Book
Decoy
First published 1983
Set in February 1942 during the Battle of the Atlantic, Decoy begins with the Allied convoy war entering a dangerous intelligence blackout. German U-boat Command has altered the Hydra cipher used with Enigma, leaving British codebreakers unable to read vital naval traffic just as submarine attacks threaten the shipping routes on which Britain depends.
The answer cannot come from analysis alone. A working Enigma machine and current key material must be captured from the enemy, turning the problem into an operational mission involving deception, secrecy and enormous risk at sea. Pope builds the thriller around the relationship between codebreaking and convoy survival: every message that cannot be read gives U-boats more freedom to concentrate against merchant shipping. The novel combines intelligence work with the practical dangers of early-1942 Atlantic warfare, when the balance remained uncertain and losses could have strategic consequences.
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