The Berlin Conspiracy
Set in Berlin in 1963, with flashbacks to the post-WWI years, this story follows JFK’s famous “Ich bin ein Berliner” visit to the besieged city of Berlin. A mysterious contact from East Berlin has requested a meeting with a retired CIA agent. No one knows why this particular ex-agent was chosen, least of all the agent himself. Bored with his life, the agent decides to go along just to experience one last taste of the spy game. Once there he runs smack into bureaucratic incompetence, vicious backstabbing, divided loyalties, and deep-seated but twisted patriotism. In other words, business as usual for the CIA.
JFK conspiracy theorists will find plenty of familiar fodder in this thriller. Most readers will recognize Aleks Kovinski, a Polish national living in Berlin, as Lee Harvey Oswald, right down to the picture of him holding the supposed murder weapon. Still, the author finds a way to draw you in and keep you guessing. The protagonist, despite all his past experience, occasionally seemed a bit slow on the uptake. But there are a few twists which will blindside you as well. All in all, a good quick read.
