Joseph Kanon is one of those authors I go back to over and over again. His research is impeccable, his plots are unique and interesting and his characters aren’t necessarily heroic, but they do rise to the occasion when they need to. All of this make his books intriguing and delightful to read!

Aaron Wiley may have gotten in over his head. He works for the CIA, but as a desk analyst. But now he is in Argentina because his uncle, Max Weill, a famous Nazi hunter who is seriously ill, begged Aaron to find Dr. Otto Schramm. Schramm conducted horrific medical experiments on prisoners at Aushwitz and caused Max’s family to be killed in the gas chambers. Although Schramm was reported to have died in a car accident some years ago, Max believes he has seen him recently and begged Aaron to do what he was never able to do- capture Schramm and bring him to justice.

Without any official capacity, Aaron arrives in Buenos Aries and quickly ingratiates himself with Schramm’s daughter. He also enlists the help of an Israeli agent whom his uncle has worked with in the past and a German newspaper reporter. But things get complicated quickly. Schramm’s daughter is beautiful but also broken by the truth of what her father did. The Israeli agents are more interested in revenge than in justice and the newspaper reporter just wants a good story. When suddenly even the CIA wants a piece of the action, Aaron realizes that trying to do what is right is much harder and more complicated than he ever realized.

I think I like Kanon because he doesn’t gloss over the difficulties of being a spy. Reality and truth always collide. Loyalties are always tested and there are never any easy answers.

Brenda’s Rating: ***** (5 Out of 5 Stars)

Recommend this book to: Sharon, Marian, Ken and Keith

Book Study Worthy? Yes

Read in ebook format.