The Mysteries of Algiers (Contemporary English Language Fiction)

A novel about the psychology of terrorism set in algiers in 1959. "Entertaining and very nasty, this calculatedly intellectual comedy succeeds well as an unheroic quest starring Philippe, an interesting monster of disarming modesty." The Listener In 1959 in Algiers, city of intrigue and disguises, the French settlers are making a last stand against the FLN liberation army. For Philippe, a desert intelligence officer, survival means knowing the mind of the enemy. But who is the enemy? How to find him? Entertaining and very nasty, this calculatedly intellectual comedy succeeds well as an unheroic quest starring Philippe, an interesting monster of disarming honesty - The Listener It is a gruesome black comedy, whose blackness is so intense as to be almost unreadable - if it weren't so well written. - Time Out In a plot which snakes and twists, the reader cannot risk letting his concentration drop for a moment... At times the death-defying narrow escapes are firmly in the tradition of James Bond...as well as being a rattling good yarn, this is a study of moral bankruptcy of those who pursue abstractions through violence...very successful. - Times Literary Supplement What separates Irwin's story from the usual spy thrillers is not only his wit and satire but also his verbal pyrotechnics. - The Washington Post