The Traitors Circle cover art

The Traitors Circle

THE INSTANT SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER

 Preview

Get 30 days of Standard free

$8.99/mo after trial ends. Cancel anytime
Try for $0.00
More purchase options
Buy Now for $31.86

Buy Now for $31.86

About this listen

 THE INSTANT SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER
FROM THE AUTHOR OF THE ESCAPE ARTIST

A THE ECONOMIST BOOK OF THE YEAR

'Magnificent . . . Important and impressive'
DAILY TELEGRAPH

'Astonishing . . . Freedland is a master'
MICK HERRON

'Remarkable . . . This is how the best history books will be written in the future'
ANDREW ROBERTS

'Utterly gripping - and brilliantly told'
DOMINIC SANDBROOK

'Excellent . . . Perfect reading for this moment'
ANNE APPLEBAUM

'Utterly gripping, brilliantly researched and written'
ANTHONY HOROWITZ

'Compelling'
MAX HASTINGS, SUNDAY TIMES

'Thrilling, humane, and deeply moving . . . Not to be missed'
DAVID McCLOSKEY

'Totally gripping and timely'
JONATHAN DIMBLEBY

When the whole world is lying, someone must tell the truth.

Berlin, 1943. A group of high-society anti-Nazi dissenters meet for a tea party one late summer afternoon. They do not know that, sitting around the table, is someone poised to betray them all to the Gestapo - revealing their secret to the Nazis' most ruthless detective.

They form a circle of unlikely rebels, drawn from the German elite: two countesses, a diplomat, an intelligence officer, an ambassador's widow and a pioneering headmistress. Meeting in the shadows, rescuing Jews or plotting for a future Germany freed from the Führer's rule, what unites them is a shared loathing of the Nazis, a refusal to bow to Hitler and the courage to perform perilous acts of resistance. Or so they believe.

How did a group of brave, principled rebels, who had successfully defied Adolf Hitler for more than a decade, come to fall into such a lethal trap? And who betrayed them?

Undone from within and pursued to near-destruction by one of the Reich's cruellest men, they showed a heroism that raises a question with new urgency for our time: what kind of person does it take to risk everything and stand up to tyranny?©2025 Jonathan Freedland 20th Century Military Modern Heartfelt Imperialism Espionage

Critic Reviews

Haunting and heart-poundingly suspenseful - an extraordinary exploration of moral courage in a world overwhelmed by Nazi darkness. Freedland's passionate narrative takes us into secret and sometimes surprising corners of Hitler's Germany. In those shadows of vicious totalitarianism and betrayal - and facing the abyss of the Holocaust - is a circle of friends who embody unwavering human decency and faith and love. Freedland's powerful story-telling has intense resonance in today's darkening world. The moral questions are eternal (Sinclair McKay, bestselling author of DRESDEN)
A story of unlikely rebels who had much to lose from resisting the Nazi regime, which so many of their peers supported. What made them trade personal safety for moral rectitude? Freedland's answer is as tense as a thriller yet perceptive, thoughtful and thoroughly researched. It made me think long after I'd turned the last page (Katja Hoyer, bestselling author of BEYOND THE WALL)
Written like a novel, this tale of heroism, camaraderie, betrayal and tragedy will leave a lasting impression. It is a salutary reminder that history can inspire, even in the darkest of times (JOHN BEW, bestselling author of CITIZEN CLEM)
An astonishing true story of courage, love and betrayal, told with the verve of a thriller. Freedland is a master at weaving spellbinding entertainments drawn from forgotten corners of history (Mick Herron)
The Traitors Circle rivals Freedland's superb The Escape Artist. A revelatory account of heroism and treachery in Nazi Germany, it based on original research and reads like a thriller. Totally gripping and timely (Jonathan Dimbleby)
Though every word is true, this remarkable book reads like a novel. Part thriller, part adventure story, part Holocaust history, it is a searing memorial to the half-million Germans who died opposing Hitler, as well as the six million Jews he killed. The narrative style is gripping; the morality searing. This is how the best history books will be written in the future (Andrew Roberts, author of CHURCHILL: WALKING WITH DESTINY)
The Traitors Circle is not only a thrilling, humane, and deeply moving account of heroism, espionage, and betrayal in the Third Reich - it is the best sort of history, one whose rich characters breathe life and perspective into our present circumstance. Haunting, and not to be missed (David McCloskey, author of DAMASCUS STATION)
Gripping, chilling, inspiring - Jonathan Freedland has a unique gift for exploring history's most profound questions with the urgency of a news reporter and the stylistic flair of a great novelist (Rafael Behr)
All stars
Most relevant
Absolutely brilliant, and beautiful narrated by the author. Such an important story that needs to be told accurately. Thank you.

Brilliant

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Now I better understand why my parents and other relatives kept quiet, preferred to live in denial.
So admire the bravery of those who didn’t bend their minds to the Nazi regime .
This book deserves a movie.

Unbelievably cruel times

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
An exceptional recapturing of events and behaviours of extraordinary people in a very dark period of history. It is disturbingly relevant to today given recent events in the USA and Russia.

A deeply sobering account of those who stood up against Hitler and the SS

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Freedland’s mastery of facts coupled with sharp narrative skill makes for a compulsive reading experience of fact finding horror and revulsion at the willing murderers and desk murderers, and profound gratitude that there are people among us who have always known right from wrong, truth from lies, and good over evil, and are willing to turn their lot and lives to making that inherent goodness and light prevail. In these current times, this story from 80 years ago resonates more than ever. Congratulations to the author. A triumph.

Compelling, terrifying still, and an absolute must-read/listen for these present times.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
This is a terrific listen, an inspiring story and a light in the darkness in a terrible time. It’s great to listen to a book that makes you proud to be human rather than ashamed.

A well written, compassionate story.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews
In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.