Name: S. R. Spencer's review of The Coldest City by Antony Johnston
Item: The Coldest City
Rating: 2
Author: S. R. Spencer

Antony Johnston

November 1989. Communism is collapsing, and soon the Berlin Wall will come down with it. But before that happens there is one last bit of cloak & dagger to attend to. Two weeks ago, an undercover MI6 officer was killed in Berlin. He was carrying information from a source in the East—a list that allegedly contains the name of every espionage agent working in Berlin, on all sides. No list was found on his body. Now Lorraine Broughton, an experienced spy with no pre-existing ties to Berlin, has been sent into this powder keg of social unrest, counter-espionage, defections gone bad and secret assassinations to bring back the list and save the lives of the British agents whose identities reside on it.

The Coldest City

KZAaaam

S. R. Spencer

Writer Antony Johnston and artist Steven Perkins return to Cold War-era Berlin for this prequel to THE COLDEST CITY. After a string of botched assignments for MI6 in Berlin, David Perceval is being sent home. Even his final mission before leaving ― the defection of a Soviet scientist ― goes badly wrong, as the coldest winter for 30 years descends on Europe. With transport out of Berlin impossible, and the KGB searching everywhere for their lost scientist, Perceval must improvise a deadly game of cat and mouse through the frozen city to keep the Russians at bay, and deliver his own unique brand of revenge!

The Coldest Winter

Maggie Gordon

The Coldest Winter is a very old school spy story taking place in Cold War era Berlin. It takes place, unsurprisingly, in the dead of winter, when a British spy is attempting to smuggle a Russian scientist out of the city despite all the rail lines being closed, though he quickly discovers that his superior has set him up to fail... There are no James Bond quirks in this story. Instead, expect traditional subterfuge that's all low tech. It's a dark narrative, but there are flashes of humour, and our protagonist is a quick thinking man who doesn't dwell on angst. It's quite refreshing for the genre!

My one complaint is that although the art is unique and striking, it is often hard to distinguish between the different characters.

Kerry Gibbons

I liked it. Supremely quick read. Not as good as the film, which I think is not an insult to the graphic novel but rather a compliment to Atomic Blonde.

Michael Hessling

Hmm. The artwork made it hard to keep everything straight, and the ending just ... what now?

KZAaaam &
The Coldest City by Antony Johnston

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KZAaaam &The Coldest City by Antony Johnston

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KZAaaam &
The Coldest City by Antony Johnston