What if the Berlin Wall never fell ... The Box Set of the East Berlin Series, including: · Stealing The Future · Thoughts Are Free · Spectre At The Feast 'The brilliance of Stealing The Future lies in its honest portrayal of the struggle to keep alive the dream of freedom, justice and equality.’ New Internationalist ‘A compelling re-imagining of East Germany’s peaceful revolution in 1989—exploring what might have been. Fiona Rintoul, author of The Leipzig Affair 1993. After forty years of communist rule it's time for change: participatory democracy, citizen's movements and de-centralization are part of a new political landscape in East Berlin. But when a politician's crushed body is found a constitutional crisis erupts. Ex-dissident Martin Grobe turns detective and his investigations point towards the Stasi, the KGB and the West Germans—has he uncovered a putsch against the new GDR, or is it just a conspiracy to murder? All three books from the East Berlin Series in one handy bundle ----------------------------- Keywords: East Germany, DDR, GDR, East Berlin, Berlin Wall, Iron Curtain, Cold War, Stasi, MfS, secret police, Volkspolizei, Soviet, KGB, GRU, crime, spy, espionage, procedural, counter-factual, alternate history, speculative fiction, 1989, revolution, die Wende, Eastern Europe, Eastern Bloc, hope, alternative society, consensus decision making, democracy, direct democracy, punks, direct action, anarchy, communism, bundle, box set, collection, bundle.

1. Stasi Vice For Lieutenant Reim of the Stasi, life in East Berlin is a satisfying blend of days behind a desk and nights in front of a bottle. But when a senior officer has a messy affair, it falls to Reim to do the clearing up. It's a straightforward job. Lean on a few people to get them to shut up. Intimidate neighbours, bribe officials and appeal to the socialist conscience of Party members. But as Reim starts his interrogations, he realises his boss is hiding more than just a lover. Reim investigates his superior—and what he uncovers puts his own life at risk. 2. Operation Oskar Lieutenant Reim of the Stasi is down in the dumps. Literally. Sent to Schöneiche landfill site on a punishment assignment, Reim soon discovers Soviet soldiers searching the tip for porn, Westerners smuggling cigarettes and a truck driver with something to hide. Determined to find out more, Reim is soon caught up in a case that takes him over the Berlin Wall to the capitalist West. But when the KGB and the British occupation forces in Berlin begin to take an interest, Reim has to ask whether Operation Oskar is worth risking his life for. 3. Berlin Centre A West German police officer defects to the GDR, bringing evidence of a mole in the Stasi. As rumours of a Western spy spread through Berlin Centre, Reim is sent to Bonn on a mission to catch a mole he doesn't want to find – does his reluctance to investigate have anything to do with the secrets he'd prefer remained hidden? 4. Baltic Approach When the West German, Werner Seiffert, crosses the Berlin Wall to ask for an agent by name, the Stasi want to know why. Lieutenant Reim is haunted by the deaths of two of his colleagues, but has to leave his ghosts behind when he’s ordered to find and arrest Seiffert. He follows the trail north to a seaside hotel populated by spies and winter holiday makers, but is the man Reim tracks down the one he was sent to find? And can the West German force the Stasi to re-open a case that Reim had hoped was closed forever? 5. Rostock Connection Rumours of a mole in the Stasi's foreign intelligence wing just won't go away, and once again Lieutenant Reim is tasked with investigating. But six months after he first heard reports of a Western agent in the ranks of the Stasi, he's no closer to finding enough evidence against the officer he believes to be responsible for the leaks. To find the traitor and close the case, Reim has to go deeper undercover than ever before—but will he survive the final showdown with the agent he's tracked across the Iron Curtain? ------------- Keywords: East Germany, DDR, GDR, East Berlin, Berlin Wall, Iron Curtain, Cold War, Stasi, MfS, secret police, Volkspolizei, Soviet, KGB, crime, spy, espionage, procedural, hard boiled, noir, historical, twentieth-century history, Brandenburg, communism, omnibus, bundle, collection, Lieutenant Reim.

The warning from his West German handler was clear: "You are in great danger! You must get out now!" Double agent Werner Stiller carefully began planning his escape to the West. His world would soon change forever: either he would leave his homeland - or he would die. In the exciting tradition of William Hood's Mole, Beyond the Wall is the true story of a disillusioned East German superspy driven by his conscience to turn double agent for the West. Werner Stiller was a naive young student recruited into the Ministry of State Security - the powerful Stasi - to acquire nuclear weapon secrets in Western Europe in the 1970s. Before long, he learned firsthand that the Stasi's powerful reach surpassed even the alarmists' most Kafkaesque fears and that the East German security forces constituted a vast, privileged underground world based on fear and intimidation. A smash bestseller in Germany, it reveals the actual tools and methods spies use to do their work. Beyond the Wall is both a concise, intelligent, and pointed account of the once all-powerful Stasi and a uniquely personal window into the real world of highly successful espionage.

What if the Berlin Wall never fell ... This "compelling" series (Fiona Rintoul) is set in an East Germany that didn't end in 1990. 1993. After forty years of communist rule it's time for change: participatory democracy, citizen's movements and de-centralization are part of a new political landscape in East Berlin. But when a politician's crushed body is found, a constitutional crisis erupts. Ex-dissident Martin Grobe turns detective and his investigations point towards the Stasi, the KGB and the West Germans—has he uncovered a putsch against the new GDR, or is it just a conspiracy to murder? ‘An authentic atmosphere of tension and uncertainty … The brilliance of Stealing the Future lies in the honest portrayal of a young country and its idealistic inhabitants struggling to keep alive their dream of freedom, justice and equality in the face of international and domestic opposition.’ (Jo Lateu, New Internationalist) ‘A compelling re-imagining of East Germany’s peaceful revolution in 1989—exploring what might have been. As Europe grapples with the consequences of austerity, this novel poses questions both about the lost chances of 1989, and about how we organise our society—questions that are becoming more relevant with each passing day.’ (Fiona Rintoul, author of The Leipzig Affair) ‘Creates the perfect atmosphere that existed around the fall of the wall: the sense of hope dashed by the awful reality of reunification.’ (Peter Thompson, The Guardian) ‘An intriguing and gripping page-turner of a thriller—believable and exciting. More than that, though, it's an exploration of power – political, economic and electric power; and what it might be like, day to day, to put our ideals and hopes for self-determination into practice.' (Clare Cochrane, Peace News) ----------------------------- Keywords: East Germany, DDR, GDR, East Berlin, Berlin Wall, Iron Curtain, Cold War, Stasi, MfS, secret police, Volkspolizei, Soviet, KGB, GRU, crime, spy, espionage, procedural, counter-factual, alternate history, speculative fiction, 1989, revolution, die Wende, Eastern Europe, Eastern Bloc, hope, alternative society, consensus decision making, democracy, direct democracy, punks, direct action, anarchy, communism.

In this gripping narrative, John Koehler details the widespread activities of East Germany's Ministry for State Security, or "Stasi." The Stasi, which infiltrated every walk of East German life, suppressed political opposition, and caused the imprisonment of hundreds of thousands of citizens, proved to be one of the most powerful secret police and espionage services in the world. Koehler methodically reviews the Stasi's activities within East Germany and overseas, including its programs for internal repression, international espionage, terrorism and terrorist training, art theft, and special operations in Latin America and Africa. Koehler was both Berlin bureau chief of the Associated Press during the height of the Cold War and a U.S. Army Intelligence officer. His insider's account is based on primary sources, such as U.S. intelligence files, Stasi documents made available only to the author, and extensive interviews with victims of political oppression, former Stasi officers, and West German government officials. Drawing from these sources, Koehler recounts tales that rival the most outlandish Hollywood spy thriller and, at the same time, offers the definitive contribution to our understanding of this still largely unwritten aspect of the history of the Cold War and modern Germany.

A West German police officer defects to East Berlin, bringing news of a mole in the Stasi. Lieutenant Reim is tasked with the investigation, but is unconvinced by the defector’s claims. As news of the affair spreads through Stasi headquarters, Reim is sent to Bonn on a mission to catch a mole he doesn't want to find—does his reluctance to investigate have anything to do with the secrets he'd prefer remained hidden? Book 1 of the Bruno Affair trilogy, part of the Lieutenant Reim Series.

Lieutenant Reim of the Stasi is down in the dumps. Literally. Sent to Schöneiche landfill site on a punishment assignment, Reim soon discovers Soviet soldiers searching the tip for porn, Westerners smuggling cigarettes and a truck driver with something to hide. Determined to find out more, Reim is soon caught up in a case that takes him over the Berlin Wall to the capitalist West. But when the KGB and the British occupation forces in Berlin take an interest, Reim begins to question whether Operation Oskar is worth risking his life for. Reim #2, the sequel to Stasi Vice - perfect for fans of David Young, Philip Kerr and Alex Gerlis