BEST FIRST NOVEL WINNER: Edgar Awards ⢠International Thriller Writers Awards ⢠Barry Awards
A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: The New Yorker ⢠NPR ⢠The Diplomatic Courier
During the Arab Spring, an American spyâs final mission goes dangerously awry in this âcrackling debut thrillerâ (The New Yorker) from a former CIA officer that Joseph Weisberg, creator of The Americans, calls âthe most realistic espionage story I've read.â
Shane Collins, a world-weary CIA spy, is ready to come in from the cold. Stationed in Bahrain off the coast of Saudi Arabia for his final tour, he has little use for his missionâuncovering Iranian support for the insurgency against the monarchy. Then Collins meets Almaisa, a beautiful and enigmatic artist, and his eyes are opened to a side of Bahrain most expats never experience, to questions he never thought to ask.
When his trusted informant inside the opposition becomes embroiled in a murder, Collins finds himself drawn deep into the conflict. His budding romance with Almaisaâand his loyaltiesâare upended; in an instant, heâs caught in the crosswinds of a revolution. Drawing on all his skills as a spymaster, he sets out to learn the truth behind the Arab Spring, win Almaisaâs love, and uncover the murky border where Bahrainâs secrets end and Americaâs begin.