Back Channel, by Stephen Carter

Yale law professor Stephen Carter is back with his sixth novel, Back Channel.  Set during the Cuban missile crisis, Carter's heroine, a 19-year-old Cornell student, finds herself in the middle of a game of espionage and a role in preventing a nuclear war.  She is recruited to be a "back channel," a conduit between Kennedy and Khrushchev for communication and negotiation.  The whole premise is at once a little absurd, but at the same time almost believable.  After all, plenty of strange things go on in international relations that meet the public eye; very few know what goes on behind the scenes, in the back channel.

Two elements familiar to Carter's readers dominate Back Channel.  First, a strong African-American heroine.  Margo is not Jason Bourne, but she shows enough bravery, resourcefulness, and crafty intelligence to earn a place among spy novel heroes and heroines.  Second, as in virtually all of Carter's previous novels, the reader gets a glimpse of the role of powerful and wealthy African-Americans at crucial points in our nation's history.  Carter's black characters defy negative stereotypes, pulling strings and wielding quiet but powerful influence at the highest levels.  I wish I knew how much of this characterization were true in American history.  I am confident that it is much more true than most Americans realize.

Just as familiar as these two elements is Carter's characteristically intricate story-telling and intelligent writing.  There is something about his use of the English language that makes his fiction a pleasure to read.  It is elevating without being obscure or flowery.  And the plot of Back Channel swirls and twists as Margo strives to figure out who she can trust and what she is to do.

Back Channel was altogether a pleasure to read.  Sure, this may not be how the history of the Cuban missile crisis played out, but, well, maybe it could be. . . . Why not?


Thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for the complimentary electronic review copy!