If WAR Should Come: A Paul Muller Novel of Political Intrigue

I have just finished this book, after reading the other William Walker "Paul Muller" books. I have really enjoyed this series and have gained new information and knowledge about events leading up and including the beginning of WWII. I hope there will be more in this series!

This is William Walker’s fourth novel about the banker/diplomat/spy Paul Muller, a man who moves in the highest circles of the Swiss government. In prior novels we find Muller in Danzig, Vienna, France and Germany, this time we find him in Romania, Turkey, and Finland as he intersects with prewar crises and the start of World War II. Thus, we see those historic events through the eyes of neutral Switzerland. With the war on the great fear in Europe is that of the Russo-German de facto alliance created by the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact would destroy the West.The novel opens in September 1939 with Muller acting as a representative of the Bank for International Settlements where he takes possession of the Polish gold reserves being transported by train from the Polish/Romanian border to port of Costanza. This is sort of a follow-up to Alan Furst’s great novel “The Polish Officer.”From Romania he gets caught up in the intrigue of Istanbul, Turkey where neutral Turkey is under pressure from Germany and Britain to enter the war on their respective sides. German Ambassador Franz von Papen and his wife who Muller had a dalliance with her in Vienna make a cameo appearance here.The novel ends with Muller on the Finnish border fighting for the Finns in response to Russian aggression in November 1939. Quite a life telescoped into four months of 1939.My quibble with Walker here is that he gets wrong the price of gold, the number of grams in a troy ounce and the price of jewelry in the Turkish bazaar of 1939. My sense is that he used today’s prices for 1939’s. Otherwise I found his latest novel to be a satisfying way to get a sense of Europe at war, but it is not quite as good as his earlier efforts.

Enjoying book very much! Thank you!!

While I moderately enjoyed the plot, I found the habit of adding clarifying phrases frequently distracting. Instead of using several dashes before and after each phrase, the author uses a single dash and no spaces, which looks like a hyphen. Initially I had to stop and take half a second to mull what he was writing. Once I got used to it my flow was no longer interrupted but instead I just found it annoying. It seems to be something an editor should have pointed out. There were a few misspellings as well. The repeated use of "gator" (a reptile) instead of "gaiter" (an ankle covering) left me wonder if the author or editor had ever worn a pair.

It was a real pleasure to read the latest book in the Paul Muller series. Mr Walker sets a high bar in his books: to overcome the near-universal prejudice against fictional books that deal with finance and economics, or the minutiae of administration. In this book as in others he rises to the challenge. The story of the Polish gold reserves alone is worth the price. He catches the atmosphere of the Phony War, and the misplaced confidence that the size of the allied economies alone would determine the outcome of the war. As in a previous book, he catches the weird atmosphere of inertia in France through 1938 and 1939. As Ernest May has shown in his perceptive book on the French defeat in 1940, the French were hamstrung by the overconfidence -- the generals in themselves, and the politicians in the generals. This comes through remarkably well. This book is highly recommended.

I absolutely love this series. Have read each and every book they are almost impossible to put down. William is a master storyteller. Paul Muller is a wonderful character. Massive amount of reseaech has gone into these novels. And this one is a sure fire success. If you are interested in military history, intrigue, spy games, and esp WW 2 these novels are for you.

A very good story. I agree that it is on a par with Alan Furth’s novels. I hope that we haven’t seen the last of Hildegard. Although I understand the utility of having Muller unattached, I rather liked her character. Looking forward to seeing additional installments of Ambassador Miller’s story.

These are nice books to enjoy and I certainly hope that the Paul Mueller series continues. I'm also an author, so know that writing, and writing well, takes time and effort. The writing is nice, everything is believable, and the stories are based on history. I also quite happy that these novels have been properly proofread, unlike so much of what is published these days. I didn't find a single error. Yes, I know it is difficult - you can read your book five times and still not see them. I don't have any use for the cancer sticks (cigarettes) the main and many other characters are addicted to, so that is the only thing I'd change - get rid of the smoking, leave it for the bad guys.