Sasha Plotkin's Deceit

by Vaughn Sherman

[wcs53]

Sasha Plotkin's Deceit is a story of espionage set in the early 1970's during the Cold War era. Overall, I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it for anyone looking for something that is intelligent and not fast-paced.

The story is centred around two main characters - Chris Holbeck, a CIA agent, and Sasha Plotkin, a Soviet KGB agent, whom Holbeck helps to defect. It took me a little while to get into the book, but once I did I found it hard to put down and really wanted to see how it all panned out in the end.

The plot of the book contains a few little twists and turns, and there were a couple of times where the story ended up in places I had not expected. Early on in the book a personal relationship starts to develop between the two main characters, but this relationship is put under strain by something that is done by Plotkin, which could have jeopardized the outcome of his proposed defection. Holbeck has to make some tough decisions based on the deceit of Plotkin, and I was left wondering how what happened would have done to the choices I would have made if I had been put in a similar position.

One of the great things about this book is that it has very strong secondary characters. There are also some very strong female characters. The book shows how involvement in secret agent work affects those near and dear to the agent. In this book the effects of this on the relationships between Holbeck and his wife, children and parents is explored in a fair bit of detail. This is much different from many other books I have read in this genre and certainly is a diversion from the way such stories are portrayed in Hollywood.

For some, this book may seem too drawn out. I didn't find this to be so, but I enjoy character development, with plenty of background detail. The author, Vaughn Sherman, spent some time in his life with the CIA, and this is evident in the way that life in the secret service is described.

If you are looking for a fast-paced book, with action on every page, then this may not be the book for you. If you are looking for a well-developed story, with much to absorb and think about, then give it a try. You may well enjoy it. I did and am glad to have been given the opportunity to do so.