Pariah
A Novel
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- 10,99 €
Beschreibung des Verlags
A NEW YORKER BEST BOOK OF 2025 • An adrenaline-fueled thriller about a disgraced comedian-turned-politician who takes on the role of a lifetime: infiltrating a corrupt Eastern European country to spy on their brutal dictator
Hal Knight, a comedian and movie star-turned politician, is no stranger to controversy. But after an embarrassing and humiliating encounter on set, Knight resigns from Congress, quits social media, and disappears to the tiny Caribbean island of Vieques to drink dirty martinis and nurse his wounds. Shortly after his arrival, he is approached by a trio of CIA operatives hoping to recruit him to infiltrate the power structure of Bolrovia—a hostile, Eastern European country whose despotic president, Nikolai Horvatz, happens to be a longtime fan of Knight’s adolescent male humor. Knowing that Horvatz plans to invite the disgraced star for an official visit, the CIA coaxes Knight to accept. Skeptical, but with little to lose, Knight accepts the challenge, sensing this might be his one chance to do something worthwhile, even if no one else ever finds out.
Upon arrival as President Horvatz’s guest of honor, Knight confronts his ultimate acting challenge. What begins as an assignment to keep his eyes and ears open quickly turns into a life-or-death battle of wits, with consequences reaching all the way to Washington. With Pariah, Dan Fesperman has crafted a heart-pounding thriller about espionage, entertainment, and one man’s pursuit of redemption.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Fesperman (Winter Work) delivers a sturdy spy novel that supplements its thrills with nuanced themes of personal redemption. Hal Knight—a former comedian and film star who's recently resigned in disgrace from Congress—has fled to a Caribbean island to escape the fallout from a viral video of his drunken, misogynistic tirade on a movie set. Now a social and professional outcast, Hal has at least one remaining fan: Nikolai Horvatz, despotic president of the east European nation of Bolrovia, who learned English from Hal's frat guy comedies and extends an invitation for him to perform in Bolrovia. CIA agent Lauren Witt seizes the opportunity to recruit Hal as a spy of convenience. Once in Europe, Hal must learn tradecraft on the fly, avoid insulting his thin-skinned host, and keep a menacing counterintelligence official from discovering his true mission. When Hal's brash, amateurish methods scare the CIA into disavowing the operation, Lauren takes her ops team off the books to extricate her recruit. Fesperman is dexterous with plotting and character development, but less convincing when it comes to illustrating Hal's comedic talents (unless readers really love song parodies). Still, it's a minor quibble in an otherwise impressive effort.
