The Janus Man

For a start, there is no rich megalomaniac with some (mildly implausible) uber-corportaion intent on taking over the world. Nor is the now constant stable of avatars formed as yet - the hero, Tweed, works only with the foreign corespondent Robert Newman, and then later with his back up men. No roaming the classiest hotels in Europe with a huge (and totally indestructable) team, apparently to fool the enemy who would never suspect them to use the richest hotels. Although they always, /always/ do.

The book takes place very much during the Cold War (a current setting when the story was written), and so the storyline is much more realistic and generally more tense than others, which have a tendency toward the melodramatic. The sequence where Newman has to go into the old DDR is truly a lesson in tension, as he goes from close call to close call,only just bluffing his way out of the clutches of the East German and Russian secret services. There is also a spy in Tweed's ranks. For once Forbes introduces the threat right up close; one of the 4 sector chiefs appointed by Tweed is a mole - but which one? Also responsible for horrific murders of blond girls throughout Europe, they lead a dual existence...and there is no way to guess which of them it is until Forbes lets you in on the secret.

The prose are generally of a higher standard than one comes to expect from Forbes: the dialogue is much more believeable than usual; there are less long drawn-out passages describing how superhuman the heroes are, managing to go without sleep seemingly indefinitely, and so on. There is one niggle in this area, though. In reviews it has been noted that Forbes's characters appear never to need to use the toilet...not so in this novel. Oh no indeed. The occasions on which they feel the need to "relieve themselves" become so numerous you start to feel that everyone involved has severe bladder impediments, with Forbes feeling it necessary to bring this up (usually with exactly the same verbal exchange and euphemisms surrounding the event) in some detail.

But apart from that, and all the other mandatory analysis, this is a great book. It's an involving, different and actually gripping thriller. For those who've never read Colin Forbes, this is a good one to start with. And for more ardent followers, "The Janus Man" offers a chance to remind yourself just why you started to read his books, now that the new ones just aren't up to the standard he set earlier in his career.


In my opinion Colin Forbes' best novel.   February 14, 2001
 3 out of 3 found this review helpful

The story here is so much more than what one has come to expect from Forbes. Using resident hero Tweed, intersting and diverse settings, ubiquitous bad-guys from the Eastern Bloc, as well as the obligatory psychopath (identity unknown, of course), Forbes goes one better and creates a far more gripping and compelling tale this time. Largely, this is because of the very introspective and personally gut-wrenching approach the author depicts Tweed taking in examining each of the four candidate moles. It is the best use of Tweed's character, and the characterisation of the hitherto anonymous sector heads is richly detailed and highly believeable.

The use of clues and evidence is cleverly interspersed with exciting events, new characters, red-herrings and unlikely twists. Newman and the supporting cast are also strong, advisedly used and - importantly - relevant to the story throughout. Incredible that a whodunnit of only 4 can sustain interest and imagination for over 500 pages. But it does with considerable aplomb. The whole Lubeck saga is an admirable vehicle for some of the story-telling, whilst the culmination of events and the eventual unveiling of the architect of all this mischief is powerfully simple, and breathtakingly vivid.

The Janus Man sees Forbes' story-telling on a par with both Forsyth and Le Carre. I read this novel first about ten years ago, and I still regard it as one of the best of its genre. (And before anyone asks, no Colin Forbes is not my dad).


betrayal at the highest level   November 24, 2000
 1 out of 1 found this review helpful

A more sinister Forbes book where the main character Tweed must find out which of four trusted companions is a traitor. Forbes captures the desparation well as Tweed tries to find out which of his trusted friends has betrayed him and his service. Brilliant


Another good forbes novel   September 26, 2000
 0 out of 2 found this review helpful

Well, in short, another interesting read from forbes. Featuring several of the regular characters, tweed etc. maybe slightly predictable but well researched and gripping in the main.