Mishka Ben-David

Mishka Ben-David has a PhD in Hebrew literature PhD. He was a school headmaster. He was also the director of a community centre. Oh, I almost forgot: for 12 years of his life he was a Mossad agent. Combining his various talents Ben David has written a few spy novels involving Mossad agents. Each novel is set in a particular city – Berlin, Beirut, Moscow, St. Petersburg and, most recently, Algiers.

Whereas most books in the series lean towards the genre of action-filled spy novels,“Last Visit in Moscow” (“ביקור אחרון במוסקבה”) is a little different.

Dani Shlein is a Mossad agent operating in the Soviet Union under the cover of an American businessman. Overcome by his desire to visit the remote village where his mother was born, he breaks with protocol and takes a drive to the countryside. Asking too many questions he is quickly picked up by the KGB and finds himself in Lubyanka, the dreaded KGB headquarters and prison in the heart of Moscow. There he faces a retired general, brought in especially to interrogate him. The book is basically a description of the weeks-long face-off between the interrogator and the Israeli spy.

The interrogation evolves in unexpected directions. At times it becomes an almost intimate dialogue between the two men. The general forces Dani to unfold his life piece by piece, thus enabling the reader to get the full life story of the Mossad agent. To keep his story straight, Dani sticks to his real life story but alters the facts so as to match his cover story. His childhood, his adolescence, how he met his wife, how he fell in love with her, why they broke apart – everything is transported from Israel to New York. Even when the general manages to poke holes in the cover story, Dani does not give up. He has no choice if he wishes to survive.

What Dani doesn’t understand is why the retired general was brought in for this interrogation. Finding out the reason is the surprise Ben-David has in store for us. The last few pages of the book tie up the loose ends and provide Dani with information about his mother’s past before she left the Soviet Union for Israel.

“Last Visit in Moscow” is perhaps Ben-David’s best book. While I enjoyed his other novels for the action and “light reading” experience, this book demands more involvement and more attention. Ultimately, one is rewarded with a moving, well-rounded story.… (mehr)