After reading and loving ‘The Coldest Warrior’ I was looking forward to picking up ‘Beirut Station’ and it did not disappoint. It's a moody and claustrophobic read, that reads like a historical memoir, full of nuanced characters and historical details. Philosophical questions were addressed - how does one cope with being a spy and being themselves, do nations have the right to play God and many more. I enjoy works of spy fiction and I believe Vidich is up there with the best. It's reminiscent of Le Carre but with a slightly more human touch, as this is essentially a character story of how a spy comes to certain realizations and conclusions.

Beirut 2006 - Analise is a young CIA agent who has been given the mission to assassinate a high ranking, Hezbollah terrorist. The Irsael-Hezbollah war is tearing Beirut apart, bombs are raining down every night, residents are scrambling to evacuate and there is chaos on every street. The CIA and Mossad want to assassinate Najib Quassem and Analise is trying to plan his death by gaining access to the family via his grandson as his English tutor. Will their plan work?

This is a multi-layered look at the tensions in the Middle East during 2006. Also, it feels a very apt read at the moment, with the invasion of Gaza and the Hamas terror incident. It shows us that history is always repeating itself, we never learn and some people love chaos! Do we as those ‘first-world’ nations have the authority to play in these games of state and war? But essentially this is the story of Analise and how she reconfigures her world and how one deals with the subterfuge and secrets of that existence. Her world is one of smoke and mirrors, guessing people’s true intentions and one where every step can be fatal. She has an inner core of strength but also shows vulnerability which might be her undoing.

‘Beirut Station’ is very compelling and I devoured it in a few sittings. It was one of those novels that has you doing extra research and it becomes all the more richer for it. Based on true events, it gives it an air of authenticity and a sense that this could have actually played out at some point! This was a rich narrative that hooked me from start to finish and I can't wait to see what Vidich does next.

Let me know if you pick this one up!

Análise is a beautiful CIA spy in Beirut in 2006. She's involved with other CIA and Mossad operatives planning to assasinate Quassem, a Hezbollah leader, before a diplomatic visit by Condoleezza Rice.
It's all a bit murky, and impossible for Análise to know who to trust, amidst constantly shifting allegiances.
The writing is very dry, and there are some tense moments, but i didn't particularly care for Análise. She is a bit too enigmatic.

Apologies but this was a dnf for me,I really wanted to like this book but found the story clunky in its delivery and hard to keep a track of who was who and who was doing what with who and why!!I am presuming judging by other reviews this is me and so apologies again

Another hard-hitting thriller from a master storyteller.

"Beirut Station" opens in Lebanon, 2006 where the Israeli–Hezbollah war is tearing Beirut apart and the country is on the brink of chaos. We meet Lebanese/American CIA agent, Analise, who operates as a member of the UN, and sees first-hand the terrible price being paid on both sides. Married, but regularly sleeping with an American journalist, she has trouble balancing her dual roles. Her life becomes even more complicated when, just days before her tour of duty should end, the CIA and Mossad identify an Hezbollah terrorist, believed to be planning the assassination of Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who plans to visit Beirut to broker a ceasefire. The decision is made to assassinate him.

Soon Analise is immersed in a plan about which she has serious doubts, made worse as she tries to ensure no innocents are killed alongside the target. No one is quite what they seem, and she struggles with some of the directives coming from her CIA and Mossad colleagues. Do they have their own motives for killing the terrorist?

It's a dark story, meticulously researched, with a cast of well-developed characters, all of whom have hidden agendas. When Analise discovers what could be a conspiracy at the highest levels of the CIA, her loyalties are sorely tested. The scenes where she has to make decisions, are gripping and as her life begins to unravel, we see someone really rising to the challenge. Likewise, war-torn Beirut and its citizens are portrayed in three-dimensions.

The author's research here, as in previous books, is meticulous, and he clearly has a first-class knowledge of the time and place in which the story takes place, as well as the intricacies of the intelligence world. And for die-hard spy fans, there's plenty of tradecraft.

For those who weren't around at the time of the conflict, the author takes the time to flesh out events and people who were key to the war, and in parts the book does start to feel a bit like a history lesson. The author also doesn't hesitate to pin his colours to the mast, in terms of who he thinks it to blame. That's not something I particularly enjoy in a novel.


But fans of Paul Vidich won't be disappointed in this latest gritty tale, and fans of David McCloskey, Daniel Silva and IS Berry will lap it up. Recommended.

This was a real slow burner as the author gradually and skilfully drew us into this exhilarating and satisfying story of a deep cover CIA spy planning the demise of a high level terrorist in Beirut.

The city is impeccably described and the tensions and internal dissensions and politics ring true. The plot is complex with divided loyalties and red herrings and this is a departure from the previous novels written by an exceptional author who is at the top of his game.

Highly recommended.