Listen free for 30 days

Listen with offer

  • City of Spies

  • City of Spies, Book 1
  • By: Mara Timon
  • Narrated by: Kristin Atherton
  • Length: 13 hrs and 10 mins
  • 4.3 out of 5 stars (421 ratings)
Offer ends May 1st, 2024 11:59PM GMT. Terms and conditions apply.
£7.99/month after 3 months. Renews automatically.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
City of Spies cover art

City of Spies

By: Mara Timon
Narrated by: Kristin Atherton
Get this deal Try for £0.00

Pay £99p/month. After 3 months pay £7.99/month. Renews automatically. See terms for eligibility.

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £6.88

Buy Now for £6.88

Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.

Listeners also enjoyed...

Prince of Spies cover art
The Winter Agent cover art
Agent in Berlin cover art
The American Wife cover art
Ungentlemanly Warfare cover art
Official Secrets cover art
Bliss Uncovered cover art
Windswept cover art
Island Reich cover art
The Black Orchestra: A WW2 Spy Thriller cover art
Night Flight to Paris cover art
The Silence Before Dawn cover art
The Beauty Shop cover art
The Poseidon Network cover art
The Socialite cover art
One Woman's War cover art

Summary

The stunning debut from the new name to watch in espionage thrillers. For fans of Charlotte Philby, The Night Manager and Rory Clements, this is perfect Sunday night (or any night) drama.

Lisbon, 1943. After escaping from Nazi-Occupied France, SOE agent Elisabeth de Mornay, codename Cecile, receives new orders: she must infiltrate high society in neutral Lisbon and find out who is leaking key information to the Germans about British troop movements. As Solange Verin, a French widow of independent means, she will be able to meet all the rich Europeans who have gathered in Lisbon to wait out the war. One of them is a traitor, and she must find out who before more British servicemen die. 

Complications arise when 'Solange' comes to the attention of German Abwehr officer Major Eduard Graf. As they get to know each other, she struggles to keep her lies close to the truth. 

But in a city that is filled with spies, how can she tell who is friend or foe? 

©2020 Mara Timon (P)2020 Bonnier Books UK

More from the same

What listeners say about City of Spies

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    260
  • 4 Stars
    93
  • 3 Stars
    36
  • 2 Stars
    19
  • 1 Stars
    13
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    268
  • 4 Stars
    73
  • 3 Stars
    30
  • 2 Stars
    7
  • 1 Stars
    11
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    226
  • 4 Stars
    94
  • 3 Stars
    34
  • 2 Stars
    16
  • 1 Stars
    18

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Bullets and Balenciaga

Having read several positive reviews praising a debut novel I was expecting better than this. One reviewer likened it to Casablanca meeting le Carre. A better comparison would be Girl’s Own meets chick lit. I felt no tension or menace even though the feisty heroine was surrounded by spies, informers, secret police, gestapo agents and other dangerous people. The language was often too modern and did not always fit the time or place, for example - a hard shoulder in the 1940s or a maitre’d in every establishment whether grand or work-a-day. I was hoping the final two chapters would reveal a surprise but, having been primed for a sequel, was, instead, given a potted history of the S.O.E. and a travelogue for Lisbon.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

22 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Formulaic spy story

Having a female author and protagonist I had hoped that this would be different to a standard WWII espionage thriller; particularly as Portugal features in so few of them. However the characters are totally one dimensional and the dialogue clunky at best. The narrator doesn't help either with emphasis placed in very curious parts of a sentence. Ending is too corny for words.

For a far superior female spy in WWII, I suggest people try David Downing's superb 'station' series instead.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

11 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Poor

Very poor. Little effort given to descriptive writing and character development. Plot line bubbles along and generally not well thought through.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Outstanding debut novel.

What an outstanding debut novel this is. A convincing blend of thriller, action/adventure and history of some events in the Second World War. It s exciting and non stop action keeps you absorbed from the very beginning. I listened in two sittings. Only stopping to sleep at the end of a long day. Each section/setting is almost a novel in its own right. Many authors would be grateful to have one of the plots to launch as their own. To complete the enjoyment, Kirsten Athertons’ narration was absolutely perfect! Her range of voices, personalities, accents and genders are amazing. She embodied the main character totally. And I’m sure narrated exactly as Mara Timon would have wanted. This ladies are an author and narrator I will definitely look out for in the future. Well worth 5 stars and your next credit!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Alo!Alo!

Awful just awful gave up after chapter 4…ridiculous storyline and comic German accents were just too much to bear
I know it’s free but come on!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Dreadful

Totally unbelievable tosh. The plot was beyond my ability to suspend disbelief. By the end I was just frustrated and annoyed.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Stunning Debut Novel

Wow, what a "tour de force" for a debut novel, captivating story and wonderfully narrated.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Exciting!


This is an all-action, sexy and meticulously researched espionage novel.
I love the way it gets straight into the action without the usual set-up of recruitment and insertion. It also makes the Germans and their sympathisers into real people who can be liked (or even loved) rather than the ciphers they often are in this genre.
Excellent!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Unconvincing.

In fact, utterly unbelievable. A passable yarn ruined by some wince making dialogue and some historical howlers. The main character seemed to be transplanted from the 2020s directly into the 1940s ... it was jarring . The other characters were drawn from central casting ...cruel Germans .. stuck up Brits ... passionate French. Could not finish .

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A captivating story...ripe for a movie deal!

A fantastic tale that beautifully blends history and second world war romanticism. A truly original take on the British Special Operations Executive operations in France and Portugal. A really vivid narration, waiting expectantly for the next instalment!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful