faraway

Kerr's Bernie Gunther is one of my favorite characters in crime fiction, but this novel is less about crime and more about espionage and the horrible conditions of both the Russian and German POW camps of World War II. It is 1954 and Gunther makes to leave Cuba where he has been hiding for a few years (and where he was for the last novel, If the Dead Rise Not). While on a boat, he is arrested by the American Coast Guard, and thus begins a trip that includes being held and interrogated by both the American and French forces. During his imprisonment, he recalls the years before, during and after the war and, in particular, his "relationship" with Erich Mielke. It seems both the French and Americans want Mielke and they use Gunther to acquire the high ranking German communist. The book is at times confusing as everyone and their dog (including Gunther) are deep into the business of the double crossing master spy. Kerr's description of the POW's camp was disturbing (in a good way), but Kerr is a better mystery/crime writer than he is a John LeCarre.

2022-10-29 03:39