I found this book to be an enjoyable and informative read. It discusses the world of political murder (assassination) in a comprehendible and logical manner. The premise of the book deals with the several recent assassinations in the Middle East and the CIA's role, mainly Baer's role, in them. As the title denotes, there are 21 "laws" of assassination that Baer discusses in the book, which are contained within numbered chapters for clarity. The chapters do not follow a chronological order, but rather are grouped by themes or "laws/rules" for political murder. This sometimes makes the book a bit difficult to followwithout prior knowledge of the subject, but Baer does an excellent job of tying the stories and anecdotes to each chapter's theme.
Baer does an excellent job of keeping the narrative engaging, while also providing behind-the-scenes details about intelligence operations. I especially enjoyed the language of the story, as Baer makes it easy to understand how covert operations. He speaks in a frank, no-nonsense manner that gives the reader a true feel of life as a CIA officer. I appreciated Baer's use of personal stories as well as using historical examples to tie together both the history of political murder and his narrative on recent CIA operations in the Middle East.
I would highly recommend this book to anyone interested in the CIA, espionage, or the Middle East. I will be certainly be placing Baer's other books on my reading list.
Buy it here: Amazon
