Spies of Warsaw - Alan Furst

As most of you know, I have a little bit of an obsession with books and movies that take place during WWII. At the beginning of the year, I signed up to read 10 books for the War Through the Generations Reading Challenge, and I've completed 8 of them. The last two books are still up for grabs...I am always excited to discover what the Book Gods are going to throw in my path. So one day, when I was perusing some books featured on the Pump Up Your Book Promotion website, I noticed "Spies of Warsaw". Spies? WWII? Poland? Ah, the inspiration I'd been waiting for! Where do I sign up? Thanks Dorothy, for letting me jump on this bandwagon! Within a few hours of receiving the book in the mail, I had already started it.

I've never read anything by the author, Alan Furst. But after some quick research, I've discovered him to be THE expert on all things espionage in the years leading up to WWII. In fact, based on an interview of Alan on You Tube, he is quite a likeable guy that stays religiously true to the historical facts. Like a master chef, he takes his basic ingredients of documented history, adds a dash of character development of a great protagonist, a pinch of dangerous risk-taking, seasons it up with some romance, and you have a ripping, read-through-the night spy novel.

Colonel Jean-Francois Mercier works as a military attache for the French Embassy in Warsaw, Poland. A recent widower, a war hero, and a dedicated yet tormented employee, he is the best in the business. That is, the business of recruiting spies to obtain information from the Germans. He has many tricks up his sleeves, and possesses an almost sixth sense of what could motivate a human being to take such to take such drastic measures. Money, perhaps? An affair with a hot "countess"? Or maybe sanctuary from a life on the run, or revenge on a government run amuck. Mercier knows which buttons to push, and he gets results. He is even willing to do the dirty work himself if necessary. After all, it could mean the difference between peace and war, and Mercier believes in his heart that this benefit outweighs any of the necessary evils of the job.

But the French aren't the only game in town. In fact, Warsaw is teeming with Germans spying on Germans, Russians spying on the Polish, and Germans spying on the French, and often sides are switched when the going gets tough. They are literally tripping over each other. It is an era of paranoia, keeping your friends close and your enemies closer, witch hunts and finger-pointing, and figuring out exactly who can be trusted. Mercier learns the hard way that sometimes the enemy isn't necessarily always the dude with the swastika on his uniform.

As any fan of WWII historical fiction would probably agree, I've had my share of concentration camps. For anyone interested in this time period, this book is an excellent diversion from the expected. Another angle, another perspective. Mercier is achingly human and likeable, and Furst does an excellent job of helping us understand what makes him tick. The prose was very interesting - it flowed well (I read the book in just a couple of days), and was written in a slightly formal way, perhaps in order to capture Mercier's European professionalism and personality.

Having visited Warsaw myself, I was just a bit disappointed that the city's essence wasn't more fully developed. I love to read books that make me feel that I've seen it, smelled it, tasted it, and lived it, but this was missing from Spies of Warsaw. Furst instead focused on more of the emotional ambiance of fear and betrayal, which gets your heart racing quite nicely. There were also a few loose story lines that were still hanging unraveled at the end of the story. Small quibbles aside, however, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and will most definitely more of Alan Furst.

4 out of 5 stars