The Terrorist by Peter Steiner, a Mysterious Review.

Review: Louis Morgon was forced out of the CIA 40 years ago, and has retired to France. But the agency hasn't forgotten him and seeks his help in infiltrating a suspected terrorist cell in The Terrorist, the third mystery in this series by Peter Steiner.

While visiting his vacation home in Algiers, Louis is contacted by an old friend who tells him he's back on the agency's radar. There is no love lost between Louis and the CIA, so when he's approached to help learn more about al Qaeda, he refuses. But then he discovers that Zaharia Lefort, an Algerian boy he sponsored for an education in the US, has been falsely accused of being a terrorist himself and imprisoned somewhere, out of Louis's reach. Blackmailed into helping, Louis agrees on the condition that Zaharia will be freed. With this delicate agreement in place, Louis realizes that he can never stop being an agent, no matter where he lives or how old he gets.

Given the book's title and its premise, one might expect an action-packed, thrilling international adventure of intrigue. But The Terrorist is much more subtle and nuanced … and the better for it. It's the story of a man in conflict, personally and professionally, forced into an untenable situation, an international game of chess involving two young men, pawns really, unknown to each other, unwitting participants in a game they don't understand and can probably never appreciate, where moves and countermoves can have deadly consequences. The Terrorist is an outstanding novel of suspense, and highly recommended.

Acknowledgment: Minotaur Books provided a copy of The Terrorist for this review.

L'Assassin
Minotaur Books (Trade Paperback), July 2009
ISBN-13: 9780312373436; ISBN-10: 0312373430

The Resistance
Minotaur Books (Hardcover), August 2012
ISBN-13: 9781250003713; ISBN-10: 1250003717

The Terrorist

A Louis Morgon Mystery by Peter Steiner