Official Review: PRAGUE: Darkness Descending
Posted: 23 Jun 2020, 21:07
[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "PRAGUE: Darkness Descending" by Robert Tecklenburg.]
You can run, but you cannot hide from your past. Major Charlie Stanek knows this firsthand, and he has the scars to prove it. Originally recruited for his impressive language skills, Charlie served in WW2 as an agent of the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), rescuing shot-down British and American pilots in Czechoslovakia. However, while this is where Charlie's story begins, the novel starts with our protagonist cornered in a jail cell in Hanoi by an angry Russian colonel, spitting accusations of espionage. Charlie, though, commits to the truth that he has been sent to Vietnam only to investigate the death of an American soldier. This is not the answer that the colonel is looking for, and he leaves the major to sit with his promises of torture and a potential grave. Yet, a Ukrainian, Zerenowsky, comes to Charlie's aid, while also working out a scenario that frees him from Russia. The two escape the prison, but Colonel Andre Pavlov is not one who can stand to be slighted.
Two years later, Zerenowsky is dead, killed by an NKVD agent, and Charlie is the next mark. However, Charlie gets the better of the agent and finds a note in the dead man's pocket, which states, "Major Charles Stanek, I have your woman and your child. If you want to see them alive, you must come to Prague" (Loc 502). A picture flashes in Charlie's mind: Marie, his love back in Czechoslovakia, whom he had thought he had already lost. If she was alive, then no one could stop him from going to her. Slipping off his domesticated life and persona in Australia, Charlie reveals that the soldier inside of him has never been far. He would employ every skill that had been grafted into him to save his love and the daughter that he never knew existed. I give this monumental historical fiction novel by Robert Tecklenburg three out of four stars.
Color me impressed. The main plot of Prague: Darkness Descending takes place in 1948, and we can see the progression of war and politics as friends become enemies and enemies become allies. Having once worked together in fighting the Nazis during WW2, the Russians under Stalin have essentially infiltrated the Czechoslovakian government, blatantly leading the country into Communist rule.
Charlie is strong as a protagonist, smart and resourceful. Knowing Russian, Czech, and English, Charlie casually remarks that he can "lie in three languages," and he displays this as he weaves through the cities, casting stories to the authorities to be able to find Marie and her daughter, Anna. Amazingly, the scenarios that Tecklenburg paints as Charlie tries to keep out of trouble and keep on mission read like facts. Being disillusioned by obvious fantasy can be a drawback of the spy thriller genre, but Tecklenburg, using history as his base, created a protagonist with a perfect blend of fact and fiction.
And actually, the entire book is exquisitely woven like that. While I am familiar with WW2 and Russian history, I wouldn't win at trivia night. Therefore, this book opened up an entire time period for me. I learned through Charlie's eyes and experiences as if I was reading a memoir. Comments on the CIA "just starting up," the airlift for Berlin, and William J. Donovan—regarded as the one who founded the CIA—being Charlie's superior are thrown in casually. It felt like I was a time traveler, witnessing the genesis of something life-changing. The details of the time made the entire novel, and Tecklenburg used not only his personal knowledge but also did his research.
However, this book wasn't without faults. I removed a star due to quite a few typographical and grammatical errors; the dialogue was also periodically very stiff. Likewise, I struggled with understanding the contradiction between Charlie's inner-monologue, which said how much he loved and loves Marie, and his actions, which include having sexual relations with three different women over seven weeks without giving any thought to Marie. He also promises a future with one of the women, even though he knows that Marie is alive, which confused me about his intentions and his affection toward Marie.
Overall, though, the faults did not take away from the immersive experience of the book, and I would have probably given the full four stars if not for the errors. Those who are interested in WW2 history, spies, Russia, and international relations would likely enjoy this. However, given the graphic sexual content, periodic profanity, war themes, torture, and murder, this is understandably not a book for everyone, and those sensitive to those aspects should refrain from reading. I will now be eagerly waiting for Tecklenburg's next book by reading up on as much history as possible.
******
PRAGUE: Darkness Descending
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
You can run, but you cannot hide from your past. Major Charlie Stanek knows this firsthand, and he has the scars to prove it. Originally recruited for his impressive language skills, Charlie served in WW2 as an agent of the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), rescuing shot-down British and American pilots in Czechoslovakia. However, while this is where Charlie's story begins, the novel starts with our protagonist cornered in a jail cell in Hanoi by an angry Russian colonel, spitting accusations of espionage. Charlie, though, commits to the truth that he has been sent to Vietnam only to investigate the death of an American soldier. This is not the answer that the colonel is looking for, and he leaves the major to sit with his promises of torture and a potential grave. Yet, a Ukrainian, Zerenowsky, comes to Charlie's aid, while also working out a scenario that frees him from Russia. The two escape the prison, but Colonel Andre Pavlov is not one who can stand to be slighted.
Two years later, Zerenowsky is dead, killed by an NKVD agent, and Charlie is the next mark. However, Charlie gets the better of the agent and finds a note in the dead man's pocket, which states, "Major Charles Stanek, I have your woman and your child. If you want to see them alive, you must come to Prague" (Loc 502). A picture flashes in Charlie's mind: Marie, his love back in Czechoslovakia, whom he had thought he had already lost. If she was alive, then no one could stop him from going to her. Slipping off his domesticated life and persona in Australia, Charlie reveals that the soldier inside of him has never been far. He would employ every skill that had been grafted into him to save his love and the daughter that he never knew existed. I give this monumental historical fiction novel by Robert Tecklenburg three out of four stars.
Color me impressed. The main plot of Prague: Darkness Descending takes place in 1948, and we can see the progression of war and politics as friends become enemies and enemies become allies. Having once worked together in fighting the Nazis during WW2, the Russians under Stalin have essentially infiltrated the Czechoslovakian government, blatantly leading the country into Communist rule.
Charlie is strong as a protagonist, smart and resourceful. Knowing Russian, Czech, and English, Charlie casually remarks that he can "lie in three languages," and he displays this as he weaves through the cities, casting stories to the authorities to be able to find Marie and her daughter, Anna. Amazingly, the scenarios that Tecklenburg paints as Charlie tries to keep out of trouble and keep on mission read like facts. Being disillusioned by obvious fantasy can be a drawback of the spy thriller genre, but Tecklenburg, using history as his base, created a protagonist with a perfect blend of fact and fiction.
And actually, the entire book is exquisitely woven like that. While I am familiar with WW2 and Russian history, I wouldn't win at trivia night. Therefore, this book opened up an entire time period for me. I learned through Charlie's eyes and experiences as if I was reading a memoir. Comments on the CIA "just starting up," the airlift for Berlin, and William J. Donovan—regarded as the one who founded the CIA—being Charlie's superior are thrown in casually. It felt like I was a time traveler, witnessing the genesis of something life-changing. The details of the time made the entire novel, and Tecklenburg used not only his personal knowledge but also did his research.
However, this book wasn't without faults. I removed a star due to quite a few typographical and grammatical errors; the dialogue was also periodically very stiff. Likewise, I struggled with understanding the contradiction between Charlie's inner-monologue, which said how much he loved and loves Marie, and his actions, which include having sexual relations with three different women over seven weeks without giving any thought to Marie. He also promises a future with one of the women, even though he knows that Marie is alive, which confused me about his intentions and his affection toward Marie.
Overall, though, the faults did not take away from the immersive experience of the book, and I would have probably given the full four stars if not for the errors. Those who are interested in WW2 history, spies, Russia, and international relations would likely enjoy this. However, given the graphic sexual content, periodic profanity, war themes, torture, and murder, this is understandably not a book for everyone, and those sensitive to those aspects should refrain from reading. I will now be eagerly waiting for Tecklenburg's next book by reading up on as much history as possible.
******
PRAGUE: Darkness Descending
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Thank you for a great review!