Well-written book, based on lots of research; fascinating biography of a major spymaster in UL's MI5. ( )

I received a free advance copy of this work through netgalley and Random House UK in return for an honest, unbiased review)

Henry Hemming presents a unique portrait of the man reputed to be part of the inspiration for the famous "M" in Ian Fleming's James Bond. Charles Henry Maxwell Knight began as a boy whose main interest was in animals, gathering a small, exotic menagerie of pets, an interest (and a habit) he would maintain all his life. Indeed, in his final years he would even work with David Attenborough. He would also write several (poor) pulp spy novels and a number of works on animals. He was briefly a pub landlord. But his main contribution was his long association with various intelligence agencies both private and official. Eventually he would run his own spy ring, the so-called "M-Division of MI5, which would provide vital intelligence for the British Government during the Second World War and the Cold War. Perhaps the most interesting aspect of his life and work was his relationship with the fascist activist William Joyce, better known as the infamous Lord Haw-Haw.

It was a complex relationship, Joyce's first wife was even Knight's former fiancée. Part friendship, part trust, part suspicion, part grudging respect. Indeed, it illuminates one of the most difficult-to-assess aspects of M's career, his long and close involvement with the British fascist movements. Maxwell Knight cut his teeth infiltrating the British Fascisti (BF), an early right-wing organisation that emerged between the wars, and really before there was any clear fascist ideology or idea of what fascist even meant aside from opposition to the spectre of a worldwide communist revolution. Maxwell Knight was certainly more suspicious of communist groups than proto-fascist groups, a fact that was true of many of his contemporaries even after Hitler became Chancellor of Germany. The history of British Fascism is difficult to pin down. It is certainly true to say that the ideals of the BF bore little resemblance to the fascism which would later claw its way across Europe, indeed the original BF would reflect a proposal to join Mosley's more recognisable Blackshirts.
By the time Moseley (with funding from Mussolini) was pursuing his ultimately doomed attempts to create a worthwhile Fascist party in Britain the establishment was growing increasingly uneasy with their movements and, in particular, their relationship with the Fascist parties in Italy and Germany. As the focus switched from communist to fascism M-division garnered intelligence by infiltrating potential fifth-column fascist groups. This switch in official policy makes it easy to assume that Knight had no real connection with the far right but this would be a gross simplification. A potential sympathy with the far right doesn't make M unique, or even unusual, among his contemporaries but while Hemming tentatively touches on the personal leanings of his leading man, hinting at some measure of genuine sympathy he doesn't tackle this issue with any particular focus or insight. The present climate in which alt-right represent a newly "socially acceptable" face of modern fascism even tentative apologism is a little unpalatable and the failure to deal directly with this issue is a considerable weakness in Hemming's work.

His focus is also unclear in other areas. Though Knight's early career was as a spy himself his main contribution was in recruiting and managing his own spy ring, placing him often on the periphery of the action. Knight becomes less and less the focus as his Hemming delves into the lives of his spies, particularly Olga Gray. His role and character become indistinct and hers (as well as those of her fellow spies) is never quite given the attention it deserves resulting in a feeling of superficiality that isn't entirely deserved. There is some impressive scholarship here and Hemming's research appears thorough and exhaustive, presenting the identities of several of M's agents for the first time. Unfortunately, there are certainly many "may have been"s and qualifiers that make the whole project uncertain and tentative. Definitely readable and Hemming's experience as a screen writer very clear with a keen eye for a powerful scene and an apt quote but it is also uneven and not entirely convincing. Perhaps not for the serious historian but it is an evocative, if flawed, glimpse into the life of an enigmatic character. ( )