Delusion by Peter Edwards (Review)

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Released April 2008 (Key Porter Books) * 344 pages * ISBN 13: 9781552639672

I am a sucker for spy story, particularly if that spy story is true. Throw in a Canadian connection and you’ve got my attention. I’m pleased to add Delusion: The True Story of Victorian Superspy Henri Le Caron by Peter Edwards to my collection. The story and the craft don’t disappoint:

The story is one that is not taught in any school history books I was ever exposed to, which is a shame because if interesting history like this was taught in school there wouldn’t be so many people who shudder at the thought of picking up anything history-related. The superspy in question is Thomas Beach, British by birth. His adopted name is Henri Le Caron and he ends up in the United States spying for both the British and the Canadians as he infiltrates Irish revolutionary groups to the highest levels. There are plots to invade Canada and trade it to the British for Ireland, the development of terrorist methods recognizable from the current news, betrayal, adultery, alcoholic prime ministers, double agents, and more.

Peter Edwards does an excellent job of both research and translating that research into an interesting read. Edwards chose not to create dialogue for the book so as not to invent what any of these people would say. This choice works very well because the snippets of writing from newspaper reports and personal papers that he uses to give each of the people a voice better than imagined dialogue. The research into the times as well as the individuals helps solidify the world in which Henri Le Caron was operating.
Each chapter starts with a quote which shows up at some point in the chapter. The quotes are well chosen and I’ve started a new chapter more than once because of them.

… he was the last person in the world you would take for a deep conspirator, and a constructor of murder. —Henri Le Caron describes a future American ambassador

This book has a lot of footnotes, which are collected at the back of the book. I found this a bit distracting as I had to flip to the back of the book each time I wanted to see what factoid Edwards had provided or what source a startling fact had come from. I would have preferred to have them at the bottom of each page so that I could either read or ignore them as I went along instead of paging to the back (something I rarely do because I lose my place in the book). This is a small complaint—I’m sure there are readers out there who prefer this arrangement, but I’m just not one of them

This was an interesting read and I learned a lot of about the intertwined history of Canada, the United States, Ireland, and Britain. It will appeal to anyone who likes true spy stories, intrigue between nations, or the just an interesting read.

Peter Edwards is also the author of One Dead Indian: The Premier, the Police, and the Ipperwash Crisis; A Mother’s Story with Joyce Milgaard; and The Encyclopedia of Canadian Organized Crime: From Captain Kidd to Mom Boucher (with Michel Auger).