The Tehran Conviction

Jack Teller #3

by Tom Gabbay

“Told against the background of a real-life CIA coup, The Tehran Conviction mixes historical fact with vivid storytelling in ways that will delight readers of both.”
—Stephen Kinzer, New York Times Bestselling author of All the Shah’s Men   Bestselling thriller writer Jack Higgins calls Tom Gabbay, “John le Carré with a witty ironic edge.” In The Tehran Conviction, the acclaimed author of The Berlin Conspiracy and The Lisbon Crossing sends Agent Jack Teller to Iran during two equally volatile times in the nation’s recent on the eve of a CIA-sponsored coup in1953, and in 1979, the year of the infamous Islamic revolution. Denver’s Rocky Mountain News advises you to, “add [Gabbay’s] name to the must-read list of thriller writers.” Read The Tehran Conviction and see why.

Genres: Thriller, Fiction, Historical Fiction, Iran, Middle East, Espionage, Mystery

282 pages, Hardcover

First published June 9, 2009

About the author

Author of the Jack Teller series of historical suspense novels, The Berlin Conspiracy (2006), The Lisbon Crossing (2007) and The Tehran Conviction (2009). Tom Gabbay began his career in New York, producing animated films for the well known children's program Sesame Street, and was Director of Comedy Programs at NBC television from 1985-1990. He also served as Creative Director of NBC Europe in London. In addition to his novels, he has written several screenplays and contributed political cartoons to the Philadelphia Daily News. His most recent novel is the psychological thriller "Access Point."

Reviews

[Will Byrnes · Rating 4 out of 5]

In Tom Gabbay's historical spy thriller, The Tehran Conviction, he takes a close look at the role of the CIA in the 1953 overthrow of Iran’s charismatic, nationalist Prime Minister, Mohammed Mossadegh. In this prequel (Teller appears in two earlier Gabbay novels, The Lisbon Crossing, set in 1940 and The Berlin Conspiracy, set in the 1960s) we see Teller when he is first recruited by The Company. The interview process is a bit different today. He is placed in a position of considerable responsibility, tasked with seeing to it that the Shah is returned to power. What’s a guy with some scruples to do? Jack is no saint and he is hardly without sin, but he is faced with difficult moral choices here.


Tom Gabbay - from his web site

It is an easy choice for readers. This is a fast-moving, engaging read that rewards our attention both with action and adventure, a sympathetic lead character, some very interesting supporting actors and considerable payload in the form of insight into how and why this major event took place.

What were the mechanisms by which the CIA and MI6 staged this momentous coup? Gabbay offers a street-level look at some of the tools used, without getting into excessive detail. We know, for instance, that the West paid locals to stir up trouble, that military leaders were bought, that media was manipulated. Sound familiar?

Gabbay sprinkles his tale with historical nods, putting General Zahedi, the actual local instrument of the coup, into a small scene. Two characters share the family name Fatemi, recalling Hossein Fatemi, Mossadegh’s young foreign minister, the person who pushed Mossadegh to nationalize Iran’s oil resources. I am sure there are many more such references. Actual historical figures appear as well. Kermit Roosevelt has a few lines. He was indeed in charge of Operation Ajax, the coup scheme. All these spices enrich the tale-telling.

He throws in some code-words for today’s world. On page 233 a CIA officer says “We’re fighting ‘em here, so we don’t have to fight ‘em back home.” Then again a little further on, “…this is just the first battle in a long, dirty war…”

Where will Gabbay take us next, Indonesia, Guyana, Guatemala, Chile or one of the many other places in which the CIA has worked, or attempted to work its magic? (see a presumed hint on page 260). Wherever it is, it is sure to be an exciting, informative adventure, well worth reading.

=============================EXTRA STUFF

Links to the author’s personal and Twitter pages

Other Gabbay books reviewed
----- Lisbon Crossing
-----The Berlin Conspiracy

[Becky · Rating 4 out of 5]

Won through GR First Reads Giveaways.
I seem to have been reading a lot of books about the Middle East lately. All fiction, but all have given me a little more insight into the similarities and differences between their culture and our own. No exception to that trend with The Tehran Conviction. More about that in a bit.

First, let me start out by talking about the word "conviction". The book begins by defining the term:

Conviction (n.)
1. A fixed or strongly held belief.
2. The act of being found of proved guilty.

Obviously, both of the definitions have their role to play in the story, but the first is the one that had the most effect on me. Gabbay's way of showing idealism vs. realism with regard to individual and personal freedoms as well as what it means to love your country was very moving to me. His way of describing these ideas and thoughts are almost poetic, but still practical and practicable at the same time, if you've a mind to do so. These themes are universal. We all want the right to be free and to do as we choose and to live as good a life as possible.

I felt that Gabbay represented Iran and the world of the CIA very fairly through Jack, who was willing to be their man, but still, despite his words and actions, I felt didn't really believe that the CIA was right in everything it did. I know that's ironic, because they always say that actions speak louder than words, and here Jack is using both to say one thing, but I just FEEL that he means another. I like that Jack's character was fleshed out enough so that I could get that impression. He wasn't the regular one-dimensional "Action Hero™". He was a regular guy who was drafted to do something extraordinary, and he did the best that he could with what he had to work with.

I'll just briefly mention one of the things that most affected me in this book, and that is the theme of deceit and betrayal. It just runs rampant! Nobody can trust anyone else. But what really struck me, is that the United States would take the step of deceiving a nation simply in order to exploit it in the first place. I know, I know, you're probably yelling at your monitor right now, asking me where I've been for the last 27 years (which happens to be my age, if you're wondering), under a rock?? But no, I've been right here, in the Good Ol' U.S. of A. watching things go from bad to worse right along with you.

I think deep down, we all hold the conviction that our country is the greatest on earth. Love of country runs in our blood, as it should. You have to love where you come from in order to love who you are. But that is NOT the same as letting that country run rampant and do anything and everything it wants to while the citizens turn a blind eye. There are people who denounce anyone who doesn't agree with "High Level Government Decisions" as unpatriotic. But I disagree. It is unpatriotic to sit by and let your country lose itself.

But I digress. My point, in all of that, was that in 1953 America decided to stage a coup in order to overthrow the government in Iran as a means to access their oil. Perhaps I am an idealist, but I grew up thinking that my country was better than that, that we treated people fairly and helped other countries and their people. "Fool me once, shame on you... Fool me twice - you can't get fooled again." -- Pres. "Dubya".

Anyway, I'm rambling on and turning this into a little political rant. Oops! I did really enjoy the book. Gabbay's descriptions had me feeling as if I was there. I could see the streets, I could see the people, I could feel the arid heat. I loved this aspect of the book, because after all, I read for escapism.

This book isn't exactly one that I would want to literally escape into, though. Iran in the book is at a cross-roads, with political upheaval knocking on the doors and religious zealots climbing in the windows, it's not exactly a restful place to be. I was happy to see that Gabbay didn't sugar-coat daily life in Iran. I've never been there, but I can't imagine it's all sunshine and daisies. There are aspects of every culture that we'd rather not see, but they are there nonetheless. And Gabbay didn't shy away from them or beat around the bush. Good for him.

I wanted to give this book 5 stars, but there were some things that prevented me from doing so:
First, the book opened with a poker game, although I only figured that out in context. Actually the book opened with Jack holding "the dead man's hand", which I thought was a literal dead man's hand, not being a poker player. So, I would have liked that to be a little more clear.
Secondly, some of the editing could have used a bit of work. On the same page (4), we have both "prizewinning" and "prize-winning" make an appearance. I probably wouldn't have noticed the difference, except they were on the same page.
Finally, some of the sections ended rather abruptly. I don't mean "cliff-hanger" abruptly, I mean, "starting a new thought then oh new section!" abruptly. It was a little distracting.

Those things aside, I really did enjoy the book very much. The changes from 1953 to 1979 were well done and well placed. They never felt forced or rushed and kept the momentum up with both story lines. At the end of the book, I felt as though there were appropriate resolutions to both story lines. It was not hard to follow at all, as some books which change time periods can be.

I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who loves a good political thriller, or who has any interest in the Middle East. Very good. I will keep an eye out for Gabbay's other books as well.

P.S. A special thank you to Tom Gabbay himself, if you're reading this, for letting me know that I could read the book without having read the first two. (I am a stickler for reading series books in the right order, back to back.) Anyway, Tom, thank you for the information, and for listing your book with the FirstReads giveaway, too. :)

[Behrooz Parhami · Rating 4 out of 5]

[I reviewed this book on February 22, 2013. I uploaded the review to GoodReads today (February 22, 2021), for the record.]

The author’s third book featuring Jack Teller (reminiscent of Jack Ryan in Tom Clancy’s early spy thrillers), a recruit to the newly formed CIA, is quite riveting. The two volumes preceding this “Novel of Suspense” (as announced on the cover), The Lisbon Crossing and The Berlin Conspiracy, are mentioned in the front matter.

I rarely read fiction, but this historical fiction attracted me because its events span two critical periods in Iran’s recent history: the 1953 CIA-orchestrated coup that removed Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddeq and reinstated the Shah, and the 1979 hostage crisis shortly after the overthrow of the Shah and his Pahlavi dynasty via the Islamic Revolution. The protagonist, Jack Teller, was part of the agency’s team in 1953 and found his way back to Tehran in 1979 in an attempt to rescue from the Ghasr Prison an aide to Mosaddeq, whom Teller had befriended and betrayed in 1953. The stories of the two eras are interleaved, with the narrative going back and forth between them.

Except for some rather unusual names chosen for the Iranian characters (Yari, Kharon, Afsharti) and geographical impossibilities (like Jack Teller finding himself at Café Naderi moments after he walked into the Bazaar), the story-telling is compelling. The central Iranian characters are Yari Fatemi, a top-level aide to Mohammad Mosaddeq, and his sister Zahra, who flirts with Teller but ends up using him as a mentor and protector against a family that wants to marry her to an undertaker she does not love. Later, a cleric emerges as another character connecting the two eras in Iran’s history: he was the ring-leader during a 1953 stoning ritual in Qom, just before becoming aware of Teller’s CIA ties, and later was a senior warden at Ghasr Prison, where Teller ends up after being arrested during the takeover of the American embassy in Tehran.

The initial failure of the CIA coup, due to the unexpected presence of army units around Mosaddeq’s residence, triggered a hastily conceived Plan B, consisting of street riots in support of reinstating the Shah, who had fled the country. As Gabbay tells it, paid mobs were sent into streets and succeeded beyond CIA’s wildest dreams to incite ordinary people, who were dissatisfied with Mosaddeq’s policies and were also suspicious of him because of the CIA team’s media campaign and kidnapping of Tehran’s royalist police chief to paint the prime minister as being surrounded by communist party members and anarchists. The 1953 part of the story ends with the CIA team’s triumphant departure from Iran, after using, blackmailing, and leaving behind Teller’s “friend,” Yari.

The word “conviction” of the book’s title, in both of its senses (a fixed or strongly-held belief and the act of being found or proven guilty), aptly describes the story.

The first meaning refers to the optimistic belief of Yari Fatemi that Mosaddeq was a great man, destined to be Iran’s savior, and an equally unshakable belief by Jack Teller that the US had a golden opportunity to rescue Iran from the claws of communism while the Soviet Union was still working out how it should proceed following the recent death of Stalin in March 1953. The US believed that Iran’s communists (members of “Tudeh Party,” or “Party of the Masses”), taking their orders from Moscow, had infiltrated Mosaddeq’s government and would be in a position to turn Iran into a communist state as soon as their internal squabbles following Stalin’s death had been worked out.

The second sense of the word “conviction” shows up when Teller, about to be released from the overtaken US embassy, because he carried Canadian identification papers, is spotted by the cleric he had crossed path with in 1953 as a CIA agent and is thrown in jail. When he finds out, after suffering many sessions of interrogation and torture, that his jail is in fact the Ghasr Prison, which brought him back to Iran in the first place, he plots to escape and to rescue Yari, who was also held in the same prison.

Nuances in telling the story make it both believable and likable. Teller comes to understand and respect Yari, who talks to him about the aspirations of the Iranian people in terms of the ideals of the American Revolution and major US historical figures. In the end, however, a sense of patriotism and his conviction that the Soviet Union must be stopped at all cost make Teller go along with CIA’s coup plans. Teller’s willingness to risk his life to return to Iran to rescue Yari shows the remnants of a sense of guilt that didn’t quite go away by his nationalistic justifications.

Gabbay’s story is slow to grab one’s attention, but does captivate the reader as it progresses. I read the second half of this thought-provoking book in just two sittings.

[Joe · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the third adventure of Jack Teller. Jack is a cagey, efficient CIA agent with a little attitude, a dark sense of humor and a pragmatic but real patriotism. As with the previous two Teller books, Jack gives us a first hand account of his behind the scenes involvement in historical events. In The Tehran Conviction these events include the Shah of Iran's rise to power in 1953 and the 1979 Iranian/US hostage crisis with Jack right in the middle of both.

Jack is somewhere between James Bond and George Smiley, think of Bruce Willis as an intelligence officer. These books are action packed with historical tidbits all carried along by Jack's sardonic sense of humor and jaded but realistic view of the world. Recommended.

[Mike Merbaum · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Iranian conundrum!

A tough thoughtful novel. Little by little the hero becomes a real person swept up by the historical events that Iran is still dealing with. A powerful and emotional drama of Iranian threats to political stability with solutions yet to be realized.

[Janet · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just finished this one and have read Lisbon and Berlin too. I'm trying to figure out Jack's age, Lisbon was in the 1940s, Berlin 1963, and thus one 1979. Well into his 50s at least I guess


Great books, any more?

[don george · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wrote like we speak

I enjoyed this book
1. Because it was an historical novel
2. I remember this era
3. Author's words weren't stilted,
officious or contrived
4. It was a fast breezy read

[gd22 · Rating 3 out of 5]

T

[Zahid · Rating 4 out of 5]

Spied deeply inside the Iran Revolution.

[Nancy · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not found it this author.... usually keep good books to re-read at a later date, but with this one I put it in the goodwill bag!!

[Claire S · Rating 4 out of 5]

Will mull my review..

Initially: I liked the way the protaganist was with women for the most part, a lot.

The ideas discussed in this novel are fascinating and extremely timely. The merging of that discussion into the format of a spy novel caused me a bit of a stumble. Parts of it felt forced to me, or formulaic, or almost tv-movie-ish. There was something tv-movie-ish in general, I think the simple characterizations mainly. It so happens that a lot of what I've read lately is written from multiple characters' point-of-view, and/or has rich characterization and a lot of the internal workings of them all during the story. Coming from those experiences, I missed that in this one.

There were discontinuities that I couldn't bridge. Like the initial relationship between Jack and Toby; vs. the relationship between them during the 1953 events; vs. the way it apparently went between them after that (the book ends with Toby suggesting to Jack that they put aside their differences and work together, and apparently that's what happened?).

Also info about what Jack had done prior to the book starting, vs. what he was doing when it opened (tending bar); I don't know what was served by having that be so secret. Given that he had this great record, why was he not still involved in some way? Him being in the bar gives the impression that he had a problem with his past military involvement to a degree, but then that doesn't seem to be true. etc..

When toward the end Yari says that he was the realist and Jack the idealist, that threw me for a loop.

But most important, it's hard to grasp what the conclusion was intended to be regarding the US and the CIA: it is presented that such coups prevent war and provide stability and therefore are good; if that's not the intended message, I'm not seeing where it was countered in the book. There's some content around the role of the Muslim leaders, but it's pretty vague. And given that it was written today, with all that's gone on, more content about that would have been of interest.

So, as I said, I'll mull on an actual review..

[Skip Allen · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Tehran Conviction depicts a fiery cauldron boiling over with one suspense-filled moment after another. There’s no doubt that the author has crafted a compelling page-turner which brings the reader to the edge of curiosity, asking the question “What comes next?” Jack Teller, the author’s key character, is unexpectedly caught up in a tortuous role, trying to juggle an inescapable clash of cultures with his own competing personal and professional loyalties, at the heart of which is his own quest for redemption. The Tehran Conviction brings to light the author’s view of a decades-long political, social, and economic maelstrom resident to Tehran in the mid-20th century. However, one can’t help but believe that, despite having so many overwhelming odds stacked against him, Jack Teller will ultimately become involved in more than just the quest for redemption. At novel’s end, his uncharacteristic exploration of Yeats’ poetry, reveals the striking possibility of yet another unexpected adventure brewing, as he reads “Surely, some revelation is at hand . . .” But then that’s what sequels are often destined to reveal.

[Maureen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This started off a little slow for me, however, as I got further into the storyline, I became so obsessed with it, I no longer could put the book down. It is a novel, but actually pretty much based on many factual events that took place between 1953 and 1979 in Tehran. It covers the outing of the Shah and the various factions that were devoted to his never coming back into power. Intriguing, and even though it jumps from the 50's to the 70's, and back and forth which proved a little unsettling, mainly it was a great read.
One addition I want to add. I did discover the book "All The Shah's Men" by Stephen Kinzer and purchased it on Tom Gabbay's recommendation. It is the true historical events that took place during the 1953 overthrow of the Iranian government. I look forward to reading the book and get the facts of events as they took place.

[Greer Andjanetta · Rating 3 out of 5]

An espionage story which is set mostly in Iran in the early 1950's. The story is based upon Operation Ajax, the plot (successful) by the CIA to overthrow the prime minister of Iran, Mohammed Mossadegh. The characters are believeable enough and the writing is lucid and easy to read. The sense of reality in the description of actual past events makes the book even more interesting in light of events in Iran over the past 30 years.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

This easy-to-read thriller reminds readers how U.S. efforts to install the Shah in 1953 yielded horrid, unintended consequences that still haunt U.S.-Iranian relations today. I plan to read the factual historic account, "All The Shah's Men," recommended by the author in his postscript. A timely addition to the summer's list of worthy thrillers.

[Gail GB · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was easy read which was just the thing I needed at the end of the day. The thriller kept me interested by switching times between 1950s and the Iranian revolution in 1979. Reading the fictional story has piqued my curiosity about the historical facts of that time and now will read All the Shah's Men.

[Gordon R. Merrick · Rating 5 out of 5]

The ugly side of America

My daughters God father is Iranian who we had befriended during the hostage crisis in Iran and I feel this book accurately reveals what happens when we as a country try to determine the governance of other countries. My friends father was arrested and tried for building furniture for the Shaw. He was one of the fortunate ones who survived.

[Cynda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent novel with interesting characters and so well written that the reader slips back and forth between the worlds of 1953 and 1979 Tehran with complete ease. I hope there are more Jack Teller novels in the offing, because Mr. Gabbay is a masterful storyteller.

[Suzanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

A thriller about American spy Jack Teller and the CIA's intervention in domestic Iranian politics to install the Shah. Based on facts it makes me sick at my stomach to think what the U.S.has done internationally. Not a great book.

[Carol and Gary Curtis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating piece of author craft. Due to the plot device of skipping around in the narrative, it wasn't always easy to fit all the pieces together bit the Iranian connection was very intertaining. The author's view of what serving in that part of the world at that time was very well done.

[Jak60 · Rating 4 out of 5]

I discovered the author with this book, and it was a very pleasant surprise; I really liked this novel, it reminded a lot David Ignatius, whose books I love. The story is extremely well documented and the characters well constructed. I will certainly read other books by T Gabbay

[Lois · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting fictional account of both the 1953 overthrow and the 1979 revolution. I would recommend reading, as does the author, the nonfiction account "All the Shah's men".

[Gretchen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great historical fiction about the CIA's attempt to overthrow the prime minister of Iran in 1953 and the rise of the Alatola Khomeini. David and I could not put this one down!

[Ratforce]

Politically charged with suspense and Islamic historical references is The Tehran Conviction by Tom Gabbay.

[Gary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Despite two-dimensional characters and some incidents that strained credulity, it kept me turning the pages.

[Paul · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great historical-fiction novel. I have really enjoyed all three of the "Jack Teller" novels.

[Jami Fournier · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting modern historical spy novel. I like switching between the 1950s and the 1970s. The main character was appealing and relatable. The setting of Iran pre-revolution was enticing.

[Wendell H Howell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good story

Believable. Too often these type of stories fall apart because the author tries too hard to add suspense and drama without foundation. This story is all believable.

[Joel M. Peecook · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very well written.

Flashback novels are usually difficult to follow but in this case the flashback scenes are skillfully done and enhance the story.

[Mike Monahan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Disgraceful

Another disgraceful story based on America's misadventures in the Middle East. Held my attention. Liked the device of moving back and forth in time to tell the story.