Very fast-moving sequel with a Scotland to London train chase complete with spies, a captured German warship, murder, kidnapping, secret codes and jumping on and off trains which would rival The 39 Steps [which Goddard playfully has one of his characters read in the restaurant car of one of the trains].

The first book in The Wide World series by Robert Goddard [below] left me wanting more, and I turned straight to The Corners of the Globe to continue the story. A plane flight from Spain to the UK and a stint in the doctor’s waiting room ensured that I flew through it. You really do need to read book one first [see the link below for my review], although there is a little exposition at the beginning in the form of a Secret Service report, but to be honest it functions more as a recap for the reader who has read the first book than as an introduction for a newcomer.

Goddard is a consummate storyteller and sells millions of books worldwide, the majority of his books have made the UK’s Sunday Times Top 10 Bestsellers lists.

I failed to guess the ending of the first book, did I guess the ending of this one correctly? No. And there’s no date yet for the release of the final book of the trilogy. I for one am waiting eagerly.

To read my review of the first book in the series, The Ways of the World, click here.
For more information about Scottish novelist John Buchan, who wrote The 39 Steps, click here.
To watch the original 1935 BW film of The 39 Steps, directed by Alfred Hitchcock, click here.
Click here for Robert Goddard’s official Facebook page.

‘The Corners of the Globe: The Wide World #James Maxted 2’ by Robert Goddard [pub in the UK by Bantam Press]