Several weeks ago, I attended the annual school fair at Titirangi Primary School. As is my wont at such affairs, I wandered down to the book stall about the middle of the afternoon where, as expected, they were endeavouring to get rid of the excess and now unwanted stock by offering as many books as you could stuff into a plastic bag for a dollar. I got a number of interesting old textbooks (some over 100 years old) that I will probably never read and a number of novels that I had read many years ago but didn't currently own. Amongst them was "The Last Raven" by Craig Thomas. I will admit up front that, on the stated criteria above, buying this book was a mistake as when I got home I discovered I already had a copy. However, given that I hadn't read it in 15 - 20 years and the fact that the blurb on the back looked interesting, I decided it was time to venture back into the world of Patrick Hyde and Kenneth Aubrey.
Craig Thomas wrote a number of novels in the 1980s and 1990s that I devoured eagerly at the time. He is best known, of course, for "Firefox" which eventually got turned into a Clint Eastwood movie. He wrote another novel or two with the same main character (Mitchell Gant) but most of his output followed the adventures of two employes of the British SIS, Kenneth Aubrey, a seemingly doddery but supposedly efficient senior manager and Patrick Hyde, a resourceful but flawed Australian (aren't they all) spy. "The Last Raven" is set against the backdrop of the breakup of the Soviet Union and concerns various hard line elements conspiring with the CIA to shoot down a Russian plane carrying a key member of the Politburo and thus nudge the Soviet government away from reform and back onto a more conservative platform. Of all of Thomas' novels, this is the one that should have stood the test of time the best given that it is set at such a pivotal period in world history. Unfortunately, it doesn't do so. The characters of both Hyde and Aubrey come across as bumbling and Hyde's last minute escapes from desperate situations become less and less believable as the book goes on. For all that, it was pleasant to re-read, a bit like having some distant relatives visit where you are pleased to see them and just as pleased to see them go.
Now that I've re-read this one, I've put "The Bear's Tears" onto my reading list. I remember this as being my favourite Thomas book and I don't want to have "The Last Raven" as my last memory of him (in reasearching this review, I discovered that he died earlier this year). Look out for my review of that book sometime next year.
Craig Thomas wrote a number of novels in the 1980s and 1990s that I devoured eagerly at the time. He is best known, of course, for "Firefox" which eventually got turned into a Clint Eastwood movie. He wrote another novel or two with the same main character (Mitchell Gant) but most of his output followed the adventures of two employes of the British SIS, Kenneth Aubrey, a seemingly doddery but supposedly efficient senior manager and Patrick Hyde, a resourceful but flawed Australian (aren't they all) spy. "The Last Raven" is set against the backdrop of the breakup of the Soviet Union and concerns various hard line elements conspiring with the CIA to shoot down a Russian plane carrying a key member of the Politburo and thus nudge the Soviet government away from reform and back onto a more conservative platform. Of all of Thomas' novels, this is the one that should have stood the test of time the best given that it is set at such a pivotal period in world history. Unfortunately, it doesn't do so. The characters of both Hyde and Aubrey come across as bumbling and Hyde's last minute escapes from desperate situations become less and less believable as the book goes on. For all that, it was pleasant to re-read, a bit like having some distant relatives visit where you are pleased to see them and just as pleased to see them go.
Now that I've re-read this one, I've put "The Bear's Tears" onto my reading list. I remember this as being my favourite Thomas book and I don't want to have "The Last Raven" as my last memory of him (in reasearching this review, I discovered that he died earlier this year). Look out for my review of that book sometime next year.
This is one book that you will struggle to find at The Book Depository as it has been out of print for so long. If you don't have any luck searching at the book stall at your local school fair you may want to try and locate a second hand copy at AbeBooks - they seem to be able to source around 500 copies ranging from USD1 to USD100 in price.
And of course, if all else fails, I now have two copies of the book and only really need one!
And of course, if all else fails, I now have two copies of the book and only really need one!
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