Twice a Spy by Keith Thomson

Twice a Spy: A Novel by Keith Thomson

The blurb:
In the tradition of Robert Ludlum, Thomson's novel featuring a former spy and his son poses the question: What happens when a CIA agent can no longer trust when a CIA agent can no longer trust his own mind?

Retired CIA operations officer Drummond Clark and his son, Charlie,  are on the Iam in Switzerland, along with NSA operative Alice Rutherford.  While Charlie helps Drummond undergo an experimental treatment for Alzheimer's, Alice works to exonerate them from criminal charges against them in the United States.  That is, until she is renditioned -- or in lay language, kidnapped.

To get her back, the father-son duo must travel to Martinique and plumb Drummond's damaged memory to locate a hidden cache of weapons.  All the while, the Clarks are tracked by a formidable CIA case officer and his team.

Review:
I enjoyed Twice a Spy partly for the spycraft which was fascinating and fun, but largely because of the father-son interplay.  What would it have been like to have had 007 or an elder Jason Bourne as your father?  Charlie Clark is finding out just that - except his father is in the early stages of dementia.  So it takes some understanding, creativity, and patience to get the elder Clark to reveal his techniques, his craft, and his secrets.

The father-son dynamic and Drummond Clark's dementia add a certain levity and sadness to the novel and make Twice a Spy a particularly enjoyable read. If you are partial to spy novels and thrillers, don't miss Keith Thomson's Twice a Spy!

ISBN-10: 9780385530798 - Hardcover $25.95
Publisher: Doubleday; First Edition edition (March 8, 2011), 336 pages.
Review copy provided by the publisher.

About the Author:
Keith Thomson is a former semi-pro baseball player in France, an editorial cartoonist for Newsday, a filmmaker with a short film shown at Sundance, and a screenwriter who currently lives in Alabama.  He writes on intelligence and other matters for the Huffington Post.  Learn more about him at www.keiththomsonbooks.com