Review: All The Old Knives by Olen Seinhauer

Synopsis: Nine years ago, terrorists hijacked a plane in Vienna. Somehow, a rescue attempt staged from the inside went terribly wrong and everyone on board was killed.

Members of the CIA stationed in Vienna during that time were witness to this terrible tragedy, gathering intel from their sources during those tense hours, assimilating facts from the ground with a series of texts coming from one of their agents inside the plane. So when it all went wrong, the question had to be asked: Had their agent been compromised, and how?

Two of those agents, Henry Pelham and Celia Harrison, were lovers at the time, and in fact that was the last night they spent together. Until now. That night Celia decided she’d had enough; she left the agency, married and had children, and is living an ordinary life in the suburbs. Henry is still an analyst, and has traveled to California to see her one more time, to relive the past, maybe, or to put it behind him once and for all.

But neither of them can forget that long-ago question: Had their agent been compromised, and how? And each of them also wonders what role tonight’s dinner companion might have played in the way things unfolded.

All the Old Knives is Olen Steinhauer’s most intimate, most cerebral, and most shocking novel to date—from the New York Times bestselling author deemed by many to be John le Carré’s heir apparent.

I came to this through a back-handed compliment from another reader - and the premise intrigued me so much so that I read it in one sitting! And verdict - definitely one for my espionage shelf!

The narrative alternates between Henry and Celia as the meeting is arranged and finally takes place. There is the most important reflection on not only past events but also of their own relationship at the time. The narrative is punctuated with emails and other documents from the period adding context and background to the events that led to this meeting.

This is a wonderfully engrossing cat and mouse standoff between two people trained to lie and be deceptive - as Celia reflects, "...  we are both trained in manipulation ... we are both less than trustworthy ...".  Who is the protagonist and who is the antagonist remains in doubt right up to the very end.

The narrative is intense, well written, skillfully plotted and slightly ambiguous with nothing being given away - Steinhauer maintains his poke face throughout.  This is also a tale of love, revenge and betrayal - as all the pieces are placed on the chessboard, does the real narrative reveals itself, and we are forced to do a double-take and retreat back through the pages to see what we missed - and when.!

I can see why this was picked up to be made into a film - it will make for a rivetting drama, and the book itself is definitely up there with the great espionage tomes of past generations.