The Shadow Patrol

December 12, 2011
Edgar-winner Berenson’s compelling sixth spy thriller starring ex-CIA operative John Wells (after 2011’s The Secret Soldier) highlights an unsavory aspect of the Afghanistan war: U.S. soldiers who engage in drug smuggling while fighting the Taliban. The chief bad guy, Delta sniper Daniel Francesca, kills Taliban fighters and does away with any Americans who may be onto his drug-smuggling activities. The sniper, who’s on his third tour in Afghanistan, has clearly gone over the line when it comes to morality or sanity. Francesca not only knows that Wells, who’s come to Kabul to ferret out a mole in the capital’s CIA station, is on his trail but relishes the battle. It’s this riveting duel between good and evil that will keep readers blazing through the pages, while several other more mundane plot lines get lost in the background. This consistently interesting series shows no signs of running out of steam. Agent: Heather Schroder, ICM.

April 30, 2012
In this latest installment in Berenson’s popular series, former CIA agent John Wells is hired by the agency to go undercover and investigate deadly and divisive activities at its flagging facility in Kabul, Afghanistan. There, Wells discovers the situation is worse than expected, with a drug-trafficking operation in full flower, morale bottoming out, an assassination being planned, and an unidentified American calling all the shots. George Guidall provides solid, naturalistic narration and offers up a variety of international accents. Much of the novel consists of Berenson’s darkly sardonic descriptions of war and its weary and jaded warriors—and Guidall adapts his naturally comforting, avuncular voice accordingly, adding a touch of cynicism and irony. Additionally effective are the narrator’s skillful flourishes: a hesitant speech pattern to indicate deceit, the hint of uncertainty in a killer’s boast. A Putnam hardcover.