The Devil's Spies - Book Sale and Giveaway 1

​ The devil has eyes and ears everywhere!

The Devil’s Spies
by K.C. Sivils
Genre: Historical Fiction  

 Needing to stop the flood of humanity fleeing communist oppression by making it to the divided city of Berlin, the communist government of East Germany took drastic measures. In August of 1961, construction of the Berlin Wall began.

Two young lovers, an American refugee worker, and an East German seminary student, find themselves separated by the wall. Desperate to be reunited and build a life together, Angela Wettin and Michael Dieterich, with Michael’s brother Joseph, set in motion a dangerous plan to escape by tunneling under the Berlin Wall.

Determined to stop any hope of gaining freedom, the East German Stasi, the dreaded secret police of the communist state, formed Department XX/4 to infiltrate and spy on the Church in East Germany.

Faced with betrayal, dangerous cave-ins, and family conflict, the trio enters a life-and-death race against the Stasi and Department XX/4.

Can they gain their freedom before they are caught by the Devil’s Spies from the Stasi?


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​"It's after two in the afternoon," Angela complained to the nearby soldier. The GI studiously ignored Angela. He'd learned the hard way to ignore pretty girls when on duty. Hating the fact time moved so slowly, Angela decided the best course of action was to get a cup of tea before making her crossing into East Berlin. She'd expected to at least see Michael on the other side of the checkpoint, and if not Michael, then her fiancée's partner in crime, Werner.
Shouting, followed by the sound of gunfire, jarred Angela out of her pique. A hundred or so yards from Check Point Charlie, a young man appeared at the top of the wall, caught in the wire. Spellbound, Angela watched as the man made no effort to free himself from the wire, simply rolling off the top of the wall and falling, taking several feet of barbed wire with him.
The bark of gunfire stopped, and a West Berlin police officer pulled himself up to the top of the wall and peered over, looking down. Screams from the onlookers propelled Angela forward. Sprinting towards the chaos, she could hear the cries of a man in pain, begging for help.
Another West Berlin police officer reached the wall as the first dropped down from it. They spoke, and the second officer climbed the wall and shouted to the man on the other side. Angela watched in horror as the second officer produced bandages and dropped them over the wall.
“Murderers!”
“Criminals!”
As an angry crowd gathered, Angela took notice of the escapee who had made it over the wall. He was cut and bleeding and clearly stunned by what had happened.
“You! You’re an American!”
Turning to the voice, Angela stared at the red, angry face of a young Berliner.
“Neither side will do anything to help him! Get the American soldiers!”
The sound of tear gas canisters being launched could be heard from somewhere on the other side of the wall. In seconds, tendrils of the greyish-white gas and its pungent smell began to reach across the wall.
The Berliner covered his face and pushed Angela. Shouting, “Go! Now, while there is still a chance to help him!” Angela nodded, relieved to suddenly find herself useful. She turned and ran as fast as her feet would take her to Check Point Charlie.
"Someone's been shot trying to escape," Angela panted as the Lt. in command of the detail came out to meet her. He said nothing, instead looking up in the sky at the helicopters that had suddenly appeared.
“We have our orders, Ma’am.”
“Your orders?!”
“Yes, Ma’am. We contacted General Watson for instructions.”
“Good, do something.”
“Ma’am, our orders are to stand down.”
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 U.S.A. Today and Amazon Best-Selling author is the creator of the scifi crime noir series of Inspector Thomas Sullivan novels as well as the southern noir series of stories centering around the private investigator James Benoit "Heat" Heatley.

A longtime fan of crime noir and science fiction, director Ridley Scott’s adaptation of Philip K. Dick’s sci-fi classic Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep into the masterful Harrison Ford vehicle Bladerunner encouraged Sivils to consume as much of both genres as possible in his younger years.

A fan of past noir masters such as Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler, Sivils also enjoys the current generation of storytellers like Sandra Woffington, Tom Folwer, Jeff Edwards, Renee Pawlish, and James Scott Bell.

In addition to his aforementioned series, Sivils is also the creator of the Agent Nelson Paine Historical Mystery series set during WW II and the early years of the Cold War.

In a previous life, Sivils was a varsity basketball coach and high school history teacher. He and his wife, Lisa, have three adult children, seven grandchildren, and two four legged furry children who still live at home, Bella and Mr. Darcy.


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What inspired you to write this book?

The West waged and won the Cold War. Now it seems in some ways the West in general and the United States in particular is lurching politically towards a Marxist world view. I’m sure that comment will generate some ill will, but I know too much history to not feel concern by events that are transpiring.

More people have died under the boot of communism than any other ideology in the history of man. It’s not open for debate.

If you look at the intolerance for competing ideas in the political realm, cancel culture, lawfare, and the blatant disregard for the Constitution and rule by law, you will see a lot of parallels with how different countries fell under the control of communism.

It should be noted, when communists seized control of a country, they were never the majority. In fact, they were a vocal, violent, and determined minority.

In order to first establish and then maintain control, they had to stomp out by any means possible voices of opposition. Religion in general and Christianity in particular were targeted because they define morality in absolutes of right and wrong. People had centuries of holding onto these ideas. Now, the government is to serve as the source of what is right and wrong, what is considered moral behavior.

You can’t have two competing systems of morality. People will follow one and reject the other. Communism simply cannot exist in an environment where it has to compete with a fixed standard of what is right and what is wrong. The “privilege” of making that determination must lie in the hands of the Party.

Department XX/4 really existed. The Stasi infiltrated the Church in East Germany. It successfully recruited pastors, seminary professors, and influential lay members to spy on and even denounce other Christians. The impact on the faith of East German Christians when the wall fell and the truth of what had happened became known was considerable and it was negative.

When I heard news accounts that the American FBI has infiltrated the Catholic Church in the United States, I was understandably alarmed. Simply going to church could get you put on a domestic terrorist watch list.

It’s not right and it’s a bit frightening to me.

So, I felt compelled to write a fictionalized dramatic account of Department XX/4, the Berlin Wall, and life during that brief snapshot of history.

You can read the story for face value. It happened in East Berlin and East Germany.

If you are aware of the current political climate here in the United States, you can read warning signs into The Devil’s Spies.

Regardless, I thought it was a compelling idea and a story worth telling. Like any work of historical fiction, it is up to the reader to take from it what they want.


What can we expect from you in the future?

My plan is to write one work of historical fiction like The Devil’s Spies each year. In addition, I hope to release one or two books in my Sullivan series each year as well. If I have a non-fiction book, it will mean only one Sullivan story that year.

I produce a bi-weekly eNewsletter for my readers. Nothing too serious. Pictures and updates of my Golden Retriever, Bella, and occasionally our miniature poodle, Mr. Darcy. Updates on whatever work is in progress. The history teacher in my pops up as I have a section in the newsletter called Influenced by Past Events which is where I share my research. I will suggest books I’ve read that I liked.

I can write and publish four books a year but it’s a stretch. Thus, the plan at the moment to try to settle into a routine that produces three books a year, every year.

Do you have any “side stories” about the characters?

I have an entire five novella series set in the Thomas Sullivan universe called Capital City Characters. They were fun to write and helped me to flesh out these recurring characters and Capital City itself as a character.

In the Paine stories, the railroads featured in each story all have their own history. All of the railroads in these four stories are real and with the exception of the Death Railway – think Bridge Over the River Kwai – the Burma-Siam Railroad built by the Imperial Japanese Army during WW II – I have ridden all of them.

The Devil’s Spies has a number of side stories that provide important glimpses into key characters in the story.


Can you tell us a little bit about the characters in The Devil’s Spies?

They all have their flaws. Some are obvious and others are subtle.
Others are not what they truly seem upon first meeting them.
None of the characters are purely good or evil.

For the fan of history, some of the characters should be readily recognizable as historical figures. Others are obscure, but noteworthy historical figures. The story might be fiction, but the suffering, fear, and desire for freedom was real.

How did you come up with the concept and characters for the book?

I was doing research for a different project and the history elective I taught on the Cold War and stumbled across the existence of Stasi Department XX/4. The idea was immediately born and the idea of the Berlin Wall was soon added to the basic concept.

What did you enjoy most about writing this book?

Berlin is my favorite major European city to visit. It was fun to try to recreate from memory, and later research, the city of Berlin as I have experienced it.

Tell us about your main characters - what makes them tick?

The three primary fictional characters, Michael, Joseph (Werner), and Angela, are young, to varying degrees idealistic and cynical, and yearn for a better future.

Each of the three has been metaphorically wounded in some way during the process of growing up. As young adults, all three are now trying to sort through the baggage they have accumulated thus far in life.

Angela, the daughter of a wealthy industrialist, is focused on refugee work, helping escapees from communism adjust to life in the West. She loves the city of Berlin.

Michael is a seminary student, training to become a pastor like his father, Karl. He is tall, handsome, blue-eyed, and charismatic. Michael has a quality that makes people trust him and follow his leadership.

Joseph is Michael’s adopted brother and is often called by his last name, Werner. He is small, plain looking, and often makes poor first impressions. Angela in particular does not like Werner which is a source of conflict between her and Michael who are romantic partners.

Werner is a black marketeer and quite fearless. He longs to have Angela take notice of him but feels guilt that he desires his brother’s girlfriend.

Angela is driven to help those less fortunate than her. The two brothers hate living under the thumb of communism and both, for different reasons, long to live in the West.

Who designed your book covers?
Robin Johnson of Florida Girl Designs. https://www.gobookcoverdesign.com/a-la-cart-design

If The Devil’s Spies was made into a film, who would you like to play main characters?
Michael Dieterich: Liam Hemsworth
Joseph Werner: Andrew Garfield
Angela Wettin: Emilia Clark
Wolfgang Fuchs: Bryan Cranston

If The Devil’s Spies was made into a film, who would you like to play the supporting characters?
Karl Dieterich: Liam Nielsen
Bill Sullivan: Steve Buscemi
Carl Wettin: James Spader
Suzanne: Summer Glau

Anything specific you want to tell your readers?
To quote Larry Norman, “You better watch what you’re doing!” The world is changing and with the conflicting sources of information it essential the average individual now, more than ever before, be aware of what is going on in their world. Look beyond the surface and take a peek at what is beneath.

My grandfather was right. Everyone’s life tells a story, and it is interesting.

Time spent petting a friendly dog is never wasted.

How did you come up with name of this book?

More people had died under the rule of communist governments than any other form of government or ideology in human history. Something the devil himself would be proud of.

Throw that in with the fact the Church in East Germany was the target of the Stasi Department XX/4, it seemed like an appropriate name for a story set in East Berlin that involved the Communists infiltrating and spying on the East German Church and Christians.

The exact name came about after writing down about ten combinations of the words devil, spies, and some other topics related to Cold War Berlin. Once I wrote down The Devil’s Spies the title simply made complete sense to me.

Perhaps it should be noted I always come up with the title of the book I am writing before starting the first chapter.

What is your favorite part of this book and why?
The different levels of conflict found within the story. Conflict is a part of life.

If you could spend time with a character from The Devil’s Spies, who would it be? And what would you do during that day?
Joseph Werner. I would love to sneak around with him and see how he goes about running his assorted black-market enterprises. It would be interesting to see who his customers are as well.

Are your characters based off real people or did they all come entirely from your imagination?

In the case of The Devil’s Spies, many of the characters are fictionalized versions of real, historical figures who are well known such as President Kennedy, Vice President LBJ, and Mayor Willy Brandt. Others are obscure and sadly, often forgotten today. For example, Peter Fechter, the youth who was shot trying to climb the Berlin Wall and died in the attempt, is largely a footnote in history today.

The remainder are figments of my imagination who decided to take part in the telling of the story that became The Devil’s Spies.

Do your characters seem to hijack the story, or do you feel like you have the reigns of the story?

My characters like to tell me their story. Especially if I know them well. Periodically, I have to set them straight and control what they say and do. But, by and large, they inspire the story. It’s just a matter of knowing and understanding your characters.

Convince us why you feel your book, The Devil’s Spies, is a must read.
It’s a cautionary tale based on historical events. Humanity has an infinite capacity for both evil and stupidity, both of which are driven by laziness or greed of the worst kind. Despite having a historical record to show us the folly of our choices, we will repeat the same mistakes of the past over and over.

People seem to have this blind willingness to “let the government do it.” It’s a dangerous thing to trade freedom of choice and personal liberty for a promise of security. Small people will seek out the positions of power over others and once they have that power, they will do whatever it takes to extinguish the slightest hint resistance or individual free thinking.

The great lie of communism is that it promises equality. It doesn’t. Lenin believed in the need to create an elite, intellectual ruling cadre that controlled the masses, the same masses he promised to elevate and set free from the chackles of oppression.

How well did that turn out?

What’s even worse, is that if you rob one man to pay another, you make both of them poor, if not in terms of actual poverty, then in poverty of life and the ability to create and make things prosper. People don’t grasp the fact that government, any form of government, doesn’t create anything.

Now, people will say, “look at all the jobs the government created.” Those are government jobs, paid for by the money of the taxpayers, who happen to be the ones who take all the risks, do all the innovating, and do the real work of building an economy. Government merely acts as a conduit to transfer the wealth and economic prosperity created by others to whatever group or individual the government sees fit.

History shows us the Berlin Wall wasn’t built to protect East Berlin. It was built to keep the citizens of East Germany and other parts of the Eastern Bloc from fleeing communism. Economics were a consideration as well as the Soviet Union and East Germany were losing the very individuals necessary to produce economic activity so the communists could redistribute the products those with education and skill would produce.

The Stasi spied on everyone. The organization kept records on everyone. The driving force behind Department XX/4 was the fact the Church was the one place where people had some small degree of freedom and within the confines of the church body, people would speak freely about things they dare not whisper anywhere else.

Throw in the fact that communism cannot tolerate any social force that dictates what is morally right and wrong and will often protest the excesses of the government and you have an institution that must be destroyed. It was surprising the Church and Christianity was allowed to exist at all.

As I take in the news on a daily basis, I find it disturbing how intrusive government has become. Not just the United States government, but the so-called democracies of the West. London is the most surveilled city in the world. The FBI has gone on record, begrudgingly, as having deliberately infiltrated the Catholic Church in the United States and placing believers who attend traditional Latin mass on lists of possible domestic terrorists.

Each day, the government seems to be encroaching more and more into the lives of citizens. Many welcome this encroachment. They feel it makes their life safer and the government will provide for them. They don’t realize they have made a deal with the devil.

So, if you want to read it that way, The Devil’s Spies can be seen as a cautionary tale. That government should be kept as far away as possible from certain aspects of people’s lives. Freedom to speak what is on one’s mind as well as the choice to worship the God one believes in, or not, are fundamental human freedoms that are not granted by government.

Or you can simply read it as a story. A story I hope every reader finds entertaining and engaging.


Fun Facts/Behind the Scenes/Did You Know?'

The Devil’s Spies was not written in chronological order. I wrote the first few chapters in order to introduce the primary characters. Then I moved on to the actual events that were included in dramatized form in the book. Once those segments were finished, I worked on different storylines that made up the story as a whole. Finally, I pieced everything together and worked to make the story an integrated whole as far as the big picture story went.

I have a general idea when I sit down to tell a story how I want it to start and how I want it to end. In general, I have some ideas of what goes in the middle. As the characters develop, they seem to sort of take on a life of their own and tell me the remainder of the story. Of my seventeen novels and novellas, none of them were written from start to finish in chronological order.  
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