A Filthy Business.

A Filthy Business

David Compton, Behler Publications

22365 El Toro Road, #135, Lake Forest, CA 92630

ISBN 1933016043, $15.95, 275 pages

"A Filthy Business" by David Compton, sucks you down into the cold war of the sixties to where you can smell the cigarette smoke and almost taste the cold coffee. Based in Germany, Anders Desruisseaux is an agent handler for the U. S. Army Intelligence. His job is to recruit and manage private citizens to spy for the allies as they cross the borders into East Germany and back. He's nearly ready to hang up his holster and retire when one of his recruits bolts to the bad guys. The ensuing pages can't turn fast enough as Anders pursues his nemesis, Klaus Auerbach, to a surprising but satisfying end. The story is interlaced with insider glimpses of Anders' early training as an agent. Fiction based on fact, "A Filthy Business" does a fascinating job bringing to life the stereotype of "Agent Bond 007" in a believable fashion where the reliance has to be on patience, instinct and cunning rather than high tech gadgets. One small criticism is that while the bits of German dialog sprinkled throughout the book may add realism for some, it slowed down the pacing for this reviewer. If you've ever wondered what the life of a secret agent was really like, "A Filthy Business" is a must read.