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  • The Berlin Exchange

  • A Novel
  • Written by: Joseph Kanon
  • Narrated by: Jonathan Davis
  • Length: 10 hrs and 32 mins
  • 4.7 out of 5 stars (6 ratings)

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The Berlin Exchange

Written by: Joseph Kanon
Narrated by: Jonathan Davis
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Publisher's Summary

From “the most accomplished spy novelist working today” (The Sunday Times, London), a “heart-poundingly suspenseful” (The Washington Post) espionage thriller set at the height of the Cold War, when a captured American who has spied for the KGB is returned to East Berlin, needing to know who arranged for his release and what they now want from him.

Berlin, 1963. An early morning spy swap, not at the familiar setting for such exchanges, nor 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 an aging MI6 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 knows 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 Not physics—his expertise is out of date.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.

Intriguing and atmospheric, with action rising to a dangerous climax, The Berlin Exchange “expertly describes what happens when a disillusioned former agent tries to come in from the cold” (The New York Times Book Review), confirming Kanon as “the greatest writer ever of historical espionage fiction” (Spybrary).

©2022 Joseph Kanon. All rights reserved. (P)2022 Simon & Schuster, Inc. All rights reserved
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What the critics say

"Narrator Jonathan Davis helps build the tension, creating a dark atmosphere of suspicion and suspense. His strong characterizations help listeners keep track of the story’s principals. Davis’s authentic-sounding pronunciation of names and places also helps to set the scenes and build the atmosphere, while his excellent pacing amps up the tension." (AudioFile Magazine)

What listeners say about The Berlin Exchange

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Wow! One of the best cold war spy novels yet heard

This is an excellent historical fiction spy novel read well all about prisoner swaps in East Germany. The author was rated by the spy novel pages as one of the best, and they were not wrong. This intro to Joseph Kanon will have me "reading" or listening to more of his novels in the coming year. Very well constructed plot and dense set of characters.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Excellent narration.

This is my first book by this author but far from my last …. And the author and the narrator were both beyond my expectations . Highly recommended

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Mesmerizing

It took a little to get into, but then the storyline was mesmerizing. Great narrator.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Overall not bad, but a bit slow for my taste

While the overall story was ok, I did find it lacking any really “thrill”. The pacing was a bit slow for me and I found my self not wanting to finish it. The performance was good, but again I did not find it the greatest. I found the narration a bit monotone.

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