The Enemy Within

One of Kristine Kathryn Rusch’s most acclaimed short stories becomes one of her most original novels.

February, 1964: Two men die in a squalid alley in a bad neighborhood.  New York Homicide Detective Seamus O’Reilly receives the shock of his life when he looks at the men’s identification: J. Edgar Hoover, the famous, tyrannical director of the FBI, and his number one assistant, Clyde Tolson.

O’Reilly teams up with FBI agent Frank Bryce to solve the second high-level assassination in only three months. Because in November of the previous year, someone assassinated President John F. Kennedy. The cop and the FBI agent must determine if the same shadowy organization committed all three murders. To do so, they must act quickly before some of the nation’s most powerful men—from Kennedy’s brother, Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy, to the President of the United States, Lyndon Baines Johnson—do something rash to keep Hoover’s secrets from ever becoming public.

In our world, Hoover kept his secrets until long after his death. In Seamus O’Reilly’s world, Hoover’s secrets get him killed. The Enemy Within offers alternate history so plausible that only Kristine Kathryn Rusch could have written it.

Winner of the 2014 Sidewise Award for Best Long Form Alternate History.

“A dark, yet fascinating tale, The Enemy Within gives readers an intriguing look at what could have happened in 1964 New York.”—RT Book Reviews

“[Enemy Within] is a blend of mystery, political thriller, and alternate history. It was a compelling read I had trouble putting down. … This is one fans of political thrillers won’t want to miss.”—Keith West, Adventures Fantastic

“Rusch weaves a convincing alternate history tale of ‘what ifs’ that interlaces with our own history of those troubled times. … Be sure to read Kristine Kathryn’s Rusch’s latest thriller The Enemy Within for non-stop political intrigue!”—Dave Dickinson, Astroguyz

“[The Enemy Within] moves fast and has a surprising twist at the end. It’s fine ‘what-if’ reading, and there’s a sequel in the works. Check it out.”—Bill Crider’s Pop Culture Magazine

“Entertaining and well written.”—Gumshoe

“Fast-paced from the moment the NYPD cops identify the victims, fans will appreciate this taut thriller as corruption at all levels of government leads to a need for a cover-up that makes a bad situation much worse.” The Midwest Book Review

“I really enjoyed the story. I’ve only read a few short stories by Rusch, but I don’t regret taking a chance on this longer piece.  . . . this is a nice little dip into the time period where the nation was scarred by the death of a president.”—Gumshoe (Bill Lawhom)

“Rusch’s story moves fast and has a surprising twist at the end.—Bill Crider’s Pop Culture Magazine

“Rusch has proven many times over that she’s a gifted world-builder, whether the world is the highly dangerous, racist America of 1970 (ripped from the real pages of archival newspapers), or a far future in which people not only live on the Moon, but negotiate professional lives with any number of alien species . . .”—Entertainment Books By Killian Melloy

“Her latest novel is a blend of mystery, political thriller, and alternate history. It was a compelling read I had trouble putting down.”—Adventures Fantastic