Garden of Beasts by Jeffery Deaver

Book review: Garden Of Beasts by Jeffery Deaver.

It is 'A Novel Of Berlin' as one of the title pages tells us and it was first published in 2004.

For those persons who are not 'au fait' with the happenings in Europe during the 1930's then this book, albeit a novel, will be informative. Jeffrey Deaver uses real names of the hierarchy of Hitler's Nazi Germany to give depth to the story, indicates very clearly what the ambitions of this evil collection of men wished to attain and by what means.

It highlights the suffering of ordinary people and the cruelty and depravity they and the Jewish population were subjected to, but that is only part of the story, for there is much more. Thrown into this plot is a layer of intrigue only to be topped by yet another layer. Then there is international subterfuge mixed in with internal politics; all of which is blended into the story

Paul Schumann is the character that carries this story through and on his return from the First World War he uses his skills 'to correct God's mistakes' in New York. He is ensnared by the law enforcement agencies and it is they who give him the option to have 'his slate wiped clean'. In 1936 he was sent with the American Olympics team to Berlin. His mission was to kill. This journey that he is was forced to embark on is loaded with details, information, incidents and surprises. Enjoy the twists and turns of a novel set in a period of time where I hope that history will not be allowed to be repeated.