Published by Head of Zeus, 15 July 2013.
ISBN: 978-1-7818-5509-6
This is a clever spy thriller. The US protagonist is anonymous - he leads us through his life without ever
revealing his own name. He starts in
Shanghai polishing his Mandarin with the lovely Mei. Gradually he becomes the archetypical spy to
whom nothing is straight forward. All
that happens to him (and a lot happens!) is subjected by him to remorseless
scrutiny to decide whether he is being spied on (he always felt that he was)
and to decide which side is doing the spying.
There are always several possibilities including, of course, his own
side!
I
found the slow movement through events in the USA and China with occasional
outbreaks of extreme emotion or action absolutely fascinating. The final conclusion is unexpected until the very last moment and
enables the reader to re-evaluate all that has occurred throughout the
book. The skilful use of language adds
to the pleasure - the instruction to "befriend, befuddle and betray",
the description of a Chinese-American's "gem cut diction" and "
many spies are aspiring novelists" - these are just some examples.
------
Reviewer: Jennifer
Palmer
Charles
McCarry has many successful spy thrillers under his belt already.
Charles McCarry was
born in 1930, and spent much of his non-writing life working for the CIA. He
divides his time between the Berkshires and Florida's west coast.
Jennifer Palmer Throughout my reading life crime
fiction has been a constant interest; I really enjoyed my 15 years as an
expatriate in the Far East, the Netherlands
& the USA
but occasionally the solace of closing my door to the outside world and sitting
reading was highly therapeutic. I now lecture to adults on historical topics
including Famous Historical Mysteries. 
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