Judas 62
After a lifetime working with BOX 88, the transatlantic counterintelligence agency so covert that not even the CIA knows of its existence, master spy Lachlan Kite has made plenty of enemies. And now, as the director of the outfit's operations in the UK, one of those past enemies has him in their sights...
1993: Student Lachlan Kite is sent to post-Soviet Russia, a spy in the guise of a language teacher. Embedded in the town of Voronezh, Kite's mission is to extract a chemical weapons scientist before the man's groundbreaking research falls into the wrong hands and shuttle him across the border to freedom in Ukraine. But Kite's mission soon goes wrong and he is left stranded in a hostile city with a former KGB officer on his trail.
2020: Thirty years after that dangerous mission, Kite discovers that its outcome put his name on the notorious "JUDAS" list--a record of enemies of Russia who have been targeted for assassination. Kite's fight for survival takes him to Dubai, a city crawling with international intelligence officers, where he enters into a deadly game of cat-and-mouse with the Russian secret state.
The newest installment in the saga of "a spy for the 21st century" (Daily Mail) combines two pulse-pounding narratives that show why Cumming is among the top tier of espionage authors examining the reality of spycraft in the post-Cold War era.
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The first Kite novel was excellent, but this is even better -- an elegant exposition of what being a spy in the field actually feels like and the fear it can instil in even the most hardened operator. Superbly constructed, it never hurries, but evokes the world of espionage in a way the late John le Carre would have much admired-- "Daily Mail"
Some of the best writing around on the intricacies of spycraft and the high price agents pay for doing their job-- "Sun"
Charles Cumming knows how to write a good spy novel-- "The Herald"
Cumming does a superb job creating portraits of people, eras, and places. This powerful spy thriller should win the talented author new fans.-- "Publishers Weekly STARRED REVIEW" (8/31/2022 12:00:00 AM)
An engrossing cloak-and-dagger thriller that's both chilling and convincing.-- "Kirkus" (9/14/2022 12:00:00 AM)
Combining dexterous plotting in the manner of Daniel Silva with full-throttle action and character building that whets our appetite to learn more about Kite and his colleagues, Cumming is in top form here.--Bill Ott "Booklist STARRED REVIEW" (10/15/2022 12:00:00 AM)
Cumming puts his characters in a variety of creatively precarious situations, layering in paranoia and suspense galore. He also underscores the inner conflict that bedevils his spies both novice and expert.... JUDAS 62 offers an engrossing, highly detailed excursion into spy life that crackles with tension, life-or-death problem-solving and plenty of international intrigue.-- "BookPage" (12/6/2022 12:00:00 AM)
Charles Cumming effectively ramps up suspense, in this hefty page-turner revelatory of modern espionage's methods.-- "NY Journal of Books" (12/6/2022 12:00:00 AM)
Charles Cumming is an expert at immediately placing readers at the heart of the often unbearably suspenseful espionage activity featuring the one and only Lachlan Kite. The result is a spy novel that reads like a high-octane thriller and succeeds on nearly every level.-- "Book Reporter" (1/6/2023 12:00:00 AM)
