Francis Ryck (1920–2007)

I picked this one up off the shelf on the spur of the moment when I needed a new book to read, drawn mainly by the fact that it was a Fawcett Crest book, which usually indicates a certain quality level. I was not disappointed. It concerns Yako, a Soviet agent (the book is set c. 1969) caught by the British while picking up a message from a drop location. In return for his decoding the message and cooperating in the capture of the two arriving agents he was supposed to meet, the British provide Yako with a passport, ten thousand pounds, a Smith & Wesson revolver, and his freedom. Yako knows, of course, that no agent who betrays the KGB is ever really free - he will be hunted for the rest of his life and made an example of. The KGB has specially trained squads just for that purpose. Knowing all this, Yako still takes the chance and for the first time since he joined the KGB, he finds he is free to make his own decisions. So he sets out on the run.

While the book has its share of action, the most compelling part is Yako's growing self-awareness and inner thought processes as he tries to elude his pursuers. In the course of doing so, he becomes involved with a dog, a drunk, and a woman. The author does an excellent job describing his relationship with each of them. In the end, Yako's new found freedom of choice leads him to a decision that may astonish the reader. Author Francis Ryck does an excellent job in making this story an unusual and memorable one. You probably won't be looking to sign up with your local spy agency after you're done with it. This was translated from French, and I will definitely look for the author's other work to see if it is up to this standard.… (more)