First published 2002
Moscow, 1988. The Cold War nears its end, but the KGB has gained a devastating advantage over the CIA. Ten American agents have vanished in three years, executed or disappeared without trace. At Langley, theories multiply about how the Soviets seem to anticipate every CIA operation. Some blame Edward Lee Howard's defection. Others suspect an invisible electromagnetic powder that tracks anyone who touches it: spy dust. CIA officers Tony Mendez and Jonna Goeser lead a team of technical experts and field operatives to solve the mystery threatening American intelligence. They battle hostile KGB forces and suspicious colleagues within their own agency, developing radical new methods to outmaneuver Soviet surveillance. As Tony and Jonna work to protect compromised sources and execute a daring rescue operation, they fall in love. Their mission spans fifteen years and multiple continents, from the Hindu Kush mountains to Hollywood studios, from Havana's streets to the heart of the Kremlin itself, before concluding with their wedding in rural Maryland.
Genres: historical-fiction, 20th-century, mystery, thriller, espionage
Vibes: atmospheric, fast-paced, suspenseful
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, found-family
Setting: Havana, Hindu Kush, Kremlin, Langley, Maryland, Moscow
Period: 1988, Cold War
320 pages · Hardcover · Atria Books (NYC)