Matthew Dunn Books

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Matthew Dunn is a British author best known for writing spy novels starring Will Cochrane. Dunn attended the University of East Anglia and the University of Cambridge.

The author is better placed to write spy thrillers than many of his peers because he was an MI6 officer. Dunn spent a significant portion of his life recruiting agents, coordinating their actions in the field, and participating in special operations.

He acted in deep-cover roles in places where capture would have led to his execution. The author survived because of his extensive training, which gave him mastery over small arms, explosives, infiltration, surveillance, and more.

Many espionage experts are well aware of Dunn’s activities because the secretary of state gave him a personal commendation for his involvement in a mission so significant it shaped a major international incident.

The commendation stands out because modern MI6 officers don’t get medals. The secretary of state made a rare exception for Dunn, which speaks volumes about his capabilities.

The author writes stories that reflect the realities of life in the field. He wants to shed light on events that never make the papers, especially when a spy agency’s operations go wrong. Will Cochrane, the protagonist for which Dunn is best known, provides readers a glimpse at the loneliness spies must weather, not to mention the tough decisions they must make in environments that won’t allow them to consult their superiors.

The author is determined to destroy the suggestion that espionage is not as exciting and dangerous as the public assumes.

Many of the events and characters Dunn writes about are based on real events and people, although he changes the names and locations to obscure their connection to his missions. He encourages readers with keen minds to do what they can to extract the truth from his stories.

Some aspects of his novels are completely made up. Nonetheless, the author approaches them from the perspective of a real MI6 officer. Whenever his characters encounter unexpected obstacles, Dunn’s first question is ‘What would I have done?’

The answer he pens is a close approximation of the actions the author would have taken if he were still in the field.

When asked whether gender matters in espionage, the author is quick to highlight an incident at an MI6 training facility. He remembers confronting a woman at the shooting range because he’d never seen her before.

Because she seemed old and frail, the author initially dismissed her. But then she took his gun and fired five shots that struck a tiny radius on the target with near-perfect accuracy. Experienced Special Forces operatives would’ve had trouble replicating the feat.

Dunn learned later on that the old woman was a former British Special Operations Executive Officer who had performed several dangerous missions during the World War. As such, Dunn doesn’t expect gender to determine whether or not an operative can do their job.

Matthew Dunn Awards

Dunn has received a Barry Award nomination.

Best Matthew Dunn Books

The author can write authoritatively about spies because he conducted seventy missions over the course of his MI6 career. Dunn’s best books include:

Spycatcher: Will Cochrane was a dedicated spy. The CIA and MI6 were certain he could find and neutralize the world’s most wanted terrorist. Cochrane hoped to lure the Iranian Revolutionary Guard General out of hiding using a man from his past.

Unfortunately, his adversary had more tricks up his sleeves than Cochrane anticipated. No one had ever outplayed Cochrane before. The mastermind in his crosshairs was about to become the rare exception.

Sentinel: ‘He has betrayed us and wants to go to war.’ This was the message the CIA received from their undercover agent in Russia. But what did it mean? Will Cochrane was sent to find out. Accomplishing his mission meant sneaking into a remote submarine base and finding the missing operative, a seemingly impossible task for anyone else.

But Cochrane was the best of the best and it wasn’t long before he located Svelte. Unfortunately, he was too late. The MI6 agent was near death. However, Svelte left one more clue before passing away: ‘Only Sentinel Can Stop Him.’

But what did that mean? How was Sentinel, a legendary operative, involved in the conspiracy to pit the US and Russia against each other?

When Does The Next Matthew Dunn book come out?

Matthew Dunn doesn't seem to have an upcoming book. Their newest book is The Private Spy and was released on September, 28th 2022. It is the newest book in the Ben Sign Series.

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