Danzig: A Novel of Political Intrigue (Wages of Appeasement)

I have read all four of Mr. Walker's books in this series. They are well researched and have given me a much deeper understanding if neutrality, the ineffectual League and all of the frustrations of maintaining neutrality and dealing with all of the people, Swiss and other countries, and Paul Mueller's abilities to weave workable situations in all that as confronted him,Mr. Walker's work with our government has given him a splendid amount of knowledge, his writing skills are first rate and his ability to spin a great yarn is outstanding. I can hardly wait for Mr. Mueller's next challenge.

My husband and I enjoyed this second book by the author. Having visited Gdansk a couple of years ago we wanted to learn more of the history of the city. Also when our Austrian friends referred to it as Danzig this peeked our interest. After reading this book we now understand why so many in Europe still must think of it as Danzig! We loved visiting Gdansk and want to return again as we felt it was special and after reading more of the history of the area we now understand why. We walked around the area where WWII began and now can appreciate more what so many people went through in that time. A few years ago we were going to fly to Geneva and visit some friends in Thun so we purchased the author's Switzerland book and read it while traveling via train from Austria via Zurich instead. (Geneva is still on our list) We will read about Vienna next as we have visited Vienna many times and are always looking for more historic bits about that interesting city. Note: we did not read these books in the order they were written and perhaps it would have been better if we had. However we have thoroughly enjoyed these two and we look forward to reading the Vienna book soon. We enjoy the author's style of writing his descriptions and adventures. We have travelled many times on the trains from Vienna to Warsaw to Krakoff to Zurich and these books bring back many memories for us as well We hope he will keep writing and we will keep reading!! Enjoyed this book very much!

Walker's inaugural novel depicts the political machinations of post World War I Europe, in which war-weary allies France, England and Poland attempt to mollify an aggressive and re-assertive Germany under Nazi leadership, most notably for the novel, in the the free city of Danzig, whose special status is assured and protected under a League of Nations mandate.After something of a slow start, the pace quickens, as the two League of Nations diplomats in Danzig, Sean Lester and Paul Muller, continually work to limit the Nazi party's impact in Danzig and to ensure free and fair elections, despite the ongoing challenges to their authority by German diplomats, Nazi party participants, Polish functionaries and the League's English and French backers, who seem only to undermine Lester and Muller's actions by their efforts to mollify and appease Hitler. In fact what makes "Danzig" such a great read is not that it's a wartime thriller, but rather, it depicts the art of diplomacy as exercised by Lester and Muller, who through threats, bluffs, press leaks and pure resolve are able to achieve their objective (at least for the short-term) in the face of overwhelming resistance and opposition from practically all the parties involved, including the League.Thus, readers who are expecting a period thriller with intrigue, action and a lot of violence may be disappointed. And at times the novel felt like it was building to a climax that never quite arrived. But one of the rewards of reading Danzig is Walker's depiction of Muller's successes as he skillfully plays the poor hand he is dealt; Muller and Lester achieve their objective by fully exploiting the various factions and fissures among all of the key players, and Walker's understanding of those factions— both in terms of their differing objectives, as well as their socio-political differences (for instance in German diplomats vs. Nazi party henchmen; the appeasers of England; the growing influence of the communists in France's post WWI government)— in the push and pull of ensuring Danzig's freedom.Another reward of the novel, and one that is perhaps more timely, is Walker's effective depiction of the mood of appeasement and detachment that characterized the allied response to Hitler's aggression-- as pursued by his SS henchmen against Jews and communists in cities controlled by the Nazis across broader Germany, but more importantly, by failing to confront him in the Rhineland following his gamble to re-seize lost territory. It is difficult for any reader not to see the parallels of today's response (or lack thereof) to the savagery of Isis, and not think that the world may be making the same mistakes it made a generation ago when it failed to confront Hitler, choosing instead to acquiesce to his demands in the misguided view that peace had been achieved and bloodshed avoided.Walker's debut novel will not appeal to everyone, but to those who find value in the subtle and timeless art of diplomacy, and for those who feel the world needs periodic reminders of the cost of appeasement in the face of malevolent actors with an axe to grind, Danzig is a wonderful new and first novel.

Excellent book if you are intrigued by Hitler and his plot to undermine and eventually destroy the free city of Danzig in the 1930s as part of his march into hell. The book is fiction but based on a wealth of historic fact. The fictional characters are not implausible. “Danzig” is not fast moving as are action spy and political thrillers (yes, I also love Kerr, Furst, Hynd and Kanon), but that doesn’t make it any less worth reading. The book will keep you reading late into the night by sheer fact of the story itself. As you read on, you’ll wonder whether the same clashes and betrayals that resulted in the collapse of the democratic city of Danzig aren’t so dissimilar to those taking place today in our own country. The book is beautifully written, and the layout makes it a pleasure to read.

I was not expecting to find such an interesting story so it completely got my attention. Viewing an event like this, from this perspective, gives a more human aspect to the history of the city of Gdańsk. Great story. Could do with good editor.

This was a well-written and informative novel, however, the reading experience was tainted by an excessively large number of typos and grammatical errors. Badly in need of a skilled proofreader.