The Fourth Protocol by Frederick Forsyth

Back then, during the early eighties, the tension between three countries i.e. USA, Great Britain and USSR (referred as Soviet Russia) which had evolved during the seventies and early eighties had been captured by a dozens of commercial fiction Authors in plotting the story of their books. During that time, perhaps nothing was much spicier than a fictionised story involving the trio. Among the many, The Fourth Protocol was one, authored by the superbly informative Frederick Forsyth, and perhaps, that was the difference between other books and this one. The Author!

When it comes to espionage, Frederick Forsyth is a master story teller. Putting his experience of being an Investigative Journalist, he brings out the minute of details in each of the acts of his stories along with the crisply crafted characters. Sometimes it may just seem that the entire story is perhaps an account of something which must have happened sometime in history and Frederick must have had first-hand information about the same through his Journalistic reporting.  

The Fourth Protocol, comprises basically of three parts within a single book. Each of the part narrates different subsequent acts of the story i.e. the plan, the chase and finally the climax. There was a time in the publishing world, when authors used a very productive tool for narrating very important events of a story. The “letter” tool. Archer’s Kane and Abel is perhaps the most famous one on this as the most important twist and revelation of the story is only through a letter at the climax. Forsyth too, uses this tool to perfection in this book.  During the first part, the major portion of the most important analysis of events and planning of the base of the story is conveyed through letters. Not short ones but long ones, and very descriptive and analytical which not only gives the story a foothill but also informs the readers about the entire political structure of Britain during those days. Even during the second part, the “letter” tool is used in the form of a self-written biography by one of the characters which helps the main investigator bounce upon important evidences. The level of detailing done by Forsyth in both these parts would make the reader wanting for more of the same kind. The third part has a different form of storytelling as it gets more in the nature of action. However, readers would surely be taken back to Ken Follett’s “Eye of the Needle” in this part. There is a common theme of the main suspect being held up inside a house with the investigators trying to track him down and take him down. The only difference being that in “Eye of the Needle “there was additional character with the suspect inside the house as against what is narrated in this one. Further if we observe more carefully, the basic theme of third act of both the books is similar for different outcomes. In the “Eye of the Needle” we have a German spy who has to hand over an important information which if not done could change the outcome of Hitler’s war and here in “The Fourth Protocol” a Soviet agent placed undercover in a quiet English county begins to assemble a jigsaw which is to be used to tumble Britain into revolution. In both the cases, the investigators have to stop that agent from fulfilling his higher authority’s order. Though, the similarity was very minute one, I was surely taken back to “Eye of the Needle” during those third act moments. Eye of the Needle had come out in 1978 and the fourth Protocol in 1984. Though it has to been said that both stories are set in different time periods.

One very impressive factor about this book was the entire timing and placing of each of the characters in the story. Mind you, there are lots of characters and each one of them pay a very insightful role in the story. Forsyth ensured that the reader would not be burdened with the job of remembering all the characters in all the acts as many of characters are not repeated regularly in the story. They are introduced, worked out in the story when required and given a very logical exit to make place for the entry of the next one.

It often interests me to no end that how easily British Authors include the character of their once Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in the background of their story. Whether it is this one or Archer’s “First among Equals”, the character does play a very pivotal role in the background of the main plot. 

Reading the book gave me  thoughts about the fact that whether this one was a fiction or had it actually happened and if it had really, then the world had been saved from a very endangering political crises which would have impacted many a developing countries. But the disclaimer given at the start about the book being a fictional imagination of the author rests my fantasy about the possibility of this being an actual story which the world never came to know about.

Forsyth’s all favorite MI5, MI6, KBG, CIA appear in abandon in this story and truly takes us through an amazingly drafted and insight fully written book.  The detailing impresses to unbelievable levels, especially the working of the British Intelligence and Soviet KGB structure.

Names often entertain and add interest to the story. That is the case here. Through the entire span of the story we come across a dozens of British and Russian names and when there comes in the same paragraphs, which they do in this book, the overall impact on the reader’s interest is very surprisingly enhanced.

A Thoroughly detailed and well researched book with an amazing narration of the entire span of the story is what Frederick Forsyth’s “The Fourth Protocol” is.