I just finished Field Gray and found that I did not like it as much as the others. I can't quite get my head around why and wonder how other BG fans feel about this book. It's not that I didn't like it per se, but it surely didn't grab me the way the others did. For one, it took me longer to read it (2 1/2 weeks, whereas I finished the others within a week). I found some of Bernie's actions odd and inconsistent, particularly late in the book. The twist at the end is a nice touch, but it did not make sense to me. I also found that the author gets the mood of Berliners (and Germans) all wrong. By 1954 whatever animosity there had been toward the Americans was long gone (It ended with the Airlift). Americans were seen as protectors ("Schutzmacht") who could do no wrong rather than as occupiers ("Besatzungsmacht"). The Korean war only reinforced these feelings. Attitudes toward American did not begin to become more ambivalent until the Vietnam war. So, to me, the tone of the book is all wrong. BG's attitude toward the Americans sounds very 21st century - written with Abu Graib in mind, not Landsberg. I am very curious what other
I found Field Gray to be a page turner. I just love the character of Bernie and can't get enough of him. I don't understand Bernie's relationship with Erich Mielke. I too am trying to make sense of the ending. I will read the next book right away.
Field Gray is my favorite of the series. In fact, I've read it twice. The first time was right after finishing the trilogy, Berlin Noir, and needed to read more Bernie immediately regardless of where it fell in the series. After that I read books 4, 5 & 6 in order followed by Field Gray again (in order this time). I liked it just as much the second time and was able to make better sense of some of the twists. The section that details Bernie's time in the Soviet POW camp is memorable, as is the gunfight on the train against Mielke's would-be assassin. Not just a great book in the series, but a great book period.
Comments
I found some of Bernie's actions odd and inconsistent, particularly late in the book. The twist at the end is a nice touch, but it did not make sense to me.
I also found that the author gets the mood of Berliners (and Germans) all wrong. By 1954 whatever animosity there had been toward the Americans was long gone (It ended with the Airlift). Americans were seen as protectors ("Schutzmacht") who could do no wrong rather than as occupiers ("Besatzungsmacht"). The Korean war only reinforced these feelings. Attitudes toward American did not begin to become more ambivalent until the Vietnam war. So, to me, the tone of the book is all wrong. BG's attitude toward the Americans sounds very 21st century - written with Abu Graib in mind, not Landsberg.
I am very curious what other
I found Field Gray to be a page turner. I just love the character of Bernie and can't get enough of him. I don't understand Bernie's relationship with Erich Mielke. I too am trying to make sense of the ending. I will read the next book right away.
Field Gray is my favorite of the series. In fact, I've read it twice. The first time was right after finishing the trilogy, Berlin Noir, and needed to read more Bernie immediately regardless of where it fell in the series. After that I read books 4, 5 & 6 in order followed by Field Gray again (in order this time). I liked it just as much the second time and was able to make better sense of some of the twists. The section that details Bernie's time in the Soviet POW camp is memorable, as is the gunfight on the train against Mielke's would-be assassin. Not just a great book in the series, but a great book period.