As soon as I started reading The Spies of Warsaw by Alan Furst, I needed to consult some maps to get my bearings. A bit of clicking about the Web led me to this fascinating site, courtesy of Wikipedia, which shows the evolution of boundaries in and around Poland for the last 400 years. I love the Internet!

Mysteries are my fallback when I’ve maxed out on serious stuff. But this wasn’t just any old mystery. This was mystery plus history of the best sort. Good story, well told, while uncovering some of the complexities of the era between WWI and WWII in Europe. No one really trusted anyone, and for good reason. Everyone watching, scheming, developing contingency plans. Officials ignoring information from people closest to events as they unfolded.

History as told by historians can be fascinating. But I’m happy to get some of my history from Alan Furst and others who mix it with interesting characters, good plot lines, and a feel for the locale.