The Tears Of Autumn

Rating:
Summary: Don't pass this one by
Review: I also stumbled across The Tears of Autumn a long time ago, and have never forgotten it. I went on to read and enjoy a number of McCarry's novels, particularly The Last Supper and The Better Angels. But no one I've talked books with in the fifteen or so years since then has ever brought up his name. Which I find sad and weird, because Charles McCarry is up there with LeCarre and Robert Stone (not Oliver, nor strictly a thriller writer, but nonetheless).

Not only is hero and narrative viewpoint Paul Christopher one of the few fictional spies as interesting as George Smiley, but the plot of Tears of Autumn is genuinely original, compelling, disturbing, thoroughly plausible--all you could ever ask from a thriller. Put it next to DeLillo's Libra and you have two utterly contradictory scenarios for what lay behind Dallas '63 that both feel true.

Oh, and did I mention he could write? I mean the pages turn themselves and the world around you fades until the story ends. Then it lingers with you. He can write.

Blah blah. I won't go on further because, like I say, it's been years. I only came here because I'd forgotten the exact title of "that Kennedy assassination book". But when I got here I found myself wanting to add my praise to that of the two previous reviewers and to wholeheartedly recommend it, along with the McCarry's other Paul Christopher novels, to anyone who's curious. It's well worth dipping into. Not to be missed, really, if you like good spy books (or well-constructed conspiracy theories).

Rating:
Summary: Re-reading The Tears of Autumn
Review: I remember reading and enjoying Charles McCarry's "Tears of Autumn" many years ago. Re-reading it, I find that it quietly comes up with a very plausible theory for the Kennedy assasination. It is not the typical spy novel--nor is Paul Christopher the typical spy. There's an intelligence and sensitivity to Christopher that James Bond lacks. The evocation of various locales--Vietnam before the war, the Congo, France, and Italy--are amazing. Christopher's friends, the Websters and Patchen, are also well-drawn. A very rewarding read. Why has this excellent novel never been made into a film, Hollywood or otherwise?

Rating:
Summary: An overlooked masterpiece
Review: This is a wonderful novel about Vietnam, the Kennedy assassination and other modern fascinations. "The Tears of Autumn" is an early McCarry work that shows the seeds of his later greatness. Anyone who is nominally interested in historical fiction or spy novels will love this book.