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3.5 AVERAGE
3.5 AVERAGE
It's impossible now to pinpoint the moment when the Soviet Union became America's official enemy rather than its ally after the end of World War II. The moment had definitely passed by the time Alex Meier returned to Berlin in 1947 at the invitation of the Soviet and German authorities. Little do they know Alex is actually returning at the behest of the American government to spy on the other members of the Kulturbund and any Soviets he can in Joseph Kanon's latest thriller, Leaving Berlin...
Read the rest of my review at A Bookish Type. I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley for review consideration.
Read the rest of my review at A Bookish Type. I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley for review consideration.
100 pages and I had no idea what was going on. I think it was me though, so I'm not rating it and putting it on my "to be continued" list.
3.5 Interesting spy novel set in Berlin in the period after WWII. The setting added to the story but I needed to do some research to figure out the geography of the sectors. I would like to find out more about this time period in Germany. As in any book like this, it was sometimes hard to keep all the names straight and figure out where they fit into the picture.
This book was gripping and very entertaining but also unbelievable. This rando just becomes a spy and is so good at it? Again, very entertaining and enjoyable so I recommend it but just know you have to suspend belief.
Somewhere between a 3 and a 4. I liked it, but it was a bit too "pat" - the main character seemed to barely be affected by returning to his beloved city and seeing the destruction. He had one or two brief thoughts about his parents being killed by Nazis. The female characters blithely confessed to being raped repeatedly by the Russian soldiers (something that really happened but not something that women talk about very openly. In fact, most German women denied it til the end). It all was a bit confusing in the end but still, an enjoyable tale.
3.5 stars, rounded up. I thought it was a very slow start, almost DNF, but having liked his other books I thought I'd stick with it. I'm glad I did, a true spy/espionage page turner. Though some pages required re-reading. I found it a bit confusing with East/West/Russian/German....keeping their objectives and players in order, but it most likely is a reflection of my poor history knowledge and not the authors fault. I did find reading of this post war struggle interesting - an excellent time period in the historical sense. Sadly able to draw some parallels with our current US perils and the real risks of repeating history.
fast-paced
This book was great, but I think it interfered with my sleep. Leaving Berlin earns its place in the noir category and Berlin soon after the end of WWII is the perfect setting. I guess I am behind the times. I didn't know that there are several authors writing within this niche genre of Berlin noir. In the closing pages I was reminded of the ending of several Hammett books and Sam Spade's cold bad luck. The book does have a certain chill to it, but that fits the genre and the ambiguity of a time fraught with deception. The allegiances and hope are in the same state as the buildings and streets of the beloved and fractured city.
I don't read a lot of "thrillers" but this was a good read with a very well done historical backdrop of Berlin during the period of the airlift, when it had come under the control of the Russians but was not yet firmly locked behind the Iron Curtain. I enjoyed it as much as "historical fiction" as for the spy story (which was quite clever, but in the end bit over-the-top as these things can be.) (note: I picked it up after seeing it in WSJ Best of 2015 - Mystery list. http://graphics.wsj.com/best-books-2015/#Mystery. Turns out my much loved Inspector Chen mystery of 2015 was also on that list. I might read more of them.)