The Wolf's Hour
Encyclopedia
The Wolf's Hour is a 1989 World War II
adventure novel with a twist by Robert R. McCammon
. A British
secret agent goes behind German
lines to stop a secret weapon from being launched against the Allies
. The twist is that this agent is a werewolf
. The book also includes some of the agent's history, namely how he became a werewolf.
warns Allied Intelligence of something big in the works---which might have serious implications for Operation Overlord
. The only way to get more information from the agent in Paris---now closely watched by the Gestapo
---is to send in a personal courier.
Russian émigré Michael Gallatin is picked for the job. In retirement as a secret agent since a grisly episode in North Africa
, Gallatin is parachuted into occupied France
, on a mission which will take him to the festering heart of the Third Reich on the scent of doomsday.
As a master spy, Gallatin has proved he can take on formidable foes---and kill them. As a passionate lover, he attracts beautiful women. But there is one extra factor which makes Michael Gallatin a unique special agent---he is a werewolf
, able to change form almost at will, able to assume the body of a wolf and its capacity to kill with savage, snarling fury.
In the madness of war, Gallatin hunts his prey---ready to out-think his opponents with his finely tuned brain. Or tear their throats out with his finely honed teeth.
The novel flashes back to when his parents and sister were brutally murdered and before and after Michael is bitten by a Werewolf. Once bitten, he becomes a werewolf and lives in isolation with a wolf clan in Russian forests.
Michael Gallatin is a British emigrant that is a top spy for Britain during World War II. In 1942, he overtakes Rommel in North Africa and foils the Nazis plan to control the Suez Canal. This vital waterway would ensure that Nazi Germany could choke off Allied shipping and continue their march east into Russia. In 1944, the war still rages on and the Nazis are forced toward Berlin by the Soviets, but Western Europe is still in Hitler’s grip.
Gallatin, in seclusion since 1942, is called back for a vital mission: The first part of the mission has him parachuting into Nazi-occupied France to retrieve vital information from an informant named Adam. Adam is in Paris under tight Gestapo security (the Nazi’s official secret police). Gallatin contacts Adam through a Nazi deserter called “Mouse”. He slips a note in Adams pocket that informs Adam to go to an opera at the third act, so Gallatin can receive the information. Unfortunately, the Gestapo had followed Adam and shoot him in the head just after the information was disclosed to Michael. Michael escapes by faking suicide using cyanide; he doesn’t swallow the pill. This fake-out allots him time to turn into a werewolf and he kills the fleeing Gestapo. Gallatin and Mouse must make their way east to Berlin, the heart of the Nazis lair, in an attempt to foil a top-secret Nazi plan, “Iron Fist”.
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
adventure novel with a twist by Robert R. McCammon
Robert R. McCammon
Robert Rick McCammon is an American novelist from Birmingham, Alabama. His parents are Jack, a musician, and Barbara Bundy McCammon. After his parents' divorce, McCammon lived with his grandparents in Birmingham. He received a B.A. in Journalism from the University of Alabama in 1974. McCammon...
. A British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
secret agent goes behind German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
lines to stop a secret weapon from being launched against the Allies
Allies
In everyday English usage, allies are people, groups, or nations that have joined together in an association for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out between them...
. The twist is that this agent is a werewolf
Werewolf
A werewolf, also known as a lycanthrope , is a mythological or folkloric human with the ability to shapeshift into a wolf or an anthropomorphic wolf-like creature, either purposely or after being placed under a curse...
. The book also includes some of the agent's history, namely how he became a werewolf.
Plot summary
It is 1944. A message from ParisParis
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
warns Allied Intelligence of something big in the works---which might have serious implications for Operation Overlord
Operation Overlord
Operation Overlord was the code name for the Battle of Normandy, the operation that launched the invasion of German-occupied western Europe during World War II by Allied forces. The operation commenced on 6 June 1944 with the Normandy landings...
. The only way to get more information from the agent in Paris---now closely watched by the Gestapo
Gestapo
The Gestapo was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Beginning on 20 April 1934, it was under the administration of the SS leader Heinrich Himmler in his position as Chief of German Police...
---is to send in a personal courier.
Russian émigré Michael Gallatin is picked for the job. In retirement as a secret agent since a grisly episode in North Africa
North Africa
North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, linked by the Sahara to Sub-Saharan Africa. Geopolitically, the United Nations definition of Northern Africa includes eight countries or territories; Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, South Sudan, Sudan, Tunisia, and...
, Gallatin is parachuted into occupied France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, on a mission which will take him to the festering heart of the Third Reich on the scent of doomsday.
As a master spy, Gallatin has proved he can take on formidable foes---and kill them. As a passionate lover, he attracts beautiful women. But there is one extra factor which makes Michael Gallatin a unique special agent---he is a werewolf
Werewolf
A werewolf, also known as a lycanthrope , is a mythological or folkloric human with the ability to shapeshift into a wolf or an anthropomorphic wolf-like creature, either purposely or after being placed under a curse...
, able to change form almost at will, able to assume the body of a wolf and its capacity to kill with savage, snarling fury.
In the madness of war, Gallatin hunts his prey---ready to out-think his opponents with his finely tuned brain. Or tear their throats out with his finely honed teeth.
The novel flashes back to when his parents and sister were brutally murdered and before and after Michael is bitten by a Werewolf. Once bitten, he becomes a werewolf and lives in isolation with a wolf clan in Russian forests.
Michael Gallatin is a British emigrant that is a top spy for Britain during World War II. In 1942, he overtakes Rommel in North Africa and foils the Nazis plan to control the Suez Canal. This vital waterway would ensure that Nazi Germany could choke off Allied shipping and continue their march east into Russia. In 1944, the war still rages on and the Nazis are forced toward Berlin by the Soviets, but Western Europe is still in Hitler’s grip.
Gallatin, in seclusion since 1942, is called back for a vital mission: The first part of the mission has him parachuting into Nazi-occupied France to retrieve vital information from an informant named Adam. Adam is in Paris under tight Gestapo security (the Nazi’s official secret police). Gallatin contacts Adam through a Nazi deserter called “Mouse”. He slips a note in Adams pocket that informs Adam to go to an opera at the third act, so Gallatin can receive the information. Unfortunately, the Gestapo had followed Adam and shoot him in the head just after the information was disclosed to Michael. Michael escapes by faking suicide using cyanide; he doesn’t swallow the pill. This fake-out allots him time to turn into a werewolf and he kills the fleeing Gestapo. Gallatin and Mouse must make their way east to Berlin, the heart of the Nazis lair, in an attempt to foil a top-secret Nazi plan, “Iron Fist”.