Waiting for Sunrise

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Always a smooth and expert storyteller, Boyd effortlessly combines historical detail with a sexy, galloping narrative that proves irresistible." (4 stars) - People Magazine A tantalizing, fast-paced spy novel. . . . As seductive as it is, Waiting for Sunrise is no bodice-ripper. It’s a brainteaser, charged with uncertainty and danger, electric with restraint. The New York Times Book Review The narrative in this novel is almost seamless. . . . This atmospheric novel is elegantly crafted by a London writer who serves up a rich portrayal of human psychology and a plot that is both engaging and imaginative. The Tucson Citizen Always a smooth and expert storyteller, Boyd effortlessly combines historical detail with a sexy, galloping narrative that proves irresistible. People

An evocative mix of sex, spies, and psychoanalysis. . . . Fans of the author will love and recognize all the hallmarks of Boyd’s best books.”— CNN.com An evocative mix of sex, spies, and psychoanalysis. . . . Fans of the author will love and recognize all the hallmarks of Boyd’s best books. CNN.com Waiting for Sunrise begins on a clear day in Vienna in 1913. Lysander Ulrich Rief is an Englishman who has given up his future plans and has invested his savings in a move to Vienna. Lysander has come to see Dr. J. Bensimon, a psychoanalyst trained by Sigmund Freud. In his rush and anxiety to meet with Bensimon for the first time, Lysander forgets his boater hat on a park bench. Instead of returning to retrieve it, he carries on to his appointment. Along the way, he sees a poster of a woman, barely clothed. He cannot make out what she is doing because the poster has been torn down, presumably due to its indecency. Lysander wonders what it might have been about and speculates that it might be related to some Greek myth. Fans of previous Boyd novels will find themselves on gratifyingly familiar ground in Waiting for Sunrise. . . . Few contemporary writers are able to evoke the ambiance and drama of our recent past as forcefully as Boyd. . . . Boyd’s prose is often radiant.”— The Washington Post Book World Lysander is engaged to be married, and he receives a letter from his fiancée, Blanche Blondel, an actress, which he reads in the Café Central. She has been with other men, but Lysander has taken care to be honorable. When he leaves the café, he runs into Alwyn Munro. Munro claims that he is a friend of Bensimon rather than a patient. He is a military attaché with the rank of captain, staying at the embassy, and he gives Lysander his card.verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ Boyd is a born story teller whose clear, taut prose never gets in the way of his characters and their unpredictable fates.”— The Wall Street Journal This is the sort of novel you finish, then begin again to revisit your favourite bits. . . . More than anything Waiting for Sunrise is a gleeful celebration of storytelling — sly, clever, frequently hilarious, always involving. . . . This is the literary event of the year.”— The Times (UK) In 1913 Vienna, young English actor Lysander Rief is accused of rape after launching a passionate affair and escapes with the help of two dodgy British diplomats, who promptly enlist his help in a dangerous mission. Costa/Whitbread Award winner Boyd turns in what looks to be a layered and atmospheric work; even strictly literary sorts might consider Library Journal

A thoughtfully plotted story, whose twists and turns reveal the price its characters pay in trust. . . . Boyd is a nimble and entertaining writer. The Philadelphia Inquirer Lysander seems to have been cured of his anorgasmia. He even meets Sigmund Freud at a café and claims that Bensimon cured him using parallelism. Freud prefers not to comment on parallelism, but he congratulates Lysander nevertheless. Now, however, Lysander is running out of money, and he regularly writes to his mother for additional funds. He has no income, and Hettie relies entirely on Hoff, who is surprisingly wealthy. Dr. Bensimon has begun to work on a theory called “parallelism.” Parallelism suggests that the world is “gaunt” until people cover it with details and context. For example, people might find the world around them ugly when they are in a bad mood, but when in a better mood, they might see beauty in all things. Therefore, people’s past is an aggregate of the fictions they create. Bensimon believes that this approach may cure Lysander of his anorgasmia. Lysander is hypnotized and Bensimon inserts a new memory in Lysander’s consciousness. In it, he fell asleep but nothing embarrassing happened. When Lysander awakes, he can recall the second memory, and Bensimon encourages him to rely on it. At Dr. Bensimon’s office, he meets Miss Bull, an Englishwoman. She asks Lysander for a cigarette and takes two from him. When Bensimon and a man exit the doctor’s office, Miss Bull “barges” the queue to see the doctor. Alwyn Munro introduces himself and suggests that he and Lysander might have met before, as the latter looks so familiar. When Lysander mentions that Bull cadged two of his cigarettes, Munro warns him that she looks dangerous. Waiting for Sunrise retains a consistent intrigue and a splendidly intricate plot. . . . The denouement plays out with characteristic suspense and masterful design. . . . [Boyd has] a truly remarkable imagination.”— The Huffington PostWhile at work, Lysander takes a call on the telephone. It is Hettie Bull, and Lysander agrees to meet with her. She accuses Lysander of cheating on her, and Lysander reminds her that she is married, not to mention that she betrayed him in Vienna. In response to Lysander’s explanation, she explains that she had the charges dropped from rape to assault after a visit from two military attachés. Lysander realizes that they were Fyfe-Miller and Munro. When Lysander rejects her again, she declares that he will never see Lothar. A thoughtfully plotted story, whose twists and turns reveal the price its characters pay in trust. . . . Boyd is a nimble and entertaining writer.”— The Philadelphia Inquirer Lysander begins to prepare for Udo Hoff’s exhibition by going to a gallery. Along the way, he sees miners and considers whether he could write a poem about them. In the gallery, he practices lines that he can say at the exhibition, like the painting is “striking.” At the exhibition, he finds Hoff’s work impressive because of its subtle transgressions. He also comes across the poster that was torn down in the street. It is for Andromeda und Perseus. Eine Oper in vier Akten von Gottlieb Toller. While looking at the painting, he meets Dr. Bensimon, who informs Lysander that the woman in the painting is Hettie Bull. Lysander shifts his gaze from the woman’s body to her face and realizes it is true. When he meets Hoff, Lysander compliments his work, but the painter is indifferent. Hettie tells Lysander that she would like to draw and sculpt him, and though he is initially uninterested, Lysander agrees. A tantalizing, fast-paced spy novel. . . . As seductive as it is, Waiting for Sunrise is no bodice-ripper. It’s a brainteaser, charged with uncertainty and danger, electric with restraint.”— The New York Times Book Review Always a smooth and expert storyteller, Boyd effortlessly combines historical detail with a sexy, galloping narrative that proves irresistible. People (4 stars)

Sex, psychiatry and Vienna on the eve of World War I - those are promising ingredients for a novel. And William Boyd makes the most of them. . . . Boyd’s narrative moves briskly, and his local color is deftly done.”— The Seattle Times The affair continues over several months, during which time Wolfram leaves the pension. The couple takes great care to prevent Udo Hoff from discovering them. They leave messages for each other at a café and then meet in hotels. During this time, he learns that Hettie has been injecting Coca to control her mood. Lysander is guilty about his betrayal of his fiancée and writes to her to break off their relationship, claiming that it will take him too long to be cured to be fair to her. However, he soon receives a reply from Blanche, who declares that she will stand by him. She refuses to hear any talk of breaking off their engagement. Hettie invites Lysander to a New Year’s Eve party at Hoff’s. Though they are nearly caught together, the drunk painter does not appear suspicious. Boyd retrofits a genre full of familiar devices and character types with finer textures and deeper psychology than it typically boasts. . . . Waiting for Sunrise manages to conjure an atmosphere of genuine disorientation that most spy novels gesture toward and few, if any, attain.”— Laura Miller, Salon Rose, Rose, I Love You - Ma Belle Marguerite - The World is Waiting for the Sunrise - A Fine Romanc… Boyd retrofits a genre full of familiar devices and character types with finer textures and deeper psychology than it typically boasts. . . . Waiting for Sunrise manages to conjure an atmosphere of genuine disorientation that most spy novels gesture toward and few, if any, attain. Laura MillerSex, psychiatry and Vienna on the eve of World War I - those are promising ingredients for a novel. And William Boyd makes the most of them. . . . Boyd’s narrative moves briskly, and his local color is deftly done. The Seattle Times Lysander’s mother, Anna, killed herself by walking into the sea. She left behind a letter explaining that she felt Lysander was putting himself in harm’s way trying to protect her. He recalls Wolfram’s declaration that he would have committed suicide— Selbstmord—if he had been found guilty. When Lysander tells Bensimon what has happened, the psychoanalyst admits that it was quite normal in Vienna. Lysander asks whether the psychoanalyst had ever met Alwyn Munro and Bensimon answers carefully, explaining that Munro was a patient. Waiting for Sunrise retains a consistent intrigue and a splendidly intricate plot. . . . The denouement plays out with characteristic suspense and masterful design. . . . [Boyd has] a truly remarkable imagination. The Huffington Post Powerfully entertaining. . . . Boyd’s ability to evoke a sense of time and place is unmatched. . . . He has been perfecting the craft of globetrotting entertainment for the past three decades.”— The Richmond Times-Dispatch Munro and Lysander return to London, where they meet Fyfe-Miller. They also meet Colonel Massinger, who shows Lysander a one-on-one code, which, Massinger explains, is impossible to break because the text key is known only to the sender and the receiver. The code is being sent from London to a German official in Geneva, and Massinger thinks that it has led to several English defeats in the war. Lysander’s mission is to convince the German to give up the key. Geneva is like a “cesspit of spies, informants, agents, couriers,” explains Massinger, so all foreigners are immediately inspected upon arrival. Lysander will be declared missing in action before taking on the identity of a Swiss railway engineer, Abelard Schwimmer. In return for this effort, Lysander’s debt to His Majesty’s government will be considered paid in full. Finally, Lysander is promoted to lieutenant.

Fans of previous Boyd novels will find themselves on gratifyingly familiar ground in Waiting for Sunrise. . . . Few contemporary writers are able to evoke the ambiance and drama of our recent past as forcefully as Boyd. . . . Boyd’s prose is often radiant. The Washington Post Book World However, Lysander still has feelings for Hettie. Blanche has figured out that Lysander fell in love while in Vienna and she leaves him, though she suggests that he propose to her again at some point. Lysander travels to the country to visit his mother and her husband, where he tells his mother about his son, Lothar, and his relationship with Hettie. He gives her a copy of Andromeda und Perseus. Eine Oper in vier Akten von Gottlieb Toller with a cover to show her what Hettie looks like. His mother is surprised that Lysander has fallen for a woman so unlike his usual type: tall and thin. The narrative in this novel is almost seamless. . . . This atmospheric novel is elegantly crafted by a London writer who serves up a rich portrayal of human psychology and a plot that is both engaging and imaginative.”— The Tucson Citizen Always a smooth and expert storyteller, Boyd effortlessly combines historical detail with a sexy, galloping narrative that proves irresistible.”— People (4 stars)Lysander is staying in a temporary consulate building, a small villa in the classical style. The prison has two stories and is near a garden, and His Majesty’s government is paying for both the costs of his incarceration and his legal fees. His lawyer, Herr Feuerstein, agrees with Lysander that the best defense will be to reveal the details of his affair with Hettie. Feuerstein takes note of the details of the affair and plans to visit each hotel to gather evidence proving Hettie’s complicity in the affair and that Lysander is innocent of assault. The decoded messages are not enough to identify the traitor, though it is clear that the traitor works in the Directorate of Movements. Munro and Massinger take Lysander to meet a captain in Whitehall Court, London. The captain does not introduce himself. They decide to insert Lysander in the War Office by claiming that he is following up on a commission from the previous year. When Massinger suggests that they might be stepping on M.O. 5’s toes, the captain assures them that M.O. 5 is too busy to put anyone on the case anyhow. They label the traitor “Andromeda,” and Lysander begins his search. When Lysander arrives, however, he soon realizes that the search will be extraordinarily difficult. He resolves to begin interviewing the members of the Directorate.