Berlin, 1963. An espionage thriller set at the height of the Cold War. Martin Keller, an imprisoned American who has spied for the KGB, is offered a spy swap to return to East Berlin. Eager to reunite with his ex-wife and their young son, he leaps at this chance for freedom. But has he just exchanged one prison for another? Who has asked for him? Who arranged the deal? The KGB? And what do they want from him now, all these years later? Intriguing and atmospheric, with action rising to a dangerous climax, Kanon’s latest thriller confirms his standing as a “master of the genre”
– The Washington Post
From “master of the genre” (The Washington Post) Joseph Kanon, an espionage thriller set at the height of the Cold War, when a captured American who has spied for the KGB is swapped by the British and returns to East Berlin needing to know who arranged his release and what they want from him.
Berlin. 1963. The height of the Cold War. An early morning spy swap, not at the familiar setting for such exchanges, or at Checkpoint Charlie, where international visitors cross into the East, but at a more discreet border crossing, usually reserved for East German VIPs. The Communists are trading two American students caught helping people to escape over the wall and an aging MI6 operative. On the other side of the trade: Martin Keller, a physicist who once made headlines, but who then disappeared into the English prison system. Keller’s most critical possession: his American passport. Keller’s most ardent desire: to see his ex-wife Sabine and their young son.
The exchange is made with the formality characteristic of these swaps. But Martin has other questions: who asked for him? Who negotiated the deal? The KGB? He has worked for the service long enough to know that nothing happens by chance. They want him for something. Not physics—his expertise is out of date. Something else, which he cannot learn until he arrives in East Berlin, when suddenly the game is afoot.
Filled with intriguing characters, atmospheric detail, and plenty of action Kanon’s latest espionage thriller is one you won’t soon forget.
Published by Scribner USA , Simon & Schuster UK. and Simon & Schuster Audio