Historical

The Berlin Exchange

The Berlin Exchange

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  • Create Date：2022-04-22 08:52:54
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
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  • Author：Joseph Kanon
  • ISBN：1398501492
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Summary

From “master of the genre” （The Washington Post） Joseph Kanon， an espionage thriller set at the height of the Cold War， when a captured American who has spied for the KGB is swapped by the British and returns to East Berlin needing to know who arranged his release and what they want from him。

Berlin。 1963。 The height of the Cold War。 An early morning spy swap， not at the familiar setting for such exchanges， or at Checkpoint Charlie， where international visitors cross into the East， but at a more discreet border crossing， usually reserved for East German VIPs。 The Communists are trading two American students caught helping people to escape over the wall and a lower level CIA operative。 On the other side of the trade: Martin Keller， a physicist who once made headlines， but who then disappeared into the English prison system。 Keller’s most critical possession: his American passport。 Keller’s most ardent desire: to see his ex-wife Sabine and their young son。

The exchange is made with the formality characteristic of these swaps。 But Martin has other questions: who asked for him？ Who negotiated the deal？ The KGB？ He has worked for the service long enough to know that nothing happens by chance。 They want him for something。 Not physics—his expertise is out of date。 Something else， which he cannot learn until he arrives in East Berlin， when suddenly the game is afoot。

Filled with intriguing characters， atmospheric detail， and plenty of action Kanon’s latest espionage thriller is one you won’t soon forget。

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Reviews

Peter Furst ，

1963 - The Berlin Wall is still in place separating East & West Berlin。 Although Berlin is in East Germany there are sectors of Berlin， the West has a French Sector， a British Sector and an American Sector - East Berlin has just the Soviet Sector。 This is a time of prisoner/spy swaps between the East and West。 Martin Keller is a physicist who has been convicted of spying in Britain and is being exchanged for two American students。 Martin has an ex-wife and a child in East Berlin。 Now Martin who 1963 - The Berlin Wall is still in place separating East & West Berlin。 Although Berlin is in East Germany there are sectors of Berlin， the West has a French Sector， a British Sector and an American Sector - East Berlin has just the Soviet Sector。 This is a time of prisoner/spy swaps between the East and West。 Martin Keller is a physicist who has been convicted of spying in Britain and is being exchanged for two American students。 Martin has an ex-wife and a child in East Berlin。 Now Martin who knows that nothing happens by chance， wants to know who asked for him and what they want him to do。 Intriguing book which I would recommend to any who likes spy type books。 。。。more

Jim Brown ，

Very early it seemed predictable。Leaving Berlin was more suspenseful。

Julie Hudson ，

Thank you to Libro FM for the early audio of this thrilling espionage。 I got the feeling that the author really knows his subject thoroughly and it was a good， exciting read。

John McKenna ，

What happens to a traitorous American， a scientist who spied for the Soviet Union and gave up our atomic bomb secrets， when he’s released after ten years in a British prison in the U。K。， swapped for a busload of political prisoners and sent to East Germany？ That’s the opening premise of The Berlin Exchange， by Edgar Award winning and best-selling author Joseph Kanon。 It’s a tale that takes place in 1963， at the height of the Cold War—when the arms race between the U。S。 and the U。S。S。R。 was measu What happens to a traitorous American， a scientist who spied for the Soviet Union and gave up our atomic bomb secrets， when he’s released after ten years in a British prison in the U。K。， swapped for a busload of political prisoners and sent to East Germany？ That’s the opening premise of The Berlin Exchange， by Edgar Award winning and best-selling author Joseph Kanon。 It’s a tale that takes place in 1963， at the height of the Cold War—when the arms race between the U。S。 and the U。S。S。R。 was measured in megatons—as the two super powers perfected evermore insanely destructive nuclear weapons。His name is Martin Keller。 He’s a physicist whose primary ambition is to meet and be reunited with his son Peter， who’s now 11 years old。 He lives with his mother， Keller’s ex-wife Sabine and her new husband， a lawyer named Kurt Thiel， who facilitates prisoner exchanges。 But as Keller crosses from west to east at an out of the way checkpoint usually reserved for East German VIPs， someone tries to assassinate him。 And even though his physics are ten years out of date， the attempt makes Keller realize that he’s still in play， the spy game is still afoot and his most valuable asset is an expired U。S。 passport。 The atmosphere is tense， dangerous and depressing， with an improbable， unreliable and untrustworthy protagonist who’s trying to figure out how， where and why he fits into the noir and nightmarish landscape 。 。 。 and stay alive at the same time。The novel twists， turns and slithers through the repressive and nightmarish communist controlled part of the city 。 。 。 where one is never quite sure of friend or foe as it builds to an electrifying and stunning ending。 Mr。 Kanon is at the top of his game with this supremely well researched， finely crafted and utterly intriguing period espionage thriller！！ 。。。more

Morleymor ，

From the authors notesThe Berlin Exchange is fiction， but the trading of political prisoners that forms the background of the story really took place。 I have taken some liberties with the chronology。 Here the program is in full operation in 1963， the year the swaps actually began。 The standard price set was DM 40，000 （then $10，000） per prisoner， adjusted for length of sentence， value of the prisoner’s occupation， etc。， the amount payable in kind or （later） hard currency。 From relatively modest b From the authors notesThe Berlin Exchange is fiction， but the trading of political prisoners that forms the background of the story really took place。 I have taken some liberties with the chronology。 Here the program is in full operation in 1963， the year the swaps actually began。 The standard price set was DM 40，000 （then $10，000） per prisoner， adjusted for length of sentence， value of the prisoner’s occupation， etc。， the amount payable in kind or （later） hard currency。 From relatively modest beginnings in 1963， the swaps grew into an important revenue stream for the DDR。 Estimates vary， but one account claims that between 1964 and 1989， when the wall came down， the DDR released more than 33，000 political prisoners and more than 215，000 citizens to reunite families for some DM 3。4 billion （$850 million）。 。。。more

Matthew ，

A superbly crafted stylish spy thriller

Monica ，

3。5Engaging Cold War espionage story set in East Berlin。 I like Joseph Kanon’s storytelling but this one was a little too meh。

Peter Doherty ，

This is an absolutely cracking spy thriller！！ Set in 1963 at the height of the Cold War and one year after the Cuban Missile Crisis。 After 15 years in a British prison， now a prisoner exchange ， but what is Martin released into？All the usual black and white one dimensional tropes and a plot that could be heavily criticised given what we know now BUT I’m a sucker for a good spy thriller。

Mob Razor ，

Audiobook。 3。5 stars。 This was good， not great。 Well narrated。

Sheldon ，

Slow， plodding and probably too close to some Cold War spy reality。

Bonnie ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 A novel that takes place in east Germany in the '50s。 It starts with Martin being exchanged as a spy he comes home with his ex-wife's new husband Kurt。 He sees his ex Sabine and their child Peter。 It appears that Sabine and Kurt have arranged for his release。 In reality Sabine is sick and die。 She wants Martin to take their child and leave to America since he has an American passport。 Kurt is working for the East German police and kills a man with the help of martin。 There is a lot of back and f A novel that takes place in east Germany in the '50s。 It starts with Martin being exchanged as a spy he comes home with his ex-wife's new husband Kurt。 He sees his ex Sabine and their child Peter。 It appears that Sabine and Kurt have arranged for his release。 In reality Sabine is sick and die。 She wants Martin to take their child and leave to America since he has an American passport。 Kurt is working for the East German police and kills a man with the help of martin。 There is a lot of back and forth and questioning of motives。 Towards the end of the book Martin devises a plan to take Sabine and Peter out of the country。 However Sabine is shot at the border and Martin has to leave with just Peter。 Difficulty in the novel is that the characters are often two-sided and then turn back toward their old side and you really aren't sure where their loyalties lie。 Although it's possible that the characters don't know。 。。。more

Elliot J。 ，

I am an enormous fan of Joseph Kanon and with this novel have read all of his work。 On occasion I've given him 4-star reviews （usually on Amazon） for perceived imperfections but all in all he is one of our finest writers of espionage and related fiction。 In this novel he has， I think， written one of his finest books。 The plot is intricate as all of his plots are but it is comprehensible and laid out with superb nuance。 I do think it would be helpful if the reader had some knowledge of the int'l。 I am an enormous fan of Joseph Kanon and with this novel have read all of his work。 On occasion I've given him 4-star reviews （usually on Amazon） for perceived imperfections but all in all he is one of our finest writers of espionage and related fiction。 In this novel he has， I think， written one of his finest books。 The plot is intricate as all of his plots are but it is comprehensible and laid out with superb nuance。 I do think it would be helpful if the reader had some knowledge of the int'l。 situation of 1963 which is about the time the story is set， especially of Europe and Germany in particular。 Kanon refers to both the situation and individuals which might be a puzzling to one wholly unfamiliar with the relations between the two Germanys at the time， to people such as Walter Ulbricht， etc。 But this a small point。 What I especially loved was the nuance， the subtlety of the dialogue wherein Canon displays authorial brilliance in not telling us in narrative what people think and feel but laying it out in their own dialogue。 To me this is the mark of a truly fine novelist （I noticed the same thing in his wonderful novel， STARDUST， which is set in old-time big-studio Hollywood of the late 40s。） I enthusiastically recommend THE BERLIN EXCHANGE as one of those top-notch espionage novels which is certainly not a thriller-dilller but a work of literature in the format of Kanon's chosen genre。 。。。more

Craig Beyers ，

“The Berlin Exchange” is and interesting look at an unknown-to-me element of the Cold War and a consequence of the Berlin Wall’s construction in the 1960s。

Diogenes ，

Atmospheric espionage thriller with multiple twists and turns。 The tension builds slowly and gradually increases to a to a highly intense conclusion。 East Berlin behind The Wall is realistically portrayed。

Nora Huber ，

Loved this book！ Am interesting look into how spies work。 Is this applicable to today？ Wouldn’t we love to know！ The tension was palpable even though this is a true story and we know how it ends。 Great writing。

HistoryGeek 42 ，

I’ve come to accept that Joseph Kanon’s books are a little hard to follow and take a while to get going。 Once you accept these truths， he writes an interesting story

Germaine ，

Cannot get enough of this author the details and storyline are fantastic

Evelyn Hall ，

Kanon does a superb job with this novel of weaving a complex plot and combining it with beautiful and sophisticated writing。 He has a unique writing style that really appeals to me and works well for propelling the action of the novel along。His portrayal of post WW II Berlin is grim and drab and completely believable and adds the sense of oppressiveness the story requires。 I enjoyed the time period and was impressed with the amount of research and attention to detail that clearly went into the w Kanon does a superb job with this novel of weaving a complex plot and combining it with beautiful and sophisticated writing。 He has a unique writing style that really appeals to me and works well for propelling the action of the novel along。His portrayal of post WW II Berlin is grim and drab and completely believable and adds the sense of oppressiveness the story requires。 I enjoyed the time period and was impressed with the amount of research and attention to detail that clearly went into the writing。 It is rare that I think of a thriller as thoughtful， but this is a novel that left me thinking and questioning and wanting to learn more about this particular time period in Berlin。 Don’t be fooled though， this is very much a thriller and moves at a quick pace and the ending took me to a place I had not expected。 Thank you to @scribnerbooks for this advanced copy。 。。。more

Steve ，

As we enter what seems like a second Cold War， Kanon takes us back to the original-- the post World War II frenzy to recruit the world's best bomb-makers and build an arsenal equal to any in the world。 So the old is new again， and if you think that there is nothing more to be wrung out of that bygone era， then you have not read the canon of Kanon。 A small drama with large implications， and building to a tension-wracked conclusion that is worthy of another master， the late， great John LeCarre。 As we enter what seems like a second Cold War， Kanon takes us back to the original-- the post World War II frenzy to recruit the world's best bomb-makers and build an arsenal equal to any in the world。 So the old is new again， and if you think that there is nothing more to be wrung out of that bygone era， then you have not read the canon of Kanon。 A small drama with large implications， and building to a tension-wracked conclusion that is worthy of another master， the late， great John LeCarre。 。。。more

Ann ，

Too slow for me。

Lindy High ，

Kanon writes terrific dialog — you can almost hear the German and Russian accents。

John Sklar ，

I always enjoy Kanon's books but this one seemed more like a short story。 The plot was a little thin。 Still， all in all he sets a beautiful table， showing us life in east Germany after the war。 A lot of action and intrigue for a character that just got out of years in prison。 I always enjoy Kanon's books but this one seemed more like a short story。 The plot was a little thin。 Still， all in all he sets a beautiful table， showing us life in east Germany after the war。 A lot of action and intrigue for a character that just got out of years in prison。 。。。more

patricia ，

It would take a book of pages to write a review of this story。 Martin， an American imprisoned on the American side of the Berlin war is exchanged with the East Berlin side for one of ours。 Martin was accused of giving secret information to the communists during the war。 He is a scientist who worked on the A Bomb in New Mexico。 His former wife， his son Peter， and his wife's new husband Kurt are in East Berlin。 The wife， Sabina， is the mother of Peter the son of Sabina and Martin。 Gets complicated It would take a book of pages to write a review of this story。 Martin， an American imprisoned on the American side of the Berlin war is exchanged with the East Berlin side for one of ours。 Martin was accused of giving secret information to the communists during the war。 He is a scientist who worked on the A Bomb in New Mexico。 His former wife， his son Peter， and his wife's new husband Kurt are in East Berlin。 The wife， Sabina， is the mother of Peter the son of Sabina and Martin。 Gets complicated but the ending is a breath holding， last pages， escape to the west。 My synopsis does not do it justice because it is a constant nail biter。 If you like spy stories you will enjoy this book。 A note: we lived in Berlin in the early 80's when the wall was still up and exchanges of prisoners took place on the bridge so this book brought back those mysterious exchanges。 Good read。 。。。more

Laura ，

Very slow burn， but worth it

Jenn ，

Your standard slow-moving spy novel。 It was not as "thrilling" as I hoped。 Your standard slow-moving spy novel。 It was not as "thrilling" as I hoped。 。。。more

Debbie ，

I love a good spy story。 This is probably more like 3。5 stars - I found it hard to sympathize （or care） for any of the characters （although I did like the Shell） - I thought the story ended too soon as I wanted to know what comes next for them after the get into West Germany。

Judith von Kirchbach ，

This was an intriguing spy novel set in Berlin in the 1960s at the height of the Cold War。 The prisoner trade is at the center of the story。 It opens with the Communists wanting Martin Keller， an American nuclear physicist， long imprisoned by the British longing to see his ex-wife and son， living in East Germany。 He does not know why the East would want him， what his trading value could be and who will still be waiting for him。The author does an excellent job at constructing a suspicious atmosph This was an intriguing spy novel set in Berlin in the 1960s at the height of the Cold War。 The prisoner trade is at the center of the story。 It opens with the Communists wanting Martin Keller， an American nuclear physicist， long imprisoned by the British longing to see his ex-wife and son， living in East Germany。 He does not know why the East would want him， what his trading value could be and who will still be waiting for him。The author does an excellent job at constructing a suspicious atmosphere of denunciation and he is also extremely good at neatly weaving historical facts into the story。 What made the story harder to read than maybe some others was the proximity I felt to those dreary circumstances， I live in Germany and even if I wasn’t even on the same continent when the wall came down in 1989 and Germany reunited in 1990 my husband’s family was impacted by the wall。 My husband grew up visiting relatives in East Germany because his father’s siblings were evenly split between the ones who for different reasons left and could leave the Eastern sector and the ones who could not。 And his memories of those visits and especially dreading the border crossings and the way his parents were humiliated and the car stripped and searched have shaped my imaginings of the border crossings and exchanges in this book。 Also the mother‘s feelings， a mother who wants to assure a future for her son but doesn’t know whom to trust…The story is filled to the brim with fascinating characters and historic details and the plot that is full of twists and surprises but the book wraps up with a very satisfying made for the screen ending。 。。。more

Delia ，

Very suspenseful！ I am a big Joseph Kanon fan。

Laura ，

Rating: 3。5Martin Keller， an American citizen convicted by the British for sharing atomic secrets with the Russians post-WW II， is swapped to the East Germans in a prisoner exchange after 115 years in prison in 1963。 His ex-wife and son， an East German TV star， have pushed her second husband， a player in the prisoner exchange business （along with other black market activities） to advocate for his exchange。 It is unclear why the East Germans want him， and why he is willing to go there。 The plot m Rating: 3。5Martin Keller， an American citizen convicted by the British for sharing atomic secrets with the Russians post-WW II， is swapped to the East Germans in a prisoner exchange after 115 years in prison in 1963。 His ex-wife and son， an East German TV star， have pushed her second husband， a player in the prisoner exchange business （along with other black market activities） to advocate for his exchange。 It is unclear why the East Germans want him， and why he is willing to go there。 The plot moves forward through a series of intertwined spy-related projects that eventually tease out the motivations of Martin， his ex Sabine and her current husband Kurt， and several spy handlers and persons related to East German nuclear weapons development personnel。 One doesn't know until the very end （last 3 pages） how all these issues will resolve， so lots of tension， but the writing is sometimes so subtle it is hard to discern what is happening。 For me， this was a mixed bag。 。。。more

Dan Petrick ，

4。7 stars。。。this was a heart pounding espionage thriller with a significant amount of real history included， especially concerning the East/West German prisoner exchange program during the Cold War。 A fantastic read。

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Berlin Exchange

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Berlin Exchange&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Berlin Exchange&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0