Post by Junkyarddog on Aug 15, 2016 13:31:03 GMT
George Mueller is the only man that the CIA Director trusts with the task of unmasking the mole passing secrets to the Russians. 'Protocol' leaks are scuppering operations and agents in the field are getting captured or killed. No one escapes suspicion and everyone has secrets to hide, none more so than Mueller. Accepting this one last assignment puts him at the centre of a cat and mouse game with deadly consequences.
It is 1953, the cold war is ramping up, McCarthy's Senate Committee is creating havoc with wild accusations of communist sympathies and has CIA in its sights. In Russia Stalin is dead and in Washington the FBI is watchful of illegal CIA operations on home turf. Enemies foreign and domestic are in play.
Vidich's first novel is an evocative and atmospheric spy thriller. Not a shoot 'em up page turner, this is set in the realistic territory carved out by Le Carre - the hunt for the double agent. An Honorable Man seethes with betrayal and double cross, mistrust and fear. The twisting plot unfolds in a no man's land of bluff, counter bluff, honey trap and sting as lines are obscured in the hunt for the traitorous mole.
Vidich has a quick and easy style, simple prose that complements this dark complex tale. He creates a credible post war Washington D.C. backdrop and realistic impression of the CIA operatives of the time. The atmosphere of fear and suspicion that pervaded that world are vividly conveyed.
George Mueller is well drawn as the jaded agent losing his sense of purpose and values, disheartened by the 'game' and hating the life of deceit and it's emptiness.Determined to leave Mueller is drawn deeper into murky waters. Can the arrival of Beth help Mueller get his life back?
The opening scene of a dead drop in wintery Washington is deliberately reminiscent of classic spy fiction. As the back story in post war Europe slowly unfolds it gives a plausible meaning to the hunt for 'Protocol'.
This is spy fiction that should appeal to fans of Joseph Kanon and David Young's Stasi Child. A solid first novel, entertaining and thoughtful and a worthy addition to the genre. Vidich has woven real history into credible fiction that provides an insight into the CIA mindset of the time.
An Honorable Man is not on a par with Le Carre but it is a better class of spy fiction, controlled, noirish and pleasurable. A great holiday read, recommended.