The Crown in Crisis: Countdown to the Abdication, Larman - C

                   Edward VIII acceded to the crown at the age of 41 on January 20, 1936. His father did not consider him fit for the throne. For the previous four years, he had been having an affair with a married American, Wallis Simpson. "From the outset of his reign, he was an unsuited and reluctant monarch, unwilling to compromise his own happiness for the sake of a symbolic role that he barely believed in. He was neither a good sovereign, nor a good man..." His affection for Wallis and his intent to eventually marry her began to unnerve those close to the monarchy. In July, Wallis initiated divorce proceedings against her husband. On Oct. 8th, the PM, Stanley Baldwin, tried to convince the King to stop Wallis' divorce. The feeling in the government was that if an affair with a married woman was conducted discreetly, there would be no serious repercussions. Meanwhile, the divorce garnered extensive foreign press coverage. For the time being, Fleet Street remained mum. In court, Wallis perjured herself to achieve the desired judicial result. For many, the prospect of the monarch marrying the twice-divorced American daughter of a Baltimore boarding house proprietor rankled deeply. Edward, though, was bound and determined to marry her. The King's Private Secretary, Alec Hardinge, wrote him a very stern letter citing "grave dangers" to the country and crown, and recommending that he send Wallis out of the country. The letter had the approval of the PM, whom Edward met with on Nov. 16 and indicated he was prepared to abdicate. Wallis was well aware of the crisis that was blossoming and gave serious consideration to simply leaving the country and Edward. Baldwin discussed the possibility of a morganatic marriage with the Cabinet. They declined to take up legislation on the topic and also refused to allow Edward to appeal to the people on the radio.

                     With Fleet Street ready to pounce, Wallis left for Cannes on Dec. 2. Meanwhile, the populace sided with the King. His supporters, primarily Beaverbrook and Churchill, believed he could wait out the crisis and make a decision after his scheduled spring coronation. Nonetheless, Edward decided to abdicate. Wallis again offered to break her relationship with Edward, who refused to hear of it. As the crisis came to a head, the issue of finances came to the fore. His brother agreed that the royal family would approve a title and funding going forward. On Dec 10, he signed seven copies of the Instrument of Abdication. Parliament approved the bill authorizing the abdication the following day. That night, he spoke to the nation and sailed from Portsmouth for the continent. He married Wallis in 1937; they were married until his death in 1972.

A Fatal Lie, Todd - B+

                     Series  that run for decades have their ups and downs. This one is pretty good. It is spring 1921 and Rutledge is sent to  Wales to investigate a drowning. The local constabulary cannot determine if it is murder or suicide. It turns out to be a complex murder case, with a missing child whose paternity is uncertain in the middle of it. Just about everyone Rutledge deals with lies to him and he spends almost a month in the English/Welsh borderlands running it down. As always, there is some fascinating insight into those who fought and those who suffered at home.

The New Map: Energy, Climate, and the Clash of Nations, Yergin - B+

                    This book is an assessment of today's "dramatic shifts of geopolitics and energy." The focus is on the big three, the US, Russia and Saudi Arabia. In America, the shale revolution has made the US an energy exporter and has provided a material financial advantage for our economy. Russia remains an energy superpower, but continues to struggle with the dissolution of the USSR and is losing some of its gas supply leverage over Europe. For the Saudis, the decline in oil prices in the last decade has led to efforts to diversify its economy.  For all, the move to a zero carbon society presents an overwhelming challenge.

                   The first successful horizontally fracked gas well was completed north of Dallas in 1998.  The ensuing glut of gas led to a reduction in coal usage and consideration of exporting the newfound asset. One enterprising Texas company, realizing that the glut in gas was severe, decided to look for oil through fracking. EOG was wildly successful. Soon, the Bakken field in N. Dakota and the Permian in west Texas were producing massive amounts of fracked oil. Texas alone was producing more oil than every OPEC country except Saudi Arabia. By 2019, the shale revolution was supporting 2.8 million US jobs. "The shale revolution has dramatically improved the competitive position of the US in the world economy." We now are exporting liquid natural gas (LNG) by ship around the world and natural gas to Mexico by pipeline. Most importantly though is the fact that we are once again a net exporter of oil. In February, 2020, we were producing 13M bpd, three times the amount in 2008. A massive trade imbalance has been reversed. The US now exports oil and gas to Europe, China and Japan. 

                 Over the last 20 years, control of Russia's energy has been at the core of Putin's agenda to restore the country. Oil production peaked at 11.4M bd a few years ago and the country has substantially benefitted from the relative price stability (notwithstanding the 2014 price collapse) of the past two decades. It is in the arena of natural gas and LNG supply that Russia is currently carving out its energy future. Russia supplies Europe with a third of its natural gas, most of which passes through Ukrainian pipelines. Russia built the Nord Stream pipeline, which runs under the Baltic Sea, in order to circumvent Ukraine's control of the pipelines. US sanctions halted the completion of Nord Stream 2. Most western Europeans view transacting with the Russians as a commercial, non-political matter. Those Europeans who were occupied by the USSR feel differently. Europe's natural gas industry has been deregulated and market forces now appear to be controlling supply and demand. The Russians are also exporting LNG to Europe, and most importantly, China. Russia has also implemented a three decade, $400B natural gas supply deal with China, which  has prepaid $80B  for oil to be delivered at a later date. The once communist rivals are clearly energy partners and strategic partners as well.

                   Today, China consumes 25% of the world's energy. Its oil imports come from the Middle East, through the Strait of Malacca, a source of considerable anxiety as the US Navy could easily interdict their lifeline. Concern about protecting its oil is what has led to the aggressive actions China has taken staking its claims in the South China Sea. China's BRI has many strategic objectives, and securing an overland energy supply is one of them.

                    The most compelling problem in the Middle East is the ongoing confrontation between revolutionary Shia Persian Iran and the cautious monarchy of Sunni Saudi Arabia. Iran has built an arc of Shiite power and influence stretching through  northern Iraq and Syria into Lebanon. In essence, they have extended their revolution abroad. Iran and Saudi's proxies are currently fighting to a stalemate and totally destabilizing Yemen, on Saudi's southern border.  Notwithstanding Saudi Arabia's challenges from Iran and its own desires to diversify away from oil dependence, it will for a very long time benefit from the fact that it has massive reserves and is the lowest-cost producer.

                   The convergence of electric cars, ride-hailing services and self-driving cars will change the demand for petroleum in the future and lead to major industrial and geopolitical disruptions. Solar and wind are changing the way energy is delivered. There is a new focus on carbon free nuclear, research into hydrogen propulsion and carbon capture and use. "In the years ahead, carbon dioxide and greenhouse gas policies will bring continuing changes in how energy is produced, transported and consumed.." The developing world's demand for electricity is going to slow the industrial world's movement toward a carbon-free planet. The creation of a new infrastructure for battery development and the construction of wind turbines will bring a new set of challenges. The transportation consumption of oil is not limited to cars and light trucks, but also includes trains, heavy trucks, ships and planes, none of which are on the threshold of major change. Oil demand will peak in the next decade or so and then begin a gradual decline. Nonetheless, billions will continue to be needed for investments to maintain oil and gas supplies into the future.  The Covid-19 crisis has stalled world growth and likely set us back a decade, in addition to throwing into doubt many of the precepts our globalized world is built upon. 

                      "Yet the notion of a fast track to a wholesale energy transition runs up against major obstacles - the sheer scale of the energy system that supports the world economy, the need for reliability, the demand of resources for renewables, and the disruptions and conflicts that would result from speed." Oil will maintain its position as the fuel that makes the "world go around." Policies and technology will determine the future.

                    

                    

Eight Perfect Murders, Swanson - B

                     This is a delightful novel featuring a bookseller who posts on his store's website a blog about mysteries involving murders that can't be solved. He attracts a copycat and the FBI. Lot's of twists and references to just about every mystery ever written. 

The Ratline: The Exalted Life and Mysterious Death of a Nazi Fugitive, Sands - C/Inc.

                   An excellent previous book by the author, 'East West Street', was about the intersection of lives in Lvov, where his grandparents died during the Holocaust. Here, he tells the story of Otto von Wachter, Hans Franks' deputy in Lvov during the war.  Born into an elite Austrian family in 1901, Otto grew up to be a lawyer and early member of the Nazi party. He married Charlotte Bleckmann, the daughter of a wealthy family, in 1932, the same year he joined the SS. He became a state secretary in the office of the Austrian chancellor after the Anschluss. When war broke out, he was assigned as governor of the Cracow district of the General Government of Poland, reporting to Hans Frank. He was instrumental in the German degradation of the Jews and their imprisonment in ghettos prior to their transportation to the camps. In early 1942, Otto was moved to Lvov and made governor of Galicia. A year later, 434,329 Jews had been evacuated; Galicia was Judenfrei. In the summer of 1944, Otto, now a Gruppenfuhrer, returned to Berlin as the Soviets moved west. With his family in Austria, Otto was assigned to northern Italy. At war's end, Charlotte and the six children wound up in the American sector of Austria and Otto, a war criminal under a murder indictment, disappeared.

                        Charlotte was able to stabilize life for herself and her children in Salzburg. As for Otto, no one knew where he was. He was actually hiding in the woods and mountains not far from Salzburg and in regular contact with Charlotte. He stayed in the mountains for three years. He spent some time with his family, was recognized and fled to Italy. His hope was obtain support for an escape to South America. Within a month of his arrival, he caught a fever that proved fatal. Otto Wachter died at the age of 48.

                     Interspersed throughout are the thoughts of Wachter's son Horst, born in 1939 and a believer in his father's innocence. Sands contrasts Horst's beliefs with those of Hans Frank's son, Niklas, who acknowledged without hesitation the evil that his father did. The two sons actually collaborated on a documentary called 'A Nazi Legacy, What Our Fathers Did'.

                    This book has proved to be a disappointment and I stopped with almost half of it remaining. I can't imagine what else could be said about a second tier Nazi's afterlife. 

Stalked, Freeman - B+

                     This is the third book in the Jonathan Stride series. He's back in Duluth and Serena is with him. When his protege is accused of killing her husband, Stride has to step aside and watch the investigation unfold.  He starts inquiries and uncovers a blackmailer, a sex club, and a serial killer undercover in the professional community. Add in some background on ice huts on the frozen lake in the dead of winter and it's a great story. It's also a great series.

The Coast-To-Coast Murders, Patterson and Barker - C

                  This highly-acclaimed novel starts out so strongly that it is hard to believe the second half of the book could crash and burn so spectacularly.  A crazed psychologist spends a quarter of a century trying to implant multiple schizophrenic personalities into a traumatized  boy who was four when he came under his care.  Add in serial killings, an equally abused adoptive sister, funding (unexplained) by the US government, shootouts, explosions and multiple fires all results in what I choose to categorize as a mess.