Funeral in Berlin

After the, in my opinion, somewhat pedestrian Horse Under Water, Deighton hits his stride with the third “Unnamed Spy” novel, Funeral In Berlin. Capturing perfectly the mid-sixties Cold War paranoia that affected all sides, Deighton sends his protagonist to secure the defection of a top Soviet scientist, Semitsa. But there is always more at play than a simple defection.

We are introduced to one of the great villains, Colonel Stok, who is playing his own game of chess with the West. Hallam, the Home Office spook who procures false documents for Semitsa's defection, is also a well drawn character. Then there is the femme fatale, Samantha Steel, and the playboy fixer Johnnie Vulkan, who is brokering the deal. Nothing is as it seems, everyone has a hidden agenda that only really becomes clear in the final few chapters.

Our hero navigates his way through double cross after double cross while trying to keep his boss, Dawlish, off his back and uncover the real situation behind the game of bluff and double bluff.

Deighton keeps things moving at a swift pace and the short Chess rules quotations at the head of each chapter are a nice touch. This really is like a game of chess with our hero trying not to be a pawn sacrificed in the game. Shadows of the war, lost Nazi money and Cold War politics all make for a highly enjoyable read. Recommended.