The day Mike Padillo walk into Mac’s Place in West Germany, everything changes. A customer is assassinated in the bar and owner Mac McCorkle discovers that Padillo, whom he has taken on as a business partner, is a spy for the U.S. Government. From a rather complex past. Mac has managed to establish himself in a simple, uncomplicated present. He likes his life — from the cheerful ringing of the cash register to the equally cheerful response of women to his charm and affluence. Now overnight, thanks to Padillo, he is thrust into a world more likely to end with a bang than a whimper. For what appears to be a routine assignment turns out to be a deadly game of espionage — a game in which the dealing is always double and the cards are often slipped from the bottom of the deck. Writing with polish and wit, Ross Thomas weaves his story with ingenuity and steadily mounting suspense to a chilling climax. His men are cool and intelligent, his women delightful, his plot full of unexpected twists. The Cold War Swap is a brilliant debut into the genre of espionage novels