- Paperback: 512 pages
- Publisher: Hodder Paperbacks (12 July 2007)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0340896825
- ISBN-13: 978-0340896822
- Product Dimensions: 17.6 x 10.8 x 3.2 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 791,343 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
The Prisoner of Guantanamo
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Review
'I've always been a big fan of Dan Fesperman's intelligent novels and The Prisoner of Guantanamo is up to his usual standard ... fascinating ... a thought-provoking and exciting read' (Observer 20060716)
'Nothing can beat the Guantanamo prison camp for claustrophobic atmosphere ... An absorbing novel with some provocative commentary on America's war on terror' (Susannah Yager, Sunday Telegraph 20060501)
'Masterful...Here is the human cost of the war on terror, subtly delineated' (Economist 20060501)
'A powerful thriller' (Guardian 20060501)
'Convincing' (Mirror 20060501)
'A superb spy thriller worthy of sharing shelf space with the novels of John le Carré and Ken Follett...darkly imaginative...draws a dramatic portrait' (USA Today 20060501)
'A neat sense of conspiratorial tension...Fesperman's use of spy tradecraft is good - even creative - and never more elaborate than the situation calls for' (Washington Post 20060501)
'One of the best writers of intelligent thrillers based on contemporary events working today...observant, thoughtful, witty' (Baltimore Sun 20060501)
'Fesperman taps another timely issue in his fourth topical thriller...a superb job' (Publishers Weekly 20060716)
'A new book by Dan Fesperman is becoming a major literary event . . . an utterly compelling thriller and quite simply the best I’ve read all year.' (Sunday Telegraph on THE WARLORD'S SON 20070323)
'A terrific novel of intrigue, duplicity and death in the shadow of the Khyber Pass . . . Fesperman is that rare journalist who is also a gifted novelist . . . THE WARLORD'S SON deserves the attention of anyone who is open to first-rate fiction about war, journalism and the dark, dangerous worlds called Pakistan and Afghanistan.' (Washington Post on THE WARLORD'S SON 20090109)
'Fesperman offers a level of cultural and political nuance not always found in adventure thrillers.' (Booklist on THE WARLORD'S SON )
'A first-rate geopolitical yarn . . . Fesperman combines his strong eye for detail with bleak film-noir cynicism, managing to make plot twists that could have felt contrived seem depressingly believable.' (Entertainment Weekly on THE WARLORD'S SON )
'Dan Fesperman has written that rare thing: a fine and intelligent novel that makes you think, and keeps you turning the pages.' (Val McDermid on THE SMALL BOAT OF GREAT SORROWS )
'In THE WARLORD'S SON, Dan Fesperman, an American foreign correspondent who covered the war in Afghanistan, succeeds in writing a convincing, accurate thriller . . . This book is worth reading if only for the passage where the hero, Skelly, glimpses Osama bin Laden at a public hanging; the scene both convinces and frightens.' (The Economist on THE WARLORD'S SON )
'One of the best writers of intelligent thrillers based on contemporary events working today...what makes the novel work is the attention to detail...but he's even better at creating the emotional atmosphere, the tedium and the tension, the paranoia and the boredom...observant, thoughtful, witty' (Baltimore Sun )
'Fesperman is the closest thing America has to John le Carré, a writer of great elegance and sophistication whose novels are as topical as they are compelling. In a market saturated by factory-made thrillers, Fesperman stands out as a spy novelist of the highest quality.' (Charles Cumming )
'Nothing can beat the Guantanamo prison camp for claustrophobic atmosphere ... An absorbing novel with some provocative commentary on America's war on terror' (Susannah Yager, Sunday Telegraph 20060501)
'Masterful...Here is the human cost of the war on terror, subtly delineated' (Economist 20060501)
'A powerful thriller' (Guardian 20060501)
'Convincing' (Mirror 20060501)
'A superb spy thriller worthy of sharing shelf space with the novels of John le Carré and Ken Follett...darkly imaginative...draws a dramatic portrait' (USA Today 20060501)
'A neat sense of conspiratorial tension...Fesperman's use of spy tradecraft is good - even creative - and never more elaborate than the situation calls for' (Washington Post 20060501)
'One of the best writers of intelligent thrillers based on contemporary events working today...observant, thoughtful, witty' (Baltimore Sun 20060501)
'Fesperman taps another timely issue in his fourth topical thriller...a superb job' (Publishers Weekly 20060716)
'A new book by Dan Fesperman is becoming a major literary event . . . an utterly compelling thriller and quite simply the best I’ve read all year.' (Sunday Telegraph on THE WARLORD'S SON 20070323)
'A terrific novel of intrigue, duplicity and death in the shadow of the Khyber Pass . . . Fesperman is that rare journalist who is also a gifted novelist . . . THE WARLORD'S SON deserves the attention of anyone who is open to first-rate fiction about war, journalism and the dark, dangerous worlds called Pakistan and Afghanistan.' (Washington Post on THE WARLORD'S SON 20090109)
'Fesperman offers a level of cultural and political nuance not always found in adventure thrillers.' (Booklist on THE WARLORD'S SON )
'A first-rate geopolitical yarn . . . Fesperman combines his strong eye for detail with bleak film-noir cynicism, managing to make plot twists that could have felt contrived seem depressingly believable.' (Entertainment Weekly on THE WARLORD'S SON )
'Dan Fesperman has written that rare thing: a fine and intelligent novel that makes you think, and keeps you turning the pages.' (Val McDermid on THE SMALL BOAT OF GREAT SORROWS )
'In THE WARLORD'S SON, Dan Fesperman, an American foreign correspondent who covered the war in Afghanistan, succeeds in writing a convincing, accurate thriller . . . This book is worth reading if only for the passage where the hero, Skelly, glimpses Osama bin Laden at a public hanging; the scene both convinces and frightens.' (The Economist on THE WARLORD'S SON )
'One of the best writers of intelligent thrillers based on contemporary events working today...what makes the novel work is the attention to detail...but he's even better at creating the emotional atmosphere, the tedium and the tension, the paranoia and the boredom...observant, thoughtful, witty' (Baltimore Sun )
'An intelligent thriller of some weight'
(Bookseller )'Fesperman is the closest thing America has to John le Carré, a writer of great elegance and sophistication whose novels are as topical as they are compelling. In a market saturated by factory-made thrillers, Fesperman stands out as a spy novelist of the highest quality.' (Charles Cumming )
Review
"* 'A new book by Dan Fesperman is becoming a major literary event... an utterly compelling thriller and quite simply the best I've read all year.' - Sunday Telegraph on THE WARLORD'S SON * 'A terrific novel of intrigue, duplicity and death in the shadow of the Khyber Pass... Fesperman is that rare journalist who is also a gifted novelist... THE WARLORD'S SON deserves the attention of anyone who is open to first-rate fiction about war, journalism and the dark, dangerous worlds called Pakistan and Afghanistan.' - Washington Post on THE WARLORD'S SON * 'Fesperman offers a level of cultural and political nuance not always found in adventure thrillers.' - Booklist on THE WARLORD'S SON * 'A first-rate geopolitical yarn... Fesperman combines his strong eye for detail with bleak film-noir cynicism, managing to make plot twists that could have felt contrived seem depressingly believable.' - Entertainment Weekly on THE WARLORD'S SON * 'Dan Fesperman has written that rare thing: a fine and intelligent novel that makes you think, and keeps you turning the pages.' - Val McDermid on THE SMALL BOAT OF GREAT SORROWS"
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Fesperman doesn't shy away from topical and controversial subjects; Afghanistan (Warlord's Son), Bosnia (Lie in the Dark, Small Boat...), and now Guantanamo Bay.
Revere Falk is an interrogator and he's uncomfortable with what's going at the base. But there's more going on than he realises what with Cuba just over the water. Time to investigate.
Like Fesperman's previous books, he draws you in, not at break neck speed, but not ponderously either, this is well paced good read.
Revere Falk is an interrogator and he's uncomfortable with what's going at the base. But there's more going on than he realises what with Cuba just over the water. Time to investigate.
Like Fesperman's previous books, he draws you in, not at break neck speed, but not ponderously either, this is well paced good read.
5 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This is an unusual and complicated thriller. I've read it twice now. Although at the end I understood the basic plot, there are still some details I don't get.
It is a mixing of cold war politics with present day paranoia and policies.
The details regarding the base are interesting.
As a thriller it reminded me slightly of the film 'No Way out'. A man with a secret, investigating a death, and feeling trapped, with time running out.
The end could have had a bit more punch.
This is a revised review. I would knock one star off if could, but it is not possible to change the star rating.
It is a mixing of cold war politics with present day paranoia and policies.
The details regarding the base are interesting.
As a thriller it reminded me slightly of the film 'No Way out'. A man with a secret, investigating a death, and feeling trapped, with time running out.
The end could have had a bit more punch.
This is a revised review. I would knock one star off if could, but it is not possible to change the star rating.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
17 reviews
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
TIMELY TOPIC - ON TARGET READING
24 July 2006
Format:Audio CD
Baltimore Sun Reporter Dan Fesperman is not only a terrific newsman but a first-rate novelist as well (The Small Boat of Great Sorrows, The Warlord's Son). His stories are as current as this morning's news and while sometimes troubling also thoroughly entertaining.
Our setting is the Guantanamo base or Gitmo, the military originated slang name for this outpost. Gitmo,, as the world knows, is where suspected terrorists are incarcerated and interrogated. Life here doesn't amount to much as the suicide rate makes clear. "There had been five attempts inside the wire in the last two weeks, none successful and more than thirty since the prisoners first arrived."
Revere Falk is a former FBI agent now an interrogator at Gitmo. He qualified for this posting because of his fluency in Arabic, and his desire to keep some secrets in his past. For company he has found a career military woman who shares his assignment.
Routine changes when the body of an American soldier, a reservist who was assigned to Guantanamo, is found on a Cuban beach. It's not long into Falk's investigation of this death before he realizes that what he had hoped to keep secret may be revealed.
There a lot of action, much political maneuvering, and a wrenching picture of what can happen during the war on terror to be found in The Prisoner of Guantanamo plus, in this case, a riveting reading delivered by actor David Colacci.
Highly recommended.
- Gail Cooke
Our setting is the Guantanamo base or Gitmo, the military originated slang name for this outpost. Gitmo,, as the world knows, is where suspected terrorists are incarcerated and interrogated. Life here doesn't amount to much as the suicide rate makes clear. "There had been five attempts inside the wire in the last two weeks, none successful and more than thirty since the prisoners first arrived."
Revere Falk is a former FBI agent now an interrogator at Gitmo. He qualified for this posting because of his fluency in Arabic, and his desire to keep some secrets in his past. For company he has found a career military woman who shares his assignment.
Routine changes when the body of an American soldier, a reservist who was assigned to Guantanamo, is found on a Cuban beach. It's not long into Falk's investigation of this death before he realizes that what he had hoped to keep secret may be revealed.
There a lot of action, much political maneuvering, and a wrenching picture of what can happen during the war on terror to be found in The Prisoner of Guantanamo plus, in this case, a riveting reading delivered by actor David Colacci.
Highly recommended.
- Gail Cooke
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Seeing Guantanamo behind the veil
20 Oct 2006
Format:Hardcover
Read this book. If you're absolutely convinced the US government is systematically torturing detainees at Gitmo, you won't like the book. The villains will satisfy, because they're representative of the conservative crazies in Washington, but the real way the camps work is the way the protagonist does it. Fesperman does play up the interagency conflict, without communicating that FBI, CIA and military intel folks are looking for different things, and perhaps for artistic purposes doesn't explain that the "other agencies" are minority parts of the real picture.
Read this book. Remember that it's a novel, with a fiction plot played out against a background that is absolutely true to life. The spies and wingnuts and crimes make a good story. The writing style may be disconcerting, the plot is convoluted, the final resolution isn't entirely clean or satisfying, but the book is well worth reading.
Read this book. Remember that it's a novel, with a fiction plot played out against a background that is absolutely true to life. The spies and wingnuts and crimes make a good story. The writing style may be disconcerting, the plot is convoluted, the final resolution isn't entirely clean or satisfying, but the book is well worth reading.
5 of 6 people found the following review helpful
timely deep look at Guantomino Bay
12 July 2006
Format:Hardcover
The FBI sends Agent Revere Falk to Guantomino Bay as an Arabic translator since he is proficient in communicating in that language. His specific assignment involves a Yemeni prisoner Adnan with questionable ties to al-Qaeda. However, his efforts to break Adnan halts at least for now when the corpse of an American NCO washes onto beach on the Cuban side of the barrier.
Falk is assigned to investigate the death of the reservist sergeant. He quickly learns the victim had been a Michigan banker in his civilian life, but was recently receiving letters from his family involving Cayman Island financial institutions. Pressure mounts on Falk to finish immediately as the military wants this incident to go away. Other demands also rise from a surprising local source that knows of Falk's indiscretions as a young marine years ago. Though he keeps digging, hints of culpability are tossed at him like Improvised Explosive Devices as someone like him must take the fall; rank has its privileges nor will it be those connected.
This is a terrific thriller that provides readers with an insightful look at Gitmo from what seems an insider's perspective. The descriptions are so detailed and powerful Cheney will probably accuse Dan Fesperman of abetting the enemy. However that depth also at times overwhelms the prime investigation plot as the fascination with the prison is the star draw. Fans will appreciate this deep look at Guantomino Bay inside a fine whodunit or perhaps better said is a fine whodunit inside a deep prison tour.
Harriet Klausner
Falk is assigned to investigate the death of the reservist sergeant. He quickly learns the victim had been a Michigan banker in his civilian life, but was recently receiving letters from his family involving Cayman Island financial institutions. Pressure mounts on Falk to finish immediately as the military wants this incident to go away. Other demands also rise from a surprising local source that knows of Falk's indiscretions as a young marine years ago. Though he keeps digging, hints of culpability are tossed at him like Improvised Explosive Devices as someone like him must take the fall; rank has its privileges nor will it be those connected.
This is a terrific thriller that provides readers with an insightful look at Gitmo from what seems an insider's perspective. The descriptions are so detailed and powerful Cheney will probably accuse Dan Fesperman of abetting the enemy. However that depth also at times overwhelms the prime investigation plot as the fascination with the prison is the star draw. Fans will appreciate this deep look at Guantomino Bay inside a fine whodunit or perhaps better said is a fine whodunit inside a deep prison tour.
Harriet Klausner
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