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    The Star of Istanbul: A Christopher Marlowe Cobb Thriller
    The Star of Istanbul: A Christopher Marlowe Cobb Thriller
    The Star of Istanbul: A Christopher Marlowe Cobb Thriller
    Audiobook12 hours

    The Star of Istanbul: A Christopher Marlowe Cobb Thriller

    Written by Robert Olen Butler

    Narrated by Ray Chase

    4/5

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    About this audiobook

    The first World War is underway; Germany has allied with the Ottoman Empire, and the Turkish caliphs have declared jihad on the British Empire. Meanwhile, U.S. President Woodrow Wilson hesitates to enter the fray. Aboard the passenger liner Lusitania, war correspondent and American spy Kit Cobb has been assigned to shadow a German intellectual and possible covert agent who is believed to have information vital to the war effort. During the voyage Cobb is smitten with famed actress Selene Bourgani, who inexplicably seems to be working for the Germans.Cobb soon realizes this simple actress is anything but, as she harbors secrets that could pour gasoline on a world already in flames. From the doomed voyage of the Lusitania to the darkest corners of London to the powder keg that is Istanbul, Cobb must venture deep behind enemy lines and use all the cunning in his possession to uncover Bourgani's true motives.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHighbridge Company
    Release dateOct 7, 2013
    ISBN9781622311811
    The Star of Istanbul: A Christopher Marlowe Cobb Thriller
    Author

    Robert Olen Butler

    Robert Olen Butler is the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of sixteen novels and six volumes of short fiction. He has twice won a National Magazine Award in Fiction and received the 2013 F. Scott Fitzgerald Award for American Literature. He teaches creative writing at Florida State University.

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    Reviews for The Star of Istanbul

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    • 3/5
      A good story, but it lagged in places. There's some interesting sidebars, e.g. the protagonist's escape from the sinking Lusitania.
    • 5/5
      The Star of Istanbul Robert Olen ButlerReal Readers was kind enough to send me a copy of The Hot Country a few months ago and I loved the book. It was the first of, what I see now will be a series of books, ‘starring’ Christopher Marlowe Cobb. So I was delighted to receive another book by Robert Olen Butler which is the second in this series with the promise of a third in the pipeline. And if Real Readers don't send that one to me then I will buy it for myself!!I believe in the US it is referred to as ‘sophomore slump’, here in the UK ‘second album syndrome’ and whilst Mr. Butler has many novels to his credit this is the second of the Kit Cobb stories and could have fallen prey to the aforementioned predicament but it doesn’t, not in any way shape or form. So the problem in attempting a review is that I am forced almost into duplicating what I said when I reviewed The Hot Country.It is just as good, with another well structured tale that is intelligently written, a high quality adventure story that is well paced with characters that are easy to engage with. All the clues were there to determine the final identity of the ‘baddie’. And I’m pleased to say that I did twig early on. But what was interesting was that often when you can figure the conundrum out early in the book it can make the reading of the book an anti climax. But this wasn't the case here. It was as if I had a little secret and I couldn't wait for Cobb to find out!Again the historical details are fascinating and well researched. And in so many ways it is all a book should be if you’re looking to be entertained on a sustained level. The amount of bloodshed is possibly always going to be issue depending upon your viewpoint. But it is used here to offer up a moral dilemma on the part of, certainly, the main character so that it never becomes gratuitous. And so now I patiently wait for Christopher Marlowe Cobb and The Empire of the Night.
    • 3/5
      A famous war correspondent is trained as a spy to travel behind the lines in WW I Europe and becomes entangled with a female spy of uncertain loyalties.
    • 5/5
      While staying true to the constraints of the military-thriller genre, Butler takes it to a whole new level. Expert character development, believable (as opposed to preachy, "as-you-know-bob") dialog, pacing that speeds and slows as the storyline requires, and no magic technology to save the day at the last minute. The story takes place at the beginning of WWI, and though I'm not generally a fan of historical fiction, in this case it allowed the author to avoid making gee-whiz weaponry one of the characters, and so made more room for the humans to act. I picked up the first book in the Christopher Marlowe Cobb series within a couple of hours of finishing this.
    • 4/5
      The Star of Istanbul is Christopher “Kit” Marlowe Cobb’s second adventure from Pulitzer Prize winning author, Robert Olen Butler. We were first introduced to Kit in The Hot Country and we will surely see him again as part of a trilogy of thrillers.Foreign correspondent “Kit” Cobb has been tasked with following a German intellectual aboard the Lusitania in the middle of WWI. He meets sultry actress Selene Bourgani on board, who appears to be working with the German Intelligence and he becomes intrigued by her. Selene has many secrets and information Cobb needs and she will become indispensable in his task for the US Intelligence service. Following the German U-boat attack on the Lusitania Cobb and Selene will travel to London and Istanbul through war-torn Europe to fulfil their duties. Cobb knows he is taking many risks for his country, including his life, and must remain alert at all times.The Star of Istanbul is a fast-paced spy thriller full of intrigue, deceit, adventure and suspense. It is a very well-researched work full of believable characters and nail-biting intriguing situations. It follows on The Hot Country and in my opinion this is more fun and entertaining than the first novel so I have high hopes for the third instalment. The twists and intrigues in The Star of Istanbul are very intelligently written and the final twist and revelation of the main “baddie” was surprising to me, although I realised the clues were there all along.This was a very entertaining thriller and I look forward to the third instalment.
    • 4/5
      The Star of Istanbul – A Stylish Spy Thriller Pulitzer Prize Winning author Robert Olen Butler has written a second Christopher Marlow Cobb Thriller and The Star of Istanbul picks up a little further on from The Hot Country. Cobb has added another string to his bow he is now not just a famous war correspondent but a US State Department Spy that can use his reporting as cover especially now that it is 1915 and Europe is at war.Butler has written a clear and crisp spy thriller with excellent historical research which helps to make this a taut and spy thriller spoken through the eyes of Cobb and not knowing who he can trust. He has been given a mission but he learns that as the mission develops so will what he has to do and who he can and cannot trust.Cobb is being sent to London on board the Lusitania on its fateful journey as he is following German intellectual and possible spy Walter Brauer. While on board he develops a fascination and lust for the American film star Selene Bourgani who is also travelling on the ship. He learns during the journey that not everything is as it may seem. But he does rescue Selene Bourgani when the U-Boat strike sinks the Lusitania but manages to lose her in Queenstown once they have been picked up by a trawler.Metcalf, Cobb’s contact from the State Department meets him in Queenstown where Cobb he briefs him on what he has learnt and what may be the possible mission for the German Brauer. He is conveyed to London where he tries to keep up with Brauer and a mystery group of German spies working in London as well as crossing paths with Bourgani one again. While spying he maintains his cover and files stories about the Lusitania, its sinking and survival of passengers as well as those killed.Cobb realises he is a wanted man by the Germans who will do him harm if they find him and using papers and passports given to him in London he follows Brauer and Bourgani to Istanbul. It is here that he has his eyes opened but his mission becomes even more dangerous for him as he also wants to protect the object of his desire, Selene Bourgani. It is in Istanbul that he learns how dangerous that his life has become especially when he hears that the Germans have Der Wolf searching for him who has a reputation for killing people and never being recognised.As he learns more about the complexities of the Ottoman Empire and its relationship to other countries and peoples the mission becomes a matter of life and death. Whether he succeeds in his mission and is able to tell the story you will have to read.The Star of Istanbul is a fast moving changing plot that is historically correct and the characters are complex and revealing. The story being told through the eyes of Cobb makes this an even more interesting and exciting read. This is an excellent spy thriller which will lead you breathless and highlights some forgotten parts of history especially while the war is raging all round Europe in 1915.
    • 4/5
      I am not a massive fan of spy thrillers and I hadn't haven't read the first Kit Cobb adventure but I throughly enjoyed this book.

      Well paced and fast moving with a real sense of place and time that really had me gripped. Femme fatales, deadly killers and a charming protagonist make for an exciting reading experience.

      I was delighted to receive a free copy of The Star of Istambul via Realreaders
    • 5/5
      was really pleased to receive this book to review by Real Readers. This is due to be published on the 25th June 2015.This is the second book I have been asked to review by Robert Olen Butler, I previously reviewed The Hot Country. I was eager to see if this book was a good, this is the second Christopher Marlow Cobb Thriller and The Star of Istanbul starts a little further on from The Hot Country. Cobb in the first book was a war correspondent and now he is a US State Department Spy. Set during World War 1 Cobb is following a German possibly a secret service spy on the fateful Lusitania. Cobb on board falls for an American film star Selene Bourgani, as expected things are not what they appear to be. Predictably they survive when the U-Boat strikes and sinks the Lusitania. Cobb rescues Selene Bourgani but manages to lose her in Queenstown once they have been picked up by a trawler.Cobb is a wanted man by the Germans he has managed to file stories regarding those on board the Lusitania.It is in Istanbul that he learns how dangerous that his life has become and learns hears that the Germans have Der Wolf searching for him who has a deadly reputation. This story is gripping, and fast moving. The author has again researched the history well. this is a great absorbing spy thriller which is set to be amongst the top ten this summer.
    • 3/5
      Don't really care for his run-out-of-breath style, but his settings are terrific.