Coffee with Hitler

'If ever there was a case of the road to hell being paved with good intentions, it is surely the story that Charles Spicer tells so brilliantly and empathetically in this exceptionally well-written book.' -- David Cannadine 'In this very well-researched and well-written work of historical revisionism, Charles Spicer reminds us of the important fact that not every Briton who wanted better relations with Nazi Germany did so from malign motives.' -- Andrew Roberts, author of <i>Churchill: Walking with Destiny</i> 'Charles Spicer tells the chilling story of how otherwise respectable men and women became pawns in a game of international intrigue with a reprehensible regime. The outstanding narrative reads like a thriller, taking readers from the salons of stately homes and St James's clubs to the mass rallies and diplomatic backrooms of Nazi Germany. With more than a few spies, rogues, and plot twists along the way, Spicer tells a story that could be ripped from the pages of a novel.' -- Bradley Hart, author of <i>Hitler's American Friends</i> '[An] absorbing history debut.' -- Caroline Sanderson * Bookseller * 'Charles Spicer reveals the bold attempt of a handful of British intelligence agents to infiltrate and civilise the Nazi hierarchy. This unlikely band of mavericks - who included a butterfly-collecting Old Etonian and a left-wing Welsh pacifist - spent five doomed years wining and dining the leading henchmen of Hitler's diabolical regime. Meticulously researched and told with panache, Coffee with Hitler sheds new light on both the Nazis themselves and the group who tried to tame them.' -- Giles Milton, author of <i>Churchill's Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare</i> 'Spicer offers a meticulously researched and pacy account of the behind-the-scenes soft diplomacy conducted by the Anglo-German Fellowship, a group of like-minded businessmen, politicians and academics united in the aim of preventing war with Nazi Germany. This fascinating study challenges the too easy dichotomy between the villainous and duped appeasers and those with Churchillian foresight and insight.' -- Julie Gottlieb, professor of modern history, University of Sheffield 'A captivating and convincing revisionist history.' -- <i>Kirkus</i>, starred review