty of atmosphere, with well crafted characters, although sometimes the plot is a little predictable. Even if you don't read the series in order, it is still worth tackling "The World At Night", before this one as that introduces you to the character of Casson.

Red Gold by Alan Furst (1999)

Jun 25, Jean Hontz rated it really liked it. Alan Furst's series is about normal, everyday people stuck in the middle of Hell, when Europe goes to war.


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    8. Some of them survive, some don't. Some find a way to work in the resistance, some try to escape, some help with that. He presents the situation, not idealized with brave, beautiful people who are incredible spies, but instead as people who barely manage to find ways to survive, and do what little they can to help the cause of defeating Hitler. Fear is always present and one never knows who Alan Furst's series is about normal, everyday people stuck in the middle of Hell, when Europe goes to war.

    Fear is always present and one never knows who is knocking on your door, or who will be knocking it down. Jun 22, Leslie rated it really liked it Recommends it for: Jan 26, Erik rated it it was amazing Shelves: Finished this long ago. But then, I'm an Alan Furst junkie. French resistance in the early 40's--gives a panoramic view of a lot of different characters, focusing on an ex-film producer's efforts to keep out of the Nazi's view and fight them in some way. Oct 22, Robert rated it really liked it. Alan Furst's publisher chose to highlight him as a master of the "atmospheric spy thriller" in the note on the author at the end of his novel, Red Gold.

    In Red Gold Jean Casson, a former movie producer turned anti-German activist at the outset of WWII, spends a lot of time contemplating rain lashing his windowpanes, listening to the rumble of trains taking him into danger, lurking around critical river locks in the dark, and scrounging up a few fra Alan Furst's publisher chose to highlight him as a master of the "atmospheric spy thriller" in the note on the author at the end of his novel, Red Gold.

    Red Gold by Alan Furst () | Books & Boots

    The setting is largely Paris with a few excursions south and north. And the atmosphere in Paris in , overrun by Germans--largely but not exclusively louts--surely was as Furst presents it. Furst handles all this masterfully, inserting a few romantic encounters and presenting a variety of hard-bitten and odious characters on the fringes of history, ready to trip you, steal your gun, and kill your friend. This is, as Graham Greene would put it, an "entertainment," a kind of spellbinding spectacle full of hypocrisy, irony, and bad luck, in which Casson has a few brief ups and a few dreadful downs.

    He excels in accepting the ambiguity of being pursued both by the Gestapo and some of his alleged colleagues in disruption. Furst's aesthetic strength probably is not making too much of Casson or others, both in the negative and positive sense. He's a guy in a jam, not an existentialist anti-hero, and he's a fellow who knows he may never see his short-time lover again I like Paris, Europe, modern history, and all the cagey details Furst inserts into the narrative.

    He makes a brutal truck run through backwoods France fascinating. He takes a little thing--some boxes of machine guns originating in Syria--and turns it into connective tissue for a plot that encompasses much more than being able to knock off the bad guys. Furst doesn't have to make that point; all he has to do is make us see how difficult it was for anyone to simply survive until , never mind VE-Day.

    Jun 12, Duffy Pratt rated it really liked it Shelves: This is a fine installment in the Night Soldiers series. I liked this book better than it's predecessor, but I think the two could have worked well as a single novel. In this book, he is trying to re-establish some kind of a life for himself, and does this by becoming an intermediary between the DeGaulle This is a fine installment in the Night Soldiers series. In this book, he is trying to re-establish some kind of a life for himself, and does this by becoming an intermediary between the DeGaulle resistance and the more active, and brutal Communist resistance.

    The factions hate each other almost as much as they hate Hitler, and the chance of betrayals or reprisals is extremely high. In Furst's world, it is often ambiguous whether a minor event is simply that, or something more sinister. As a result, his books often feel a little disjointed and even plotless. This is a feature, not a bug. That uncertainty about everything is a crucial part of his world, and one of the chief things that leads to the atmosphere of danger and foreboding.

    That said, this is one of the more tightly plotted of his books, if only because his characterizations here are a bit stronger than they have been in some other books, especially with the more minor characters. It's also cool the way Furst has his characters doing things that seem relatively minor in the context of WWII, but still gives you a sense of their importance. Casson, who is more or less a nobody, tries to sabotage some oil transports on the Seine, which will be headed to North Africa to fuel Rommel's tanks.

    If he succeeds, it might slow down deliveries for a few weeks or a month, which seems really small in the context of the war, but still noble and vital to the war effort. As always, the writing is clean and strong on atmosphere. In some ways, I think that World at Night and this book might be the best introduction to Furst. May 31, Ellie Midwood rated it it was amazing Shelves: Casson himself - a former film producer on the run - is grim and forlorn, hiding from the Gestapo under a false name and seeing no future for himself in this new France, swarming with uniformed men.

    But one day, and quite by accident, Casson gets involved with the Resistance, and his life changes drastically, changing him in turn: I absolutely loved the setting of this novel, which was so detailed, so authentic that I could almost breathe the air of Occupied France, see the people walking its streets, taste the food they shared in clandestine cafes. The research is absolutely outstanding, and characters are wonderfully real.

    An absolutely wonderful historical fiction novel! I wish I could give it more than five stars! May 09, Rachel Pollock rated it really liked it. I wish Furst had written more books about this protagonist film producer turned reluctant spy Jean-Claude Casson. Sep 07, Dianeparente62gmail. Furst creates characters and settings so real you feel you know them and are experiencing their trials and small triumphs with them.

    An added bonus is Furst's narrative style enlivened often by a delightful sense of humor. His hero this time, Casson, is a down and out French film producer used to the good life. War has intervened rendering that occupation a close Travel back in time to World War II occupied France with Alan Furst's characters and you are in for a gripping reading experience. War has intervened rendering that occupation a closed door so he becomes a go-between for various factions of the Resistance.

    Along the way he encounters love and does all he can to save his Jewish lover while connecting with his ex-wife who provides some relief to his penniless misery. She also steers him into a different Resistance group where he is again propelled into life-threatening missions to sabotage the German war machine. An added historical bonus is the novel's portrayal of the various groups, the communists among them, working to place themselves in power after the war. It is relatively easy to lose track of the characters but that in no way undermines Furst's painting of believable, brave men and women fighting the oppressive Nazi presence to survive and, perhaps some day, govern.

    This novel is a trip back in time to share the experiences of those under Germany's ruthless rule. Aug 25, Dr T rated it liked it. Concerns the activities of various partisan groups, particularly the communists, working to impede the Germans during the war. A very involved plot, with a lot of difficulty remembering who is working with who. The main thrust of the book seems to be all the machinations and subterfuges needed to operate within occupied France, particularly Paris during the war.

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    Rather a lot of work to get through the book. Jan 22, Benjamin added it Shelves: My third experience reading Furst confirms what I wrote about the first two: No one in this book is going to single-handedly change the war; and, just like in Blood of Victory the plot largely consists of one-or-t My third experience reading Furst confirms what I wrote about the first two: No one in this book is going to single-handedly change the war; and, just like in Blood of Victory the plot largely consists of one-or-two major but still minor operations: And, as in Spies of the Balkans , the story is very fragmented, as you might be able to tell from the list of characters that I mentioned above.

    While most of the story follows the ex-film producer Casson, we switch POV to follow many different characters. You could draw a map connecting all the characters and threads, which gives the story some cohesiveness; but the larger map here is just France, both Occupied and Vichy, and the tense relations among the various groups. That is, the Vichy intelligence service has some agenda that may not match the De Gaullist government-in-exile agenda that may not match the Communists in France agenda that may not fit And yet all of these groups has some reason to find common cause in fighting the German enemy on the sly.

    And giving us Casson as the major figure among the ensemble is a pretty great choice. Here's our guy, formerly rich and loved, now nearing poverty and hunted, equally at home or equally ill-at-ease with the still rich French collaborationist or not and the newly- or still-poor French on the run or merely down on their luck. Through Casson--and through the kaleidoscopic view of France in these few years--we get a real sense of the uncertainty of occupation. Mar 06, Steve rated it liked it. The fifth novel in Furst's Europe before and during World War II series, and the first one to feature a returning character.

    Casson, the French film producer from The World at Night, returns and his story is picked up in September and carried through until April of France is divided into pro-German Vichy under Petain and the occupied section, and efforts to resist the German conquerors are sporadic and not well organized. Despite his overwhelming need for romantic attachment - during The fifth novel in Furst's Europe before and during World War II series, and the first one to feature a returning character. Despite his overwhelming need for romantic attachment - during this novel it takes the form of an Alsatian half-Jewish girl called Helene - Casson seems, almost as an afterthought, to become drawn into resistance efforts.

    The best part of this slight novel it could well have been combined into one tome with its immediate predecessor is Furst's capturing of the fractured, suspicious anti-German French forces. Casson works with DeGrave, a member of the Secret Police, in an effort to contact the FTP - the communist-controlled terrorist resistance organization which takes its orders direct from Moscow. DeGrave's counterpart in this group is Weiss, a native Austrian, with whom Casson does most of his work. As well, there are the Gaullist forces who work from England. Mutual distrust does a lot to hamper the efforts of these disparate forces, and in fact, after the death of one of the principals, one of the three branches essentially shuts itself down.

    In the plus pages,all the real action against the Germans amount to importing a shipment of machine guns which get used all too sparingly, trying to get Helene out of the country, an effort which meets with mixed results and slowing down fuel shipments by canal by attacking locks and barges. The Brasserie Heiniger from the previous books shows up as Casson reaches out to the Gaullists to try to re-ignite his largely fruitless attempts to do something against the Germans. Interesting for how much can be said while so little actually happens.

    As Furst indicates, a large portion of the French population had adopted attentisme - the strategy of waiting. Even Casson admits to himself that 'he did not want to fight. He wanted to hide, that was the the truth. Find a woman, crawl up into some garret, and wait for the war to end.

    No wonder France gave up so easily and stayed occupied for half a decade. Jun 12, C. Yager rated it it was amazing. Casson is even more vulnerable in this novel, more desperate, and has several more close calls. I loved the way Furst takes the reader into the reality of partisan action during WWII, the waiting, the unpredictability, the failures as well as the successes, and how Casson changes as a result This novel could have been titled "The Continuing Espionage and War Survival Education of Jean Casson. I loved the way Furst takes the reader into the reality of partisan action during WWII, the waiting, the unpredictability, the failures as well as the successes, and how Casson changes as a result of his participation.

    Again, I didn't want to put down this book! My quibbles are kind of picky. The largest concerns the Gestapo not pursuing Casson after his escape from them in The World at Night. I would have liked them to be actively looking for him, forcing him and his comrades to be even more careful. This would have added another layer of danger to Casson's life and heightened the suspense. Furst does some nice intertwining of character's lives in unexpected ways that I liked, and that included certain Nazis in relation to Casson.

    Another quibble is that Casson seems to slide smoothly around and through the obstacles that are put in his path -- too easily. An example occurs after a major partisan operation that's a resounding success and Casson is in his hotel room. He has a nagging feeling that he needs to leave after the phone rings once usually a signal to leave. He decides to go to the hotel bar where he orders a wine. Then there's a big commotion as 3 or 4 men Furst doesn't say if they're Nazis or French enter the hotel and race upstairs to his hotel room where they break down the door and search the room.

    But Casson is safe in the bar. These 3 or 4 men don't check the bar, and this didn't make sense to me at all.

    Too easy that Casson isn't threatened more here, although I don't question that something like that could have happened in reality. Furst's writing continues to please, and I am looking forward to reading the rest of his novels although I understand that he is done now with Jean Casson. This book and the first Casson novel would make a wonderful movie that I'd go see. I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves espionage, thrillers, WWII novels, historical novels. Sep 21, Anne rated it really liked it Recommended to Anne by: It is not a true sequel to The World at Night as Casson is no longer the main character.

    Before, readers were shown only his point of view as he struggled to stay out of the path of war and espionage, ultimately failing. In Red Gold, Casson serves as a thread tying together various storylines and brief scenes of the lives involved in the Resistance movement.

    Some of the other characters include communist insurgents, Jews in hiding, Nazis enjoying Paris life.


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