"Leningrad, at first glance, was a faded beauty that had stopped wearing makeup—all the buildings, the pastel facades, needed paint. “Rain,”the driver said. “Very unusual this time of year. The afternoon will be better.”More a hope than a forecast, Simon thought. The rain, the mist over the canals, seemed part of a deeper melancholy. The imperial scale of St. Petersburg, without the crowds, the old government ministries, made the city feel empty. Moscow, by contrast, hummed with purpose. This was more like a ballroom after a party, just streamers left, and half-filled glasses."

Kanon imagines an American defector under Khrushchev who decides he wants to return to the US, and enlists his publisher brother to help. Kanon is good on the unseen ramifications of spying, from partners to the fallout of those left behind. I found this took a while to get going but by half way through was gripped.

Frank Weeks defected to the USSR shortly after the end of WW2, betraying his country, the CIA and his family in the process. In the early 1960s his brother Simon is invited to Moscow to help Frank edit his memoirs for publication in the USA. On arrival, after being primed by the CIA, Simon is reacquainted with his brother and his brother’s wife (a former lover of Simon himself) and is plunged into a murky maelstrom of intrigue. It soon becomes clear that Frank intends to do rather more than publish his memoirs and Simon is envisaged as an essential instrument for his main purpose.
I so admire these literate, intelligent novels written by Joseph Kanon. This one certainly maintains the very high standard of his others. The crisp, convincing dialogue drives the narrative. There are surprises and shocks beautifully developed along the way. There is a parade of defectors including the fictional such as Frank, as well as the real, such as Guy Burgess. There is a real sense of paranoia and a surreal attempt by the defectors to see themselves as safe and happy in the socialist paradise when all around them the evidence argues against. These are men and women who have been traitors to others before. They will do so again. Trust no-one.

Superb spy novel mixed with family drama. This was a real page-turner. A compelling story of a brother who defected to the Russians after World War 2 and a brother who didn't. They are reunited after 12 years and the novel twists and turns with very solid character development.

The Kindle download is faulty and does not allow you to access the actual book after the first few introductory pages.

I can't review something I'm unable to access.

Sorry.