Fidel's Last Days

In FIDEL'S LAST DAYS, a baroque assortment of plotters from Havana to Virginia seeks to end Castro's rule or to be sure he governs forever, and it is almost impossible to guess which is which, since the parties to the plot are constantly lying to each other to test each others' courage and loyalty. While the story has all the hallmarks of a conventional thriller, the Cuban backdrop makes it something special, and Patrick Egan gives a virtually perfect performance, letting a hint of accent lightly flavor the voices of the Cuban characters, while the main course is the plight of the plotters and counterplotters and the true drama of their circumstances. All this and a whiz-bang ending make this an outstanding listening experience. B.G. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award (c) AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine

October 6, 2008
After two light comedies with spiritual overtones, American Savior
(2008) and Breakfast with Buddha
(2007), Merullo mines far darker material to construct a powerful tale of modern-day, devastated Cuba and its all but indestructible dictator, Fidel Castro. Ex-CIA agent Carolina Anzar Perez, niece of Roberto Anzar, one of Miami's Cuban-born, anti-Castro expatriates, works for the White Orchid, a secret organization that has masterminded a complex assassination plot aimed at the ever-canny Fidel. In Cuba, Carlos Gutierrez, the minister of health, disaffected from his government, has become a major conspirator in the upcoming attempt. Guarding Fidel is the evil Col. Felix Olochon Marlos (aka the Dentist), head of the dreaded D-7 secret police. The suspense is as thick as an authentic café cubano
, and the labyrinthine plot appears to point to a successful conclusion, until Merullo jams the knife in one last time and gives this timely thriller a final, chilling twist.