Here is a snippet from the  publisher’s blurb that intrigued me:

Part wartime political intrigue, detective story, psychological thriller, and religious mystery, Ben Pastor’s debut follows a German army captain and a Chicago priest as they investigate the death of a nun in Nazi-occupied Poland.

I am glad I went back and read Lumen in anticipation of Liar Moon. I found it to be an interesting psychological exploration of what it might be liked to be trapped between Prussian duty and one’s own moral code on the one hand and being a Captain in the Nazi army as it invades Poland on the other.

There is a mystery at the center of the plot but it is the attempts of the lead character, Captain Martin Bora, to maneuver through his work without either losing his soul or his career (or maybe even his life) that is the real focus.  Pastor has that rare ability to place us within history and allow us to see it from the ground; to in a sense see it through other’s eyes.  This is not easy given the historical events involved.

Lumen is full of colorful characters (from Bora’s insufferable roommate and the women he seduces, to his  superiors in the Wehrmacht, or the sisters in the abbey and the visiting Chicagoan Father Malecki) and a brooding sense of tragedy.

Publishers Weekly gets at the heart of what makes this book interesting:

Pastor’s examination of Bora and his colleagues illuminates the many contradictions of life in the service of a criminal state. The narrative’s explications of Catholic belief and theology defy readers to reconcile faith, or inner light (lumen) of any kind, with the realities of the Nazi regime. Pastor’s plot is well crafted, her prose sharp, but her novel is meant to be more than light entertainment. She raises again the questions recently posed by Bernhard Schlink’s The Reader: how can art explore the human side of a victimizer without seeming to forgive the unforgivable? Pastor’s disturbing mix of detection and reflection is a provocative though not definitive answer.

If you like historical mystery with an added moral or philosophical dimension be sure to check out the Martin Bora series.  I will report back on Liar Moon when I am finished.

Patrick K. O’Donnell explores one of the most intriguing stories out of World War II - clandestine operations led by ex-German Jews against Nazi Germany – in his book They Dared Return: The Untold Story of Jewish Spies behind the Lines in Nazi Germany.

The book generally describes the planning and execution of several operations conducted by the American Office of Strategic Services (precursor to the Central Intelligence Agency) against the Nazis in German-occupied Austria and Yugoslavia.  The operations centered around a group of Jewish soldiers who were German expatriates and who wanted to help the Allies defeat Nazi Germany – most of them had family members in the concentration camps.  O’Donnell focuses mainly on Operation Greenup – an effort to find out about and try to thwart the Nazis’ plan to build a heavily fortified area for their last stand against the Allies.

O’Donnell tells a gripping story about how the Jewish soldiers, local Austrian resistance members, and captured German soldiers who volunteered to help the Allies (these men went on the missions even though there were some doubts about their loyalties) went deep behind enemy lines to thwart the Germans.  The story is well-researched and supported by materials from the National Archives, confidential documents, and personal interviews.

The book is a fine tribute to a group of men and women who risked their lives to stop one of the cruelest regimes in modern history.  Other than showing gratitude to their adopted country, the Jewish soldiers wanted to bring an end to the war and possibly save the lives of their families and friends.

At 156 pages, the book is an easy read.  In addition, the book has several appendixes, including debriefing reports on some of the operations.  There are eight pages of black and white photographs of the main participants in the operations and the areas in which the operations occurred.