Books
by Joseph Kanon
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Alibi |
The elaborate and convoluted plot relies on Kanon's intimate knowledge of Venice as he conjures up an atmosphere of mystery and foreboding. One becomes lost in murky streets and canals together with characters who seem to be trapped in horrors of their own making, and in the city itself. Perhaps the miseries of guilt and moral dilemma are overdone and there is too much Venice, but the book is worth the benefit of the doubt.
(Kathie Somerwil Ayrton - bwl 48 November 2008) |
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Defectors |
Moscow, 1961: An American arrives to handle the publication of his brother's memoirs. A notorious defector, might he still be playing deceiving tricks? A vivid portrait of the expatriate traitors' community, packed with action, woven around the brother's complex relationship, building to a dramatic climax which keeps you guessing until the end. I'm a bit Philby'd out and It might be heresy to say it, but I preferred this to the more verbose and elliptical Le Carré - perhaps that's a literary equivalent of treason.
(Tony Pratt - bwl 96 Spring 2020) |
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The Good German |
Although written in 2001 this novel, set in 1945, faultlessly keeps to time and place, conjuring up the sights, smells and miseries, street by street, of a ruined Berlin divided into zones of occupation after Hitler's defeat. A story of espionage and love, this consummate thriller transcends its genre by asking profound ethical questions in its exploration of the nature of justice, and what is meant by good and evil in times of peace and war.
(Kathie Somerwil Ayrton - bwl 48 November 2008) |
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The Prodigal Spy |
Perhaps the spy thriller has been done and overdone, but this one is well worth reading. The Cold War and US government officials defecting to Russia may be out-of-date but the family relationships, the problems and values discussed in the novel are still the constants of our lives today and the plot is an ingenious one. And perhaps, these days, not as out of date as it may seem. Vigorously and tautly written, a useful leisure time read.
(Kathie Somerwil Ayrton - bwl 48 November 2008) |
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