Lucky Bastard

Rating:
Summary: Wickedly Witty, Fun, & Lite, Non-stop Read for McCarry Fans
Review: I think this is one of those books you either really love or truly hate. Strongly in the former category, I'll bet that latter group is composed of leftist liberals, Movement chicks and fellow travelers. Just a guess. Read this book for great writing, evocative scenes and a dead-eye view of politics on the national scale. I loved it.

Rating:
Summary: Verbal Garbage
Review: Mc Carry is an engaging writer, and the premise of Lucky Bastard is a good one. It's the 60s. A young man who believes he is JFK's illegitimate son is recruited by the KGB. Jack (yes, that's his name) has charm, charisma, a fabulous smile, more luck than anyone can believe and is addicted to sex. The addiction is how the KGB ensnares him, believing that one day, he could become President and he would be their man. He marries a woman who is also on the KGB payroll, and she becomes Jack's control. Now here's where McCarry loses it. The man in charge of the operation forbids Jack and Morgan (Jack's new bride) to have sex again for as long as they live. That plot twist makes the whole remainder of the book too hard to believe. I read the whole thing because of a sleepless night and because it was handy. There were some good touches, and some interesting developments -- but toward the end of the story, Jack gets another control -- with whom he is allowed to have sex all day long. As she (the new control) explains, "Peter never makes the same mistake twice". McCarry should've listened.

Rating:
Summary: Too Hard to Swallow
Review: Mc Carry is an engaging writer, and the premise of Lucky Bastard is a good one. It's the 60s. A young man who believes he is JFK's illegitimate son is recruited by the KGB. Jack (yes, that's his name) has charm, charisma, a fabulous smile, more luck than anyone can believe and is addicted to sex. The addiction is how the KGB ensnares him, believing that one day, he could become President and he would be their man. He marries a woman who is also on the KGB payroll, and she becomes Jack's control. Now here's where McCarry loses it. The man in charge of the operation forbids Jack and Morgan (Jack's new bride) to have sex again for as long as they live. That plot twist makes the whole remainder of the book too hard to believe. I read the whole thing because of a sleepless night and because it was handy. There were some good touches, and some interesting developments -- but toward the end of the story, Jack gets another control -- with whom he is allowed to have sex all day long. As she (the new control) explains, "Peter never makes the same mistake twice". McCarry should've listened.

Rating:
Summary: Interesting plot idea not fully realized
Review: The idea that a gifted American politician is actually an unwitting tool of an international communist conspiracy that hopes to put him into the White House is certainly intriguing. It would make an interesting book. This isn't quite it, though. The author spends considerable time detailing the machinations behind all this, but I find the characters totally without dimension or interest on their own and serving merely to advance the plot. The question quickly becomes, how will it all turn out. Once you understand what the plot is, the best thing is to turn to the last chapter to see how the author resolves it.

Rating:
Summary: How Long Has He Been Writing?
Review: The novel features totally unbelieveable plots, cardboard cutout figures whom it is hard to identify with or sympathize with, the strangest motivations masquerading as realism and an off-the-cliff ending that is not satisfying. The sex is near-pornographic and not believeable to the point of being almost funny. The main character has the behaviour of a robot and seems to have no inner life or feelings. The author hates liberals so badly I think he would personally like to go out and kill them bare handed; this axe to grind gets in the way of the development of a coherent plot. On the other hand, much of the writing is good in a technical sense, in spite of the often angry and sarcastic tone. Many scenes are very interesting and well-written; the whole work just does not hang together, especially when you consider it is written by an experienced writer with a background at the CIA. This is not Ludlum, or Le Carre and I enjoyed Clancy more. I like being entertained and told a nuanced story, not beat over the head by a heavy-handed piece of agit-prop so favored by the late unlamented Soviet Union. However, the author does manage to tell what is on many levels an interesting story. He needed an editor to intervene.

Rating:
Summary: Sex, politics, and the KGB
Review: There could be no better 1998 beach read than Charles McCarry's Lucky Bastard. But as summer winds down, you don't need a beach to enjoy a book that has everything this one does: a page-turning plot, terrific characters, an American politician's libido run amok, and McCarry's always superb writing. There is wit and intelligence here in abundance, as well as remarkable resonance with current events. I particularly loved the tenacity and intelligence of the female characters, and the insights about both the Soviet Union and the U.S. provided by Dmitri, the KGB agent who serves as the book's mordant narrator. Even the minor characters, like Dmitri's eager-to-please agent who teaches at Columbia, are memorable. This book is exciting, smart, and funny. You'll find yourself delaying other things in your life to keep reading.

Rating:
Summary: Wickedly Witty, Fun, & Lite, Non-stop Read for McCarry Fans
Review: Too close to reality? Speaking of China, Bill Clinton, W-88's and "technology transfer," If you have not read the novel Lucky Bastard by Charles McCarry, you owe it to yourself. It is a fast, witty, hilarious and phenomenal read. The book will have you rolling on the floor in laughter. (I waited anxiously for it and bought it as soon as it came out, then ripped through it in two days; a thoroughly enjoyable "could-not-put-it-down" reading experience.) But this book is also a serious study in politics, intelligence operations, subversion and corruption cloaked in light humor that is well crafted with more than a ring of truth derived from inside knowledge of the intelligence business. McCarry's portrayal of tradecraft is excellent. He draws from professional personal experience.

From the book jacket: 'Lucky Bastard is the ...story of a gifted politician with dangerous friends and a zipper problem.' 'Lucky Bastard is ...a thrilling and imaginative vision of power and conspiracy in the "age of Clinton."' In hind sight perhaps a little too close to realty for comfort.

Lucky Bastard is a thriller, full of suspense, following its anti-hero, Jack, the illegitimate son of of a famous political figure, from his early days as a draft dodger, who takes his best friend to the airport to ship out to Viet Nam, then "assaults" his loyal best friend's girl on the trip home. Jack goes to Europe on a foundation scholarship and becomes involved with a notorious German terrorist organization, then after a mysterious unaccounted for trip to Russia, returns and successfully enters politics. With the help of his wife (handler), (and some foreign monetary assistance), a machiavellian, strong willed, ardent radical who masterminds his political moves while guarding against the threat that his wild libido will destroy his career he becomes governor of his home state. Then against all odds, he becomes President of the United States. A surprise twist involves the Chinese, who cannot believe their good fortune. The girlfriend and wife of his best friend, knowing Jack for what he really is, takes great risks to expose him, but will anyone believe her. The novel has an interesting perspective as it is told from the point of view of Jack's maverick Russian intelligence service handlers.

The prophetic Lucky Bastard is in hard back, published in 1998 by Random House and has been out about a year and a half. It was particularly timely in that it was released just before Bill Clinton's trip to China in 1998.

Charles McCarry is (in my opinion) the best American author in the espionage/intelligence fiction genre. His tradecraft is a par excellence that has given him a deserved reputation with those in the know. McCarry is the author of seven works of non-fiction and 9 works of fiction. He has contributed to U.S. News & World Report and Esquire and was the first and only editor-at-large of National Geographic magazine. He draws on experience from his years as a field agent during the cold war era to produce some of the most engaging, profound and authentic novels you will ever read. Also by Charles McCarry, Last Supper is an epic work of pre- and post cold war World War II era. One of the best (if not THE BEST) American novels I have ever read.

Rating:
Summary: Terrific
Review: Well-writen, rapidly paced, thoughtful, enlightening...I could go on, but better you should just buy it and read it. I stayed up late to finish it. Bill and Hilary and those who support them will find this book distasteful and will want to argue with its premises, but if those of you in this category can read through to the end you just might learn something... Vietnam veterans will love it -- thanks, Mr. McCarry, for caring and for supporting us. I have read McCarry's other books; this is one of his best.

Rating:
Summary: Hmmm, this guy seems familiar...
Review: When I bought this book, it was for my husband. He raved about it so much, I read it myself. It is like 3 stories, rolled into one. First is the story of the young rapist/spy. Second, is the story of spy/politician. Third is the race for the presidency. McCarry wove all three stories together masterfully. The energy didn't keep up all the way to the end, but it is still a great read!

Rating:
Summary: Hmmm, this guy seems familiar...
Review: When I bought this book, it was for my husband. He raved about it so much, I read it myself. It is like 3 stories, rolled into one. First is the story of the young rapist/spy. Second, is the story of spy/politician. Third is the race for the presidency. McCarry wove all three stories together masterfully. The energy didn't keep up all the way to the end, but it is still a great read!