Syd Moore's The Great Deception is a thrilling combination of wartime spy craft and supernatural mystery, blending history and the supernatural with ease. Based in 1940, the book chronicles undercover agent Daphne Devine as she treads the trail of a clairvoyant who may be secretly helping the Nazis. What starts out as an espionage operation in invaded Iceland quickly turns into a lethal game of secrets, deception, and survival.

The writer brings vividly to life Iceland's foreboding landscapes, especially Strandir, that mythical "land of sorcerers." Tension hangs heavy with local myths and ancient spells causing myth and reality to blur. Here, on this haunting stage, Daphne is an engaging heroine: clever, capable, and willing to stand up to human and supernatural dangers.

The strength of the novel is in its balance between historical fact and gothic atmosphere. The author effectively conveys the paranoia and danger of espionage during wartime while incorporating elements of occultism that are both terrifying and plausible. The raising stakes; from Daphne's survival to that of her entire operation keep the plot tight and desperate.

Ambient, suspenseful, and full of depth, The Great Deception is a compelling read that will appeal to lovers of historical thrillers and occult mysteries. A strong, haunting addition to the author's series.

Daphne, formerly a stage magician's assistant, is conscripted by the Secret service, early in WW2, and sent to Iceland. Her mission is to investigate a clairvoyant who is suspected of collaborating with the Germans but what he is doing and how, are obscure. Daphne cracks his stage routine but finds that he is planning to send a grimoir (a book of spells) to Germany and she has to find it before him. She sets off with a journalist friend and her policeman brother in a desperate journey through the inhospitable countryside and islands off Iceland. Its fast and furious and the site of Iceland is atmospheric. Cracking good read.

Not having read the first book in this semi-occult series places the reader at a modest but not insuperable disadvantage, although there is enough packed into this compact historical thriller to engage most readers drawn to this genre. For a small island Iceland certainly punches above its weight when it comes to locations for intrigue and, especially, tales that span decades or even centuries. Unusually, the author is British, but has captured the sense of Iceland particularly well, especially in some very polished descriptions of land, sea and sky - particularly night time skies.

The plot is, perhaps, a little forced and the occult dimension seems never to be developed - which suits this reader who struggles with the tricks that can feature all too often in the occult genre. It’s perhaps best to see this as a historical thriller with an occasional occult gloss. In this interpretation the plot hangs together well, with very well drawn characters; a tale that accelerates its pace steadily through the book; and a no more than usual requirement to suspend disbelief.

On a final note this reader had to check twice that he hadn’t skipped pages as the unravelling of the tale stops rather too abruptly. This seems to be a common feature of novels that form a series. On the plus side this does encourage the enthusiastic reader to look forward to the next novel in the series. It does leave this reader, however, feeling left high and dry without a satisfying resolution, even if only in a temporary holding sense. Overall, however, there is enough here to satisfy all but the grumpiest reader, with some particularly beautiful descriptive passages - almost enough to transport the reader to the frozen wastes of Iceland.

"The Great Deception" by Syd Moore is the second in her W series about the occult in World War 2. I have to say that I much preferred the first book in the series and although this one carried on the plot somewhat, it wasn't as strong. However, I will keep up with the series and see how it might eventually tie in with the Essex Witch Museum series.

Iceland is the interesting backdrop to this story of intrigue, and the descriptions of the countryside and the Northern Lights are great. You can almost feel the cold. Daphne is both strong and vulnerable as she tries to work out if a medium is passing on valuable war secrets. An interesting read with lots of suspense.

An enjoyable read. Daphne is sent to Iceland to discover if a medium is involved in sending messages to the enemy and in the story there are wonderful descriptions such as the one of the Northern lights and there is an eerie feel to the novel, because it concerns the occult.
A good read and I would recommend it highly.