The Mulberry Bush

Starred review from August 31, 2015
The unnamed narrator of this exceptional spy novel from McCarry (The Shanghai Factor) vows to avenge his father, a disgraced secret agent. The narrator engineers his own recruitment into “Headquarters” (McCarry’s name for the CIA) and, after training, begins his career as a covert agent, hunting and killing terrorists in the Middle East, though he never forgets his chief purpose in life: exacting retribution on those responsible for his father’s downfall. Amzi Strange, the deputy director for operations and his father’s former enemy at Headquarters, brings the narrator back home, where he decides to implement his plan by infiltrating the remains of a terror organization in Latin America that was led by the charismatic Alejandro Aguilar. The narrator begins an affair with Aguilar’s 29-year-old daughter, Luz, and eventually they marry. McCarry spins his riveting story in unexpected ways; the writing is always subdued but brilliant, leading unsuspecting readers to collide straight into the unforgiving wall of a stunning ending. In a cover blurb, Lee Child says, “Charles McCarry is better than John le Carré.” Many thriller fans will agree.

June 15, 2015

Like Shakespeare's Prince Hamlet, the protagonist in this new novel from McCarry (The Shanghai Factor; Shelley's Heart) is a young man set on avenging the grievous wrong done to his deceased father. The injury was committed by CIA higher-ups, so son joins the force to strike from within and advances far into its elite ranks. While on assignment in Buenos Aires, he falls desperately in love with Luz, whose father, a hero of the Argentine revolution, was also fatally betrayed. Seeking justice for their fathers, the young couple settle in Washington, DC, and start on their vengeful path. In the hands of espionage master McCarry, the only relief from the wild joyride of this plot comes in the torrid sex scenes. VERDICT Just as Hamlet ends with an intricately choreographed scene of violent death, this novel concludes in a crescendo of lethal treachery, but not before McCarry, who has mined the rich vein of spycraft for decades (he's in his mid-80s), dazzles us with smart dialog, fascinating characters, and local exotica of wonderful variety and authenticity. [See Kristi Chadwick's mystery feature, "Not Your Usual Suspects," LJ 4/15/15.--Ed.]--Barbara Conaty, Falls Church, VA

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