THE BERKUT

by Joseph Heywood ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 18, 1987

Did Hitler fake suicide in order to escape the Allies? That's the central conceit of Heywood's muscular, sporadically exciting, but ultimately predictable first novel--a dark and brutal tale of Adolph on the run from a band of crack Russian operatives. Beginning with the clockwork opening depicting Hitler's escape from the bunker with the help of ace S.S. Col. Gunter Brumm (they plant the body of an ""Alpha""--a Hitler double--next to that of Eva Braun), Heywood displays much perspiration but little inspiration in constructing this story. His attention to character traits and details of setting, from the quirks of the Fuhrer to the malevolent German mountains where Hitler and Brumm hide, are exceptional; but the linear plot--Hitler runs, Russians chase--offers no twists or turns and fails to generate genuine suspense. In fact, the only real surprise here is the relentless--and off-putting--psychopathy of every major character: not only Hitler, Brumm, and Stalin (who orders the pursuit and who, blustery and brooding, is the novel's centerpiece), but also the ""Berkut"" himself, the leader of the Russian band and a fanatic who, like Brumm, kills often and without hestitation to achieve his goal. (Even a charismatic American agent who joins in the chase seems enamoured of easy violence, as does the Catholic Church, which Heywood shows lending Hitler a helping hand.) So it's a grim landscape awash in blood and quick animal sex on which these unpleasant but powerfully sculpted characters tango in cat-and-mouse stealth and hair-breadth escapes until a final confrontation--on a ship bound for South America--that yields an inevitable but still shocking triumph of poetic justice. Not for weak hearts, this graphic thriller revels in displays of humanity at its most base. Still, those who enjoy the intricacies of the hunt will find this one of the more engrossing Nazi novels in some time--and a promising debut for Heywood.

Pub Date: Sept. 18, 1987

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Random House

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1987

Categories: FICTION