First published 2012
Prague, 1942. Two Czechoslovakian parachutists drop into occupied territory with orders from London. Their target is Reinhard Heydrich, the Nazi official known as "the hangman of Prague" and "the blond beast." Heydrich runs the Gestapo and serves as chief of the Nazi secret services. His reputation for brutality has made him one of the most feared men in the Third Reich. Even within the SS, officers say that "Himmler's brain is called Heydrich," a phrase that gives the novel its title through its German abbreviation HHhH. The two agents must navigate occupied Prague while preparing for Operation Anthropoid, their assassination mission. Binet constructs his narrative around this historical operation, weaving together the perspectives of the parachutists and their target. The story explores the collision between ordinary men thrust into extraordinary circumstances and a regime built on violence. Through Heydrich's rise and the agents' mission, the novel examines both the machinery of Nazi power and the courage required to resist it.
Genres: historical-fiction, 20th-century, military-history, political-thriller
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: based-on-true-events, historical-fiction
Setting: Prague, Czechoslovakia
Period: 1942
336 pages · Kindle Edition · Vintage Digital
Content warnings: violence