Arnaldo Correa

Espionage or spy novels just ain't me - never in my entire life have I been attracted to books about the CIA or the FBI or by such authors as Tom Clancy, John le Carré or Ken Follett.

Yet here I am highly recommending Spy’s Fate by Cuban author Arnaldo Correa. Thus I hear a question echoing in two languages: "Why's that?" "¿Porque eso?" Please read on.

Since a quartet of my favorite authors are from Cuba – Alejo Carpentier, Virgilio Piñera, Daniel Chavarría , Leonardo Padura – and I’m attracted to hardboiled noir – Dashiell Hammett, Raymond Chandler, James M. Cain – I thought Arnaldo Correa, considered the Godfather of Cuban Noir, is a writer I should get to know.

I’m glad I did. Correa’s novel makes for an exciting read, with men and women we come to care about, credible intertwining plots and subplots and enough but not too much historical backdrop for context, all told with gusto and crackling energy. And I can see why seasoned crime fiction author William Heffernan judged Spy’s Fate "a courageous book that offers a true insider’s view of the new Cuba that neither the U.S. government nor Fidel Castro wants you to know about.”

It’s exactly this last point I found most appealing –the author isn’t a cheerleader for either Cuba or the US; rather the government, secret service and high ranking officials from both countries are the targets for many rounds of well-aimed strikes and direct hits.

The Story revolves around Cuban secret agent Carlos Manuel returning home following a three year stint in Angola, to a home where his three kids - Antonio, Felipe, Claudia - are now college age young adults living in the aftermath of their mother’s recent suicide. As his presence overseas was deemed too critically important by the agency, Carlos wasn’t given the opportunity to attend his beloved wife’s funeral. As perhaps to be expected given the circumstances, the reunion with his children isn't exactly warm and fuzzy; quite the contrary, all three yearn for a life independence of their father.

It’s 1994 and the Cuban economy is in crisis since the collapse of the Soviet Union: government allowances and salaries are barely enough to keep a family alive, many middle age and old men and women are on the cusp of starvation, beautiful girls are selling themselves on the street for almost nothing. Thus thousands of Cubans, especially young Cubans, board small, makeshift rafts to make their way to Florida in order to (they hope) begin a new life in the US. To this end, unbeknownst to their father, Antonio, Felipe and Claudia make plans to raft out of Cuba.



Carlos Manuel finds out about their risky voyage just in time to race to the small city and catch them on shore about to hop in their raft and set to sea. At this point as a father all he can do is wish them safe travels. But then, many hours later, he hears a violent storm has kicked up over the ocean. He swings into action - on a yacht he speeds out and finally locates his drowning children. What happens next is the stuff of hair-raising adventure.

Once in Florida Arnaldo Correa's action thriller kicks into overdrive. Everybody wants a piece of this important secret agent from the island of Cuba: the head of the CIA in charge of Cuban affairs, the FBI, various politicians, police and the military back in his home country . . . but, but, but Carlos Manuel aka Ramiro Ramos aka John Wilkinson has gone underground. Good luck finding him! For years our Cuban agent, a thoroughly decent man championing justice and love of family and country, has been a master of disguise.

An engrossing fast-moving tale ping-ponging back and forth between Carlos Manuel and his pursuers. If, like me, you usually shy away from spy novels and would like to sample one from the genre, this is your book.



"Don't torture yourself. There's nothing you can do now. You have to take all of this as a spy's fate - a price we all have to pay for what we do." - Arnaldo Correa, Spy's Fate… (mais)