EricCWelch

Evan Tanner, another of Block’s interesting creations, can’t sleep. He was hit in the head in Korea and that destroyed the part of the brain that controls his ability to sleep. This unusual disability has made him useful to a variety of secret service agencies. He’s also a favorite character of mine, along with Bernie Rhodenbarr, for his jaundiced view of the world. In this most entertaining story, Tanner wakes up in 1997, having been frozen in a basement deep freeze by a Swedish government agent, worried that Tanner’s connection to the very small group wanting to restore Sweden to Danish rule, will somehow cause them problems. Not believing in capital punishment, the Swedes froze him instead of killing him. You get the idea. Tanner’s reflections on the world around him and how it has changed are more than amusing, to say the least. In the meantime, he’s reading everything he can get his hands on— not having to sleep helps immeasurably — but he is soon contacted by his old chief who, not having any world hegemonies to worry about, has begun taking contracts from large corporations and business folks. One of them wants to cause a mini-revolution in Burma, so Tanner’s been assigned to assassinate the local political dissident. Tanner, of course, doesn’t have any intention of doing so. The trick is to persuade the chief and his employer that what they want can’t be done and there is no reason to send anyone else. He becomes embroiled in all sorts of schemes; the man who is following him is found stabbed to death in his hotel room; he’s thrown in jail for smuggling, meets a beautiful girl, and together they have to escape the country dressed as Buddhist monks. It all makes for great fun and a good story. It appears that Block has spent some time in Burma, for the tale is replete with what appears to be authentic detail.