The Mulberry Bush

Former CIA operations officer McCarry’s many novels reflect his insider’s knowledge of spy craft. This time he has concocted a splendid revenge tale in which the young and brilliant unnamed narrator sets out to take down the CIA spy masters responsible for destroying the career (and spirit) of his estranged but not unloved late father. He quickly works his way upward in the agency. Then, on assignment in Buenos Aires, he meets Luz Aguilar, the beautiful and influential daughter of two revolutionaries killed by the Argentinian police. He decides to woo and conscript her into assisting him in avenging both of their late fathers. Reader Fass provides the narrator with a soft-spoken, almost gentle conversational voice that proves surprisingly appropriate, even for a tale as hard-edged as this. After all, the narrator is engaged in a mind game that requires a calculated coolness. There are some moments when his emotions are unleashed and others when his calm turns sharply cynical. Thanks to the plot and its presentation, this is a revenge dish served cold and satisfying. A Grove/Atlantic/Mysterious hardcover. (Nov.)