While the Soviet Union dissolved in 1991, it would be folly to assume that the makings of its administration dissolved with it. In the thirty-one years since its fall, we’ve seen the effect its regime has on its modern inhabitants; each country is irrevocably touched by its legacy of being behind the Iron Curtain, and it’s a cloud that still hangs over the region today. With a rich history of political corruption and still-fraught relationship with the United States, it’s little wonder that the area serves as ample inspiration for espionage thrillers. We’ve selected ten daring spy novels, each set in a former member of the Soviet Union, that will make you feel like you’re personally accompanying the latest top-secret mission in the region.
Red Sparrow by Jason Matthews
RUSSIA
| Scribner
Both a NYT bestseller and a blockbuster movie, Red Sparrow is a title that will track you down if you spend enough time in the world of spy thrillers. It’s a classic story of “sexpionage,” where agents use seduction to gain information or to obtain evidence for blackmail. Male spies use the codeword “raven,” while the female agents are called “sparrows.” And one such sparrow, Agent Dominika Egorova, has just been ordered to target the new CIA rookie Nathaniel Nash. But this routine assignment quickly becomes something far more powerful — and dangerous — than either agent expected. Red Sparrow takes an unflinching look at Putin’s modern-day Russia, the world of espionage and the uncertain existences of people trained to live a lie.
Ratcatcher by Tim Stevens
ESTONIA
Meet British Intelligence Agent John Purkiss, aka “the Ratcatcher” — known for his skill at tracking down rogue agents and preventing them from sharing classified information. He’s the best at what he does, but that’s not the only reason he’s just been given the assignment to track down Fallon, a former British spymaster who’s since been disgraced. Four years previous, Fallon murdered Purkiss’ fiancée; and now that Fallon’s been spotted in Tallinn, the same evening that the Russian and Estonian presidents are meeting, it’s too good an opportunity to pass up. But knowledge of espionage is a two-way street — every trick that Purkiss knows, Fallon is well familiar with. Everything hinges on this mission, which might be too much for even the champion of the MI6 to handle.
KGB Banker by William Burton McCormick and John Christmas
LATVIA
What’s better than an espionage thriller spanning the world stage of finance and global geopolitics? How about one with a central protagonist who is not a CIA-Military-Superhero type, but simply an honest every-man who rises to the occasion? That’s exactly who Bob Vanags is — a widower, father and diligent banker just trying to do his best. When he’s scouted for a lucrative job in the capital of Latvia, Vanags jumps at the opportunity. But work at the Latvian Turaida Bank is not what it first appeared — issues of corruption, blackmail and even murder soon surface. Vanags’s conscious demands that he reveal the truth — but with his son in the line of danger, even a good man must make difficult decisions.
Check out our full review of KGB Banker here.
Fishing With Tolstoy by JC Newhouse
UKRAINE
| Agure Press
In this all-too-relevant novel, Putin’s ambitions in Ukraine have made things untenable for Ukrainian and Russian citizens alike, while the world watches with bated breath. Lacondeguy, a veteran of the US State Department, has just received contact from an unlikely source — Tolstoy, an infamous member of the KGB and Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service. But Tolstoy claims to be reaching over the aisle for a mutually beneficial deal; he says he has information that can lead to Putin’s political demise, ensuring peace for Russians and Ukrainians while giving a major victory to US intelligence. Despite their political loyalties, Lacondeguy and Tolstoy have developed a mutual respect over the years. But now Lacondeguy must decide if this offer is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for peace, or a clever ploy by a mastermind of espionage.
The Wayward Spy by Susan Oullette
GEORGIA
Maggie Jenkins was an intelligence analyst, not a spy — that was her fiancé’s job. But when Steve Ryder is murdered overseas and accused of a crime he didn’t commit, Jenkins books a flight to Tbilisi, Georgia against direct orders, determined to uncover the truth and clear her late fiancé’s name. There, she finds a trail of clues and contacts that leads to the unexpected — plans of an attack upon America, partly orchestrated by someone residing in the halls of Congress. Dodging the Russian mafia, Al Qaeda and even her own former employers, Jenkins is resolute to see this mission through to the end, even at the cost of her own life.
The Leveling by Dan Mayland
AZERBAIJAN
The second book in Dan Mayland’s Mark Sava Spy Novel series, The Leveling features its main protagonist carving out a fairly peaceful new existence as a professor in Baku, Azerbaijan. At least, that’s what Mark Sava is trying to do, until an assassin makes an attempt on his life. Alive but now deemed a security risk by Azerbaijan officials, Sava is ousted from his position and ordered out of the country. Strangely, the CIA has also just ordered him to return to the US immediately — but when he receives concerning messages suggesting his old friend Decker has been kidnapped, Sava decides that he can’t flee and abandon his friend. Sava teams up with an unlikely ally to save Decker and find his own would-be killers before they find him.
The Siberian Dilemma by Martin Cruz Smith
KAZAKHSTAN
Spread across Kazakhstan, Russia and Mongolia is Siberia — a harsh, ruthless landscape of permafrost and ice. So Arkady Renko isn’t thrilled to hear that his part-time paramour, journalist Tatiana Petrovna, has followed a lead into Siberia and hasn’t been heard from since. When she misses her scheduled train, it’s the final straw — Renko treks into the heart of Siberia to find her. As he follows her trail, he discovers that Petrovna is investigating an oil oligarch who is looking to use his wealth to forge a path in Russian politics. Renko can only hope that Petrovna has been able to survive both the operatives looking to end her investigation, and the environment itself.
Read our full review of The Siberian Dilemma here.
Private Wars by Greg Rucka
UZBEKISTAN
| Bantam
Tara Chace had meant to quit her job as a special ops officer in the British secret service. After a disastrous mission where her lover was killed, she retired to mourn and raise their newborn baby in peace. But now she’s been pulled back into the fray and appointed to a high-stakes mission: escort the ailing president’s son and grandson out of Uzbekistan as a battle for succession turns violent. But President Malikov has a daughter as well, who isn’t eager to let her brother slip from her grasp and risk jeopardizing her rise to power. Even worse, she has Uzbekistan’s most infamous torturer on her side — and Agent Chace has just become his new target.
Corruption of Power by G.W. Eccles
TURKMENISTAN
| Peach Publishing
Winner of the Outstanding Thriller award by the Independent Author Network in 2016, Corruption of Power combines political intrigue with the unscrupulous oil industry to create a multifaceted, heart-pounding thriller. As Russia plans to build an oil pipeline through Turkmenistan and Afghanistan, sharpshooter Alex Leksin is asked to accompany the mission and keep an eye on the project. The plan is for Russia to become less reliant on the West by utilizing energy resources in the East — so really, Leksin shouldn’t be too surprised when assassinations start happening. Someone clearly doesn’t want this pipeline to be built, and it’s up to Leksin to find out who, before he’s the next target.
Enemy of the Good by Matthew Palmer
KYRGYZSTAN
When it came time to assign a Foreign Service officer to Kyrgyzstan, Katarina Hollister was the obvious choice. Between her time as a Foreign Service brat attending school in the region and her uncle’s status as the U.S. ambassador, it wasn’t exactly hard for Hollister to get the job. But now she has to put her all into the mission; tensions between Kyrgyzstan and the U.S. are fraught, and the discussion of a new airbase in the region threatens to restack Russia, China and the United States’ “Great Game” for dominance in the region. Or at least, that’s the mission Hollister believes she’s been assigned to — as she digs deeper, she soon discovers that duplicity is around every corner, and nothing is as it first seemed.
