First published 1996. Bantam Press hardback, 1996, pp 447, c.160,000 words.
Want a dose of conspiracy-plus-high-thrills entertainment? Suspend your nit-picker and enjoy. This is a fast-paced yarn with a large cast of characters, set in close to the real world of the post-cold-war period, where there are plenty who would like the conflict to go on: ‘Make Russia Great Again!’.
The opening is a masterclass on setting the scene for a thriller. It is the near future (1999), and Russia is suffering from hyperinflation. We are told how bad it is for ordinary Russians, and then that the president unexpectedly died and an ‘old office cleaner stole a document.’ [p11 (the first text page)].
Forsyth has done his research. Unfortunately he is loath to waste it: we get rather too much history – both real and fictional for the near-future. There is a lot on Russia and the CIA, in particular the real Aldrich Ames for whom there is quite a biography over the course of the book, most of it largely unnecessary detail. Perhaps it is there to add ‘authenticity’. Other real people are also included; notably a group of right-wing politicians and wealthy plutocrats, including Margaret Thatcher and George Bush senior. That this lot are posed together in a secret cabal, which Forsyth seems to admire, is enough to have leftish conspiracy theorists salivating. Again this adds precious little to the plot or action; they never overtly sanctioning anything; merely leaving one of their number to facilitate matters with money and paperwork.
The book jumps around in the first half with multiple points of view, time periods and locations: Russia, America, the Caribbean, Kenya, London, etc. Forsyth handles this very well; such a structure would be disconcerting at best and probably darn-right confusing in less skilled hands. Of course we know all the strands will come together at some point, and they do about half-way through. The history lessons are not quite over though; there is a fair bit about World War Two in the second half. The plot just about hangs together, although it is unlikely that in real life all such complicated plans would succeed. None of the long list of significant characters is well developed; mostly they are from central-casting: hissable villains and clean-cut heroes with their hearts in the right place.
On rare occasions a little humour creeps in, e.g. ‘the victim had lost his money, credit cards, … Oh, and his life’ [p120]; and this about a real Moscow establishment: ‘and they stayed at the awful Rossiya Hotel, about as big as Alcatraz but without the comforts.’ [p164].
Mostly Forsyth writes very fluently and the book makes for easy, fast-paced ‘unputdownable’ reading. There are a few little lapses though: ‘What neither man knew…’ [p352] (oh dear). And ‘Though he did not know it, the coronation throne of Ivan the terrible…’ [p437] (yes, yes, you’ve toured the Kremlin and can’t resist giving us all the details). A character thinks: ‘but he could save his neck and then rise to undreamed of office.’ [p406] only that is precisely what he was dreaming of. ‘These two had once been the two most élite…’ [p413]. All these slips occurred in the second half of the book, noticed perhaps because I was more tuned in by then or possibly the editing process got thinner towards the end of this long book. The publisher should have picked up these.
Although this review has been critical in some areas, mostly these are tiny. Only the excessive history lessons are at all irritating. No doubt there to add verisimilitude; Forsyth is well known for his accuracy in setting and scene, but such things can be overdone.
This is a cracking good thriller; very much high-quality low-class entertainment.
Wikipedia biography of Forsyth: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederick_Forsyth
Wikipedia summary of the book: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Icon_(novel)
Others’ reviews of the book: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/130203017-icon-by-frederick-forsyth?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=Lbhpd3SNCC&rank=1 © William John Graham, March 2024