The Levanter

The Levanter is a 1972 novel by Eric Ambler.

The Levanter
First edition
AuthorEric Ambler
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
PublisherWeidenfeld & Nicolson
Publication date
1972
Media typePrint
OCLC978687119
Preceded byThe Intercom Conspiracy 
Followed byDoctor Frigo 

Plot

Michael Howell is a "levantine mongrel"[1] who has inherited his family's Middle-Eastern business. He is forced by the Palestine Action Force to produce bombs for them.[2][3][4]

The story is framed by a description from a journalist of Ghaled, a Palestinian terrorist and extortionist.

Howell's company has its Syrian assets frozen by the new socialist government. Hoping to make the best of a bad situation, he proposes to the government that they start various joint ventures, with Howell's foreign companies getting exclusive export rights. One of these joint ventures is a battery company. Howell's mistress/colleague Teresa discovers the battery business has been ordering unnecessary and unauthorized extra materials. Michael recognizes these materials as ingredients for bombs, and they visit the factory at night. There, they discover an employee is hosting bomb-making classes. The security guard turns out to be Ghaled, the notorious terrorist, who threatens Howell and his mistress, and forces them to join the Palestinian Action Force (PAF). He forces them to sign confessions of being Israeli spies, and to assist with ordering crucial parts for bomb detonators.

Ghaled has two plans. The first is to build hundreds of suitcase bombs and distribute them throughout Israel on tourist buses. These are all to be detonated simultaneously using radio receiver parts from one of Howell's companies. The second is to shell the Tel Aviv coastline from a small wooden boat the PAF has bought, shielding it from radar with one of Howell's larger ships. Ghaled and Howell travel on Howell's ship. Howell has secretly given orders to the captain to remain sufficiently far from the coast that the shells are out of range. In a struggle between the ship's crew and Ghaled's men, Howell shoots Ghaled dead, and destroys the remote control for the suitcase bombs.

It turns out the Israeli authorities have already destroyed the suitcase bombs, by reverse-engineering the detonation signal using a part Howell supplied them, and broadcasting it before the bombs could be distributed.

Reception

Kirkus Reviews described the main character as "the most attractive antihero who's been around in some time."[5] Alan Furst wrote that it "features some of the strongest action scenes to be found in Ambler".[6]

The book won the Gold Dagger award.[7]

References
  1. Snyder, Robert Lance (2015). "Ethnography, Doubling, and Equivocal Narration in Eric Ambler's The Levanter". CEA Critic. 77 (1): 58–70. doi:10.1353/cea.2015.0005.
  2. Furst, Alan (15 June 2009). "The Art of Espionage". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 9 March 2022.
  3. "Fiction: Dec 17". the Guardian. 17 December 2005. Retrieved 9 March 2022.
  4. "Paperbacks: new and noteworthy". The New York Times. 4 April 1982. Retrieved 9 March 2022.
  5. "The Levanter". Kirkus Reviews. 21 June 1972. Retrieved 21 December 2021.
  6. "Five Best". Wall Street Journal. 13 June 2009. Retrieved 9 March 2022.
  7. "The Levanter". The Crime Writers’ Association. Retrieved 9 March 2022.
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