John KnoerleReviews

"The Proxy Assassin" is the final volume in John Knoerle's "American Spy Trilogy", preceded by "A Pure Double Cross" and "A Despicable Profession". It's 1948 in central Romania (read Transylvania) and the populace is politically divided into Royalists and Communists. The Cold War is heating up precipitously in the neighborhood and everybody's spying on everybody else as the country tries to claw its way out of the nineteenth century. Might be a bad idea, the way things are going. In a soggy valley, high in the Carpathians a three year old child hides in plain sight. He is, we are told, a direct descendent of Vlad Tepes Draculea (read Bela Lugosi) and next in line for the hypothetical throne. This little guy is in danger of being found out by the commies and needs rescuing. Enter our hero, Hal Schroeder, dropped from a low flying DC3, with parachute provided by the CIA. Mayhem ensues. Hal starts calling himself a 'proxy assassin' because every contact he makes on the ground tends to show up dead the next day. Things look grim in Soggy Valley.

This book was a bit of a rough read but I think I was able to understand the style and background. The style is written how one would think someone from that time would talk and act. The plot was thick and at times hard to follow.

Technically speaking "The Proxy Assassin" is a third in a trilogy. I had never heard of the author before and I had not read the first two so I was a little worried if that one will work out. As it turned out, it did. There are elements that one would have known from the previous books but the author makes a great job of actually getting the needed information to the reader without sounding as if it was a filler. It is almost as if it was a standalone book and these actions and memories were something that happened before the book started, not necessarily in previous books but just in the character's life.

It is 1948, WWII is over and the agents that had been stationed in Europe are back home in the States. At least Hal is - and he had sworn that he will not participate in any more suicide missions. And when a book starts like that, everyone knows what follows - another suicide mission. Add to this the setting in Romania for some of the story (which could have been anywhere in the world really - there was nothing that put the story there - and adding Vlad Tepes in the story (no vampires or rebirths...) does not change this), royals that had been expelled from their country, a few beautiful females (are the ladies in the spy novels something else than perfect?), a few spies, guns and other arms flying all over the place and a story that sounds and feels like a standard Spy story from the era - and not exactly at the same time.

The choice to tell the story in the first character (Hal) and what you get is the voice of a 28 years old veteran of the WWII intelligence and spy services. Something does not sounds exactly right. He sounds too... modern, he sounds more like someone that is born 50 years later than in the pre-war area... It's not exactly anachronistic - there is nothing that jumps. But the attitude is a bit wrong - compared to the rest of the novels set and written in the era... And the character development is not that great in some cases (the Princess for example... or Julia) - they are cast into their roles and in order not to get this wrong, their humanity and the small things that people do and that make them individuals are just missing. But then I did not expect it to be very different and in all honesty, it was even better than I expected.

Which does not make the book less enjoyable. It is a fast read (both the action and the reading going fast easily). And it is a great adventure/spy story - it is almost unbelievable but then it could have happened. Maybe. Or not. But who cares - that's what fiction is all about.

Great literature it may not be but it serves well the purpose of getting you away of now and today for a few hours.½

The Proxy Assassin is every bit as good as the preceding two books in The American Spy trilogy and a fine conclusion to the series. I hope Knoerle continues to write such engaging works.

An entertaining spy thriller, dealing with a secret mission into Transylvania at the start of the cold war. The book also deals with political machinations in Washington. A number of historical figures appear, including Kim Philby, Guy Burgess, Wild Bill Donovan and J. Edgar Hoover. I would recommend this to people who enjoy spy stories and noir crime thrillers.

The Proxy Assassin is set in 1948 and tells the story of 28-year-old Hal Schroeder, not-so-super spy and reluctant hero. Knoerle does a great job of placing the reader in the middle of the Cold War, and has written a most readable novel of suspense. I wish that I'd read the first two books in the series so that I had the back story before launching in to this one, however the novel was quite enjoyable even without that back story.

Hal Schroeder is an OSS agent who parachuted into Germany in 1944 to gather intelligence and transmit it back to the allies. He finished out the war in enemy territory. Back in his hometown, Cleveland, he takes part in a sting (?) to rob a Federal Reserve bank with some Irish mobsters. Schroeder returns to a divided Germany for the post-war CIA and breaks up a Soviet plot to use White Russian emigres as agent provocateurs to provoke a Soviet invasion of allied occupated Germany. These events took place in the first two books of the American Spy Triology. In the Proxy Assassin Schroeder has parachuted into Soviet occupied Romania, Transylvania, to be exact, to assess the strength of anti-Soviet sentiment and the willingness of the population to resist Soviet occupation. He meets a descendent of Vlad the Impaler whose son is heir to the Romanian monarchy and an army officer who is willing to organize and lead forces opposed to the Soviets. This is the strongest part of the book. Things go terribly wrong in Romania and Schroeder escapes with Vlad's descendent and her son. Did she, Princess Stella betray the army officer? Back in D.C. Schroeder is confronted by an old Russian enemy who holds a major grudge against him. He also meets two British intelligence officers, Guy Burgess and Kim Philby. His sense is that not is right with those two. He remembers learning about the capture and execution of a number of U.S. agents and their contacts sent to Eastern Europe. Schroeder recognizes the threat of Soviet Russia and does not wear rose colored glasses regarding Stalin. He also meets a woman journalist to catapults him into the limelight with a number of quotes, including one that the "U.S. is losing the cold war." Schroeder favors Thomas Dewey in the 1948 election because Truman immediately disbanded the OSS after WW II without having the CIA in place. Schroeder appears at a Dewey rally along with an Air Force pilot who came up with the idea of dropping candy bars to Berlin children during the Berlin airlift. All this takes place as the Russian spy with the grudge is still stalking Schroeder.½

As you can tell by the title this is book three and I wish I had read the other two before this one so as to have a better handle on the background and history of the characters. Having read many books written during the second world war and the language used to describe their actions, I believe our author did a good job of putting us there in 1948. If this period language and actions are not for you then I would suggest not reading this book. I have had a difficult time starting this review and have left the book sitting by my computer to remind me and when I see it the story comes back to my mind. Therefore I am going to recommend this book and while the story is hard to follow and the characters difficult to remember it was an enjoyable book.

I have not read the previous books in this series. I was pleasantly surprised by this book. There was quite a bit of military jargon that I did not fully understand but it did not detract from the book. I found myself a little confused at the beginning of the story but after a few chapters I got an understanding of how the author was writing. Before I knew it, I couldn't put the book down. I love John Knoerle's characters. He developed the setting well but did not put so much detail in that I wanted to skip over parts. I am now interested in getting the first two books in this series.

The Proxy Assassin, my ER book arrived, when I really needed a break from some heavy reading. So, I was wowed with the idea I could have some real fun with this part of the American Spy Trilogy. John Knoerle, the author, writes some funny dialogue and puts Hal Schroeder in some intriguing locations and situations. Still some how this was not enough. I take some of the blame since I believe I was distracted with all sorts of business and family matters. But, why did I have trouble fiishing this book? Perhaps, the some of the parts created a less than a coordinated whole. Maybe I found the transition from one chapter to the next less than smooth. Still, Knoerle writes quirky and witty sentences. And has a unique and easy to read style that makes me laugh. Sort of like a combo of Hemingway and Raymond Chandler. The ensuing patch of a book just doesn't fit. But I applaud Knoerle's style. And, hope that next time he can somehow knit the whole thing together.

The Proxy Assassin is the third book of the American Spy trilogy. Dark deeds in Romania and 1948 DC propel this Noire spy thriller. a good read.

Ok So this isn't my normal genre that I like to read on the regular, but I did like Johns writing in this 3rd book in his trilogy. I read all the Jason Bourne books and truly and enjoyed them, and this had similar excitements to that. I did have a harder time getting through it then I had liked, but it was definitely a good read by the end. This book takes you through some serious excitement for a spy thriller. I loved Hal's latest adventure through this book and would definitely recommend the book for the right person. I rated this book 3 out of 5 stars I did enjoy it, but didn't love it and definitely did not dislike it.

Whew! Exhausting book to read and made me glad I am not ever considering a career in espionage. It seems to take a certain mindset and ability to play chess AND have a sense of humor to keep going.

THE PROXY ASSASSIN is set in the US and other environs just after WWII. Hal Schroeder is hailed as both a hero, but isn't loved by all. He's trying to come to grips with his life thus far. I know I have to read the first two in the trilogy so I can catch up to some of the mentions and occurences that happen in this entry.
Hal is sent to Europe to battle the Red threat by garnering trust with the Romanian anti-Communist guerillas. Not everything is as it seems and Hal doesn't know who to trust other than himself...and sometimes not even him.
I loved the dry humor throughout. I think I could be friends with Hal, though the friend attrition rate is pretty high with him.
I look forward to reading the first two in the trilogy and anything else John Knoerle writes.

I was really excited when this book arrived in the mail! I love historical fiction, and I've been to many of the places where the story is set.

I like the main character. Hal Schroeder, very much. He's somebody I'd like to hang out with--clever, interesting, and does not suffer fools gladly. I like reading about him and his adventures--they help me escape my dull life, which is why I enjoy reading so much.

But, I'm having a hard time following his adventures. The story starts with his ending his WWII assignment and receiving a post-war assignment in Washington that has him traveling to Romania...only, this part of the story is told somewhat in flashback. I had a hard time keeping things straight. And then the Romanian story takes off--he's evaluating a plan by the locals to overthrow the Communists, and encounters interesting characters. But again, I had a hard time following the story. Next thing I knew, Hal is back in the States with new characters on another adventure.

So many characters, so many adventures, so much for my muddled middle-aged brain to keep straight.

The premise of The Proxy Assassin, as it is with all Cold War era spy novels had potential, but it ultimately falls flat. The story follows Hal Schroeder from Ohio, to DC, to Romania, to Rome, to DC, to Ireland. Written entirely in first person, the reader effectively gets a running commentary about what Schroeder is doing and the people he is meeting. Thus, no matter who Schroeder is meeting, what is going on, or where he is, there is the same, somewhat sardonic, monotone. Though the format might be somewhat more true to life than a more traditional narrative, it ends up falling flat as a narrative technique because the story covers such a wide array of issues and stories without doing any of them justice, while also dragging.

The Proxy Assassin is a marginally entertaining read, but I would recommend it only if you really want to finish the trilogy (full honesty, I have not read the others), or are out of other spy novels and really need a fix.

I've read the first two of this series, so my expectations were not the highest. The book is convoluted and hard to read like the first two, but having gotten through the first few slow chapters, it started getting interesting. The choice of title for the book was very clever indeed. But then the book could have ended right there just after half way through, when Princess Stella reveals her true identity. But no--the book goes on to another rather uninteresting revisit with the Russians. I'm happy the trilogy is done, even though the author leaves the door open for more. I did enjoy the constant reminders that we were in the middle forties with Truman finally winning in 1946. But this book just does not rank with the top selling thrillers of 2012.

John Knoerle has a very witty sense of humor using analogies like that of a dancing bears final act as the hunters circle the bear for the kill. The main character Hal Schroeder is a foreign interloper or is he that of a stand-up spy remains to be determined.

John Knoerle has created a loving tribute to the 60s spy noir genre in this fast paced novel that ends his American Spy Trilogy. Or does it? This tribute to early cold war novels is pretty open ended---I can easily see more books being added to this series.

The Proxy Assassin sees long suffering spy/hero Hal Schroeder sent back into action again, this time to Romania. The year is 1948, and Communism is trying to spread into Eastern Europe. The West responds with men like Hal Schroeder---and we get to watch.

The plot is complex and you can expect wheels turning within wheels but it's worth it in the end. When the final hammer drops, and all is revealed, Hal Schroeder has a new lease on life. And maybe a lass to share life with? Only if there's a fourth book.

Great fun, campy dialogue, 40's era observations (what is it about the post-prohibition examination of what cocktail everyone is drinking) , not the most profound book I've read this year but I honestly enjoyed it and would recommend the series to anyone interested in spy novels. Many thanks again to Early Reviewers for introducing me to yet another author who's work I did not know.

I received this book from the Early Reviewers program. The book is a totally pulpy throwback with over the top dialogue. But you know what? I still enjoyed it. It was fun, quick, easy. I enjoyed the late 40s setting. Most similar fiction takes place just before WW2. I was a nice turn of pace to read something about just after the war.

Again found that this book wasn't my cup of tea. Donated it to the library.

I tried to read this book through to the end, I really did. But, after three attempts of not really getting into it, I just finally gave up.½

It took me a little while to get into this book. Partly personal because I hate coming in to a series without having read the prior books & partly because it seemed to skip around a lot. Once it got going though it was good. I thoroughly enjoyed the characters, I found the bits of it a bit slow going but I'm not really a spy novel person. I handed it over to my husband, who is and while he also found it a hard start he enjoyed it enough to go find the first book. Overall it was a good read

I just could not get in to this book and trust me I tried. The time period (Berlin, 1946, WWII over and Europe trying to recover) is a fantastic spring board for writing a great and compelling story. This book's beginning was disjointed (as others have pointed out) and the story line seemed too "cutesy" for me. I could not connect with the book's protagonist and maybe reading the first volume would have helped there.

This book started out disjointed; and I assume it's because I didn't read 'Book 1' of the series, but it cleans up nicely, and ends up being an enjoyable read.