This is the second appearance on this page by Craig Faustus Buck.
Amnesia appears in fiction more often than it does in real life. But then again, so do dying message clues, femme fatales, genius detectives and a lot of other tools of the trade. The trick is what use you make of the item.
Buck has taken us to 1960, East Berlin at the height of the Cold War. Our protagonist has been shot in the head, a grazing blow that vaporized his memory - or most of it. Now the cops want to know what happened, and the deadly secret police, the Stasi, are lurking on the sidelines, up to God knows what.
Our hero speaks German and English. Which is he? He has the name Slade tattooed on his arm. Is that his name? Will he figure out who he is before the shooter realizes he is alive and makes another try?
A fine piece of work.
Amnesiac stories were a staple of radio dramas and silver age mysteries. I think a reason they disproportionately appear is that they’re fun. We enjoy a challenge where the protagonist is handicapped and the underdog figures out what is going on to save his skin. But I’m not telling you anything you don’t know!
ReplyDeleteBesides, amnesia might happen to anyone, although the details are starting to fade.