The Good Assassin, Stephan Talty
The Good Assassin, Stephan Talty
21 Rating(s)
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The Good Assassin
How a Mossad Agent and a Band of Survivors Hunted Down the Butcher of Latvia

Author: Stephan Talty

Narrator: Stefan Rudnicki

Unabridged: 9 hr 9 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 04/21/2020

Synopsis

The untold story of an Israeli spy’s epic journey to bring the notorious Butcher of Latvia to justice—a case that altered the fates of all ex-Nazis.Before World War II, Herbert Cukurs was a famous figure in his small Latvian city, the “Charles Lindbergh of his country.” But by 1945, he was the Butcher of Latvia, a man who murdered some thirty thousand Latvian Jews. Somehow, he dodged the Nuremberg trials, fleeing to South America after war’s end.

By 1965, as a statute of limitations on all Nazi war crimes threatened to expire, Germany sought to welcome previous concentration camp commanders, pogrom leaders, and executioners, as citizens. The global pursuit of Nazi criminals escalated to beat the looming deadline, and Mossad, the Israeli national intelligence agency, joined the cause. Yaakov Meidad, the brilliant Mossad agent who had kidnapped Adolf Eichmann three years earlier, led the mission to assassinate Cukurs in a desperate bid to block the amnesty. In a thrilling undercover operation unrivaled by even the most ambitious spy novels, Meidad traveled to Brazil in an elaborate disguise, befriended Cukurs and earned his trust, while negotiations over the Nazi pardon neared a boiling point.The Good Assassin uncovers this little-known chapter of Holocaust history and the pulse-pounding undercover operation that brought Cukurs to justice.

About Stephan Talty

STEPHAN TALTY is the award-winning author of Agent Garbo, Empire of Blue Water, and other best-selling works of narrative nonfiction. His books have been made into two films, the Oscar-winning Captain Phillips and Only the Brave. He is also the author of two psychological thrillers, including the New York Times bestseller Black Irish, set in his hometown of Buffalo. He has written for the New York Times Magazine, GQ, and many other publications. Talty now lives outside New York City with his family.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Mike on October 17, 2024

This is a well written non-fiction book that treats the subject in 3 distinct parts of the book. One part of the book is a description of the Nazi Butcher of Latvia and his life before and after WWII. It also tells the story of the Latvian Jews that he slaughtered during the war and those who surviv......more

Goodreads review by Jaime on October 01, 2020

Incredible how they tracked down Herbert Cukurs “The butcher of Latvia” and plotted his demise thousands of miles away in South America. The lengths they went through to culminate this well deserve mission is one of a kind.......more

Goodreads review by Eduard on May 17, 2022

What a book... What a story... The first half of this book was really difficult to take. The descriptions of the horrors undergone by the victims were so graphic. The second half was more like a spy novel. Part historical account of unimaginable atrocities, part spy thriller, and part an examination o......more

Goodreads review by Hunter on October 17, 2020

New word: "Spavined" meaning "old and decrepit." New word: "Obstreperous" meaning "noisy and difficult to control." Big idea: The fear of being perceived as "not on the team" or "not in the clique" can lead to dangerous consequences, the unraveling of a previously established sterling reputation, and......more

Goodreads review by Jason on May 18, 2022

This is a really great book. I have never read anything so detailed about the Holocaust and all the horrific acts that happened. The first section is extremely hard to get through and I might not of if I wasn't listening to the Audible version. It really makes you root for the Mossad agents in the 2......more

Quotes

"Talty efficiently mines archival records for vivid details and tracks the complexities of Medad’s undercover mission with flair. The result is a captivating and gruesome real-life spy thriller."—Publishers Weekly"Compelling . . . Talty remains true to his technique, delivering thoroughly researched, engrossing nonfiction in a thrillerlike narrative style . . . As anti-Semitism surges once again, this page-turning history reminds us of the sanguinary consequences of unchecked hatred."—Kirkus Reviews"Thrilling . . . A fast-paced, recommended work that enthralls, edifies, and reveals the disturbing extent to which Latvians and others participated in genocide."—Library Journal"The author brings his usual attention to detail, excellent research, terrific storytelling, passion, and dedication to this suspenseful recounting of a shadowy facet of the Holocaust, which continues to haunt the world."—Booklist

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