Lines of Deception (The Kaspar Brothers, 4)
Munich, May 1949. In an otherwise normal end-of-evening cleanup at Max Kaspar’s nightclub, the presence of a man who shouldn’t be there spells trouble, and the small box containing a severed ear and a ransom note for Max’s brother, Harry, evokes images Max would rather not consider. A thousand dollars to get his brother back, with or without an ear.
Max heads straight to his CIA handler in Vienna. Harry’s gone rogue behind enemy lines, and Max’s mission is to arrange a prisoner swap through an old nemesis, a ruthless Nazi turned Soviet official. During the swap Harry vanishes again, and en route back to Munich, Max jumps from the train with Katarina, an enigmatic woman he recognises as a once-famous actress, someone who cares deeply for Harry’s well-being. Harry is supposedly trying to disrupt Nazi Ratlines, but Max knows his brother and suspects there’s more to it.
This fourth Kaspar Brothers thriller is an evenly paced story, satisfyingly laden with intrigue, risk, and heroics. As Max, Harry and Katarina make for the Soviet-held territories of Görlitz and Zgorzelec, plans change minute to minute, people are not who they appear to be, and others do the opposite of what’s expected. During the twists and turns of the novel, the brotherly relationship plays well against Katarina’s strategic planning and sometimes lethal tactics. The three are a good team, and with luck, will appear in future installments.
The development of germ warfare on both sides of the Iron Curtain, during the Cold War, forms the backdrop of Anderson’s novel, and as Max observes, “They used to talk about wars to end wars. Now it’s just about ending each other.” An excellent if at times ominous read.
