Liar

The character of Karel Koecher has been controversial since his youth. Cunningham describes how a gifted high school student with resistance tendencies became an StB agent, a philosophy student at Columbia University, and a " mole" in the CIA. It portrays Koecher as a person who has trouble with authority figures, rebels even within the StB, and his driving force is primarily the desire to stand out, to achieve something, even in the generally beneficial sense of the word. Was Koecher too naive? How did he morally cope with his spy career?

After overcoming the difficulties of recent immigrants, Karel and Hana Koecher began to enjoy life to the fullest in the USA, where they spent a little over twenty years. Cunningham captures the revolutionary social changes that the couple experienced firsthand, as well as minor excesses, such as the Koechers' penchant for luxury or their long-standing practice of swinging activities. Hana Koecherová, initially a shy girl from a communist family, grew up alongside her husband into a seasoned diamond merchant and StB courier.

However, the author takes us primarily to various corners of the world through the cases Koecher came into contact with in the CIA, which, together with the appropriate historical context, creates a fascinating picture of the Cold War and the individuals who got caught up in its gears.