Synopses & Reviews
An Indie Next Pick
A Booklist Best Book of the Year
A Christian Science Monitor Best Book of the Month
An Amazon Best Book of the Month
A Popsugar Best Book of the Month
Sophie Kohl is living a nightmare. Minutes after she confesses to her husband, a mid-level American diplomat in Hungary, that she had an affair while they were in Cairo, he is shot and killed.
Stan Bertolli, a Cairo-based CIA agent, has fielded his share of midnight calls. But his heart skips a beat when, this time, he hears the voice of the only woman he ever truly loved ask why her husband has been assassinated.
Omar Halawi has worked in Egyptian intelligence for years, and he knows how to play the game. But the murder of a diplomat in Hungary has ripples all the way to Cairo, and Omar must follow the fallout wherever it leads.
As these players converge on Cairo, Olen Steinhauer masterfully unveils a portrait of a marriage, a jigsaw puzzle of loyalty and betrayal, against a dangerous world of political games where allegiances are never clear and outcomes are never guaranteed.
Review
"One of the hottest names in spy fiction today....Entertaining." USA Today
Review
"Elaborate, sophisticated.....A long, twisty road full of cleverly placed potholes and unexpected turns....Mr. Steinhauer draws his spies as flesh-and-blood characters in whom his readers invest both attention and emotion." Janet Maslin, The New York Times
Review
"A stunning stand-alone that is as emotionally rich as it is layered with intrigue....It has become de rigeur to compare Steinhauer to le Carre, but it's nearly time to pass the torch: for the next generation, it's Steinhauer who will become the standard by which others are measured." Booklist (starred review, Best Books)
Synopsis
AN INDIE NEXT PICK
A BOOKLIST BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR
A CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR BEST BOOK OF THE MONTH
AN AMAZON BEST BOOK OF THE MONTH
A POPSUGAR BEST BOOK OF THE MONTH
Sophie Kohl is living a nightmare. Minutes after she confesses to her husband, a mid-level American diplomat in Hungary, that she had an affair while they were in Cairo, he is shot and killed.
Stan Bertolli, a Cairo-based CIA agent, has fielded his share of midnight calls. But his heart skips a beat when, this time, he hears the voice of the only woman he ever truly loved ask why her husband has been assassinated.
Omar Halawi has worked in Egyptian intelligence for years, and he knows how to play the game. But the murder of a diplomat in Hungary has ripples all the way to Cairo, and Omar must follow the fallout wherever it leads.
As these players converge on Cairo, Olen Steinhauer masterfully unveils a portrait of a marriage, a jigsaw puzzle of loyalty and betrayal, against a dangerous world of political games where allegiances are never clear and outcomes are never guaranteed.
About the Author
Olen Steinhauer, the New York Times bestselling author of eight previous novels, is a Dashiell Hammett Award winner, a two-time Edgar award finalist, and has also been shortlisted for the Anthony, the Macavity, the Ellis Peters Historical Dagger, the Ian Fleming Steel Dagger, and the Barry awards. His books include The Tourist, The Nearest Exit, and An American Spy. Raised in Virginia, he lives in New York and Budapest, Hungary.