Dead Men Living

An unxpected thaw in Siberia uncovers two WWII murder victims with a lot more questions than answers. The victims are wearing American & British uniforms so Russian authorities invite England and the US to join in a joint effort to solve the mystery. Charlie Muffin, the British representative, doesn't want to go, but after getting there the investigative juices take over and he starts enjoying the battle of wits in which he can't trust anyone including the British government much less the CIA who have wanted his scalp since the first great book in this series and a fine TV segment with the delightful David Hemmings in the title role. When Charlie does identify the bodies, he finds he's even more vulnerable and exposed and has to lead the other parties down the garden path so that enough of the truth can be exposed without increasing the danger to him and his lover, a high person in the current Russian spy organization that we've met in previous books.While this book is complex, it's representative of the current state of espionage in which the good guys and bad guys aren't as easily identified as in the Cold War. Those who were bad guys yesterday can be the good guys today. It's often every man (or woman) for themselves.The book seemed a tad long but each new devlopment added another useful piece to the puzzle. If you like novels in which the mystery is more who is going to outsmart the other rather than whodunnit, this is for you. Freemantle is a master at developing situations in which one survives or dies by their wits, ability to recognize clues you hope your "allies" don't see and how to anticipate where the attacks will come (from enemies and allies alike). Charlie Muffin is one of the most clever (if not the most) series protagonists in the Crime/Spy genre. You can't breeze through this book, you need to pay attention all along so you don't miss the nuggets Charlie mines. Freemantle doesn't hit you over the head with clues, you have to work at it, and for me that greatly increases the pleasure from this terrific series.I wish the next sequel would come sooner than this one did. Incidentally, I haven't enjoyed other books by this author nearly as much as the ones with Charlie Muffin.

Charlie Muffin gets by by not getting noticed. He can't do that when he's roped into solving an ancient World War II mystery--a British and American officer are found dead in the Russian gulag. Worse, someone is trying to keep their story as buried as their bodies were. Author Brian Freemantle does a great job describing modern Russia and also characterizing the office politics that are the bane of Russian, American, and British existance. Could it be, though, that the women were a little stereotyped?

Mr. Freemantle has brought readers a great deal of joy over the years with his series of novels centered around the rascal spy, Charlie Muffin, and he does not disappoint in "Dead Men Living". He is one of the few authors to carry forward the merciless surprise ending so wonderfully developed in the short stories of Saki (H.H. Munro). And here the author almost outdoes earlier Muffin novels in stacking the conspiracies and surprises literally on top of each other to the point that the the last surprise will leave the reader pondering over the pieces of the puzzle.If I had but one criticism it is that the conspiracies occasionally are so complex that the Author seemingly felt obligated to foreshadow certain events, diluting some of the intended effect; but this is more than outweighed by the sheer enjoyment in watching Charlie think and work his magic. Brian Freemantle's earlier Muffin novels are highly recommended as well, but are occasionally hard to find: read this one; and if you enjoy it, then dig into the Series with the first Muffin novel, "Charlie M" (as published in the US). You will not be disappointed.