Genre: Thriller
Description:
The
Amazon entry describes it thus:
“In a last ditch effort to revive his career, washed out agent Ari
Ben-Sion accepts a mission he never would have 30 years ago, to smuggle a group
of Jewish children out of the Damascus ghetto. Or so he thinks.
In Damascus, a beautiful American photographer, Kim, seems to be
falling in love with Ari, but she is asking too many questions. His communication equipment disappears. His contact never shows up. The operation is
only hours away and everything seems awry. Desperate to succeed, Ari might risk
everything. Even his life.
Feature film Damascus Cover in theaters 2016 starring Jonathan Rhys Meyers and Sir John Hurt.”
In the new introduction to this edition the author tells us that in
its first incarnation, in 1977, this novel sat in the lower reaches of the Los
Angeles Times best seller list for 10 weeks. This reissue, self-published by
Howard Kaplan in 2014, has obviously been put out to tie in with the
forthcoming film, now apparently due in 2017.
Author:
Howard Kaplan doesn’t seem to have a
website, although he is on Facebook and Twitter. For present purposes, perhaps
the most important thing to know about him is that he has a little experience
of being a spy and a lot of knowledge about the Middle East. He has lived in
Israel and traveled extensively through Lebanon, Syria and Egypt. He knows the
life of which he writes.
Appraisal:
This is an excellent spy thriller. Authors
are so often recommended by publishers as ‘the next John Le Carré’. None of
them are, of course. And attempts at comparison simply weaken the writing of
those who are not. However, Kaplan is (or was), writing gritty spy fiction
which stands genuine comparison with Le Carré circa The spy who came in from
the cold.
I pride myself on being able to spot a plot
twist even if it is secreted in a bag of fettuccini, but this book wrong-footed
me not once, not twice but thrice. I like to be wrong-footed. Nor did those
cunning plot twists feel remotely strained: as soon as the unexpected occurred
one could see how it was the inevitable result of what had come before. Thus
the book quickly gained a sense of menace: what has Ari missed? How will it
come back to bite him? The spy-protagonist is no two-dimensional cipher: the
reader goes with him into the abyss created by his own character failings,
spiralling down and down, as shown through the action of the book.
The settings are Cyprus, Jerusalem and Syria
– economically and vividly drawn. The Middle Eastern setting are topical
(despite the book’s age). Aleppo, Beirut and, of course, Damascus all figure
largely and are described at a time when they were still beautiful,
multi-cultural cities.
The new introduction gives some insight into
what has occurred in the Middle East since 1977, but it is not really
sufficient for those of us whose knowledge of Middle Eastern politics and wars
since 1948 may not be deep or recent. To enjoy this fully it will repay a quick
and dirty Google of the main dates and conflicts in the area (there are quite a
few) so as to have at least The Six Day War and the Yom Kippur War clear in
your mind. This link may be of assistance.
Buy now from: Amazon US Amazon UK
FYI:
The prologue and final chapter comprise graphic scenes of torture.
The original review posted on December 14, 2016.
Format/Typo
Issues:
There are a few typos which could have been put right when the text
was readied for printing this time around. Or perhaps they were introduced at
that point – who can say. They will not spoil your enjoyment.
Rating: *****
Five Stars
Reviewed
by: Judi Moore
Approximate word count: 65-70,000 words
