Tradecraft, the art of international espionage, is convincingly displayed in Cry Spy , the second novel featuring Alan Trosper. As in Spy Wednesday (LJ 1/86), where Trosper first appeared, he is a retired agent from ``the Firm''--read CIA. Here, he is called in just before the mysterious death of his former colleague Peter Gandy. Trosper must not only solve Gandy's murder, but also determine, at least to his own satisfaction, the truth or falsity of Gandy's personal integrity. The story moves steadily along, accumulating details in a way which appears undramatic until the final confrontations. Trosper is a likable chap, with human flaws as well as virtues. But the most distinctive element is the small, true, vivid detail (a ``safe house'' living room, a first conversation with a prospective defector). Hood, a former OSS/CIA agent, has shared his expertise in most satisfactory entertainment. Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 9/15/89.-- Elsa Pendleton, Computer Sciences Corp., Ridgecrest, Cal. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publishers Weekly Review
When a friend and former colleague is killed with a slow-acting poison, it's up to Alan Trosper ( Spy Wednesday ) to find out who did it and why. The murder has the look of a Moscow Center hit, but there's more to it than that--and clues quickly point the reader toward trouble within the American organization. Setting his mousetrap requires the curmudgeonly Trosper to do a good deal of traveling and dining across Europe, and--when not grousing about the food or showboating his knowledge of local custom (usually in front of his hapless female assistant, Ida)--he makes a sympathetic hero. Hood's career in the CIA and OSS has apparently left him better informed about shuffling paper and ordering a la carte than about any actual espionage, but his insider's view does give this fiction the unmistakable flavor of real-life experience. Overall, the novel is soggy and low-spirited, with too many characters and not enough plot or real characterization, but gourmands of espionage will probably consume it with gusto all the same. 35,000 first printing; $50,000 ad/promo; BOMC selection. (Jan.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Cry spy
APA
Hood W., . (1990). Cry spy: a novel. New York: W.W. Norton.
Chicago
Hood William, . 1990. Cry spy: a novel. New York: W.W. Norton.
Harvard
Hood W., . (1990). Cry spy: a novel. New York: W.W. Norton.
MLA
Hood William, . Cry spy: a novel. New York: W.W. Norton. 1990.
