A Spy at Home
Joseph M. Rinaldo
Available as an e-book for$1.99. Kindle edition – ASIN B0033WSVVC.
I was so taken by this story of love and family, I literally couldn’t put it down. A Spy at Home offers a refreshing change of pace and perspective on the life (and retirement) of a CIA operative.
Recruited his senior year of college, Garrison Stonebrook is a CIA operative whose main function is setting up African rebels with weapons and money. In the twilight days of his career, he recognizes all the money the governmenthas wasted on failed coup attempts and countless rebellions, and decides to keep some for himself and his family. Once his last big assignment in Africa goes bad, just as he predicted, he skims the 9.5 million dollars intended for the now dead rebel leader. Months later, Stonebrook retires and contemplates how purposeless his career life has been and how he can change that with the windfall of stolen money.
Rinaldo crafts an excellent first person narrative of Garrison’s struggles with marriage, retirement, caring for a child with Down Syndrome, and of course, his past. There are two main themes of the story. The first is how he and his wife can do good with the millions without alerting the CIA or other interested parties to the fact they have the money. The second focuses on how they can best care for their adult son in the event he outlives them. This is a poignant story of a father and husband coming home and experiencing real family- the blessed and the hard times – after being out of the country for most of his adult life. This book blends the heart touching style of a literary fiction book with some of the technical elements of a spy thriller. I absolutely recommend it to anyone who loves a good read.
