I’m not usually one for spy novels, though I’m aware they can be political thrillers of high caliber. While scrolling through NetGalley one day last summer, I came to a write-up on this book and thought it sounded intriguing enough that I went and requested it from the publisher. I’m ecstatic that I did. Michael Idov’s The Collaborators is a novel that is an adrenaline thrill ride of, indeed, the highest caliber. After a slow start, I couldn’t put this book down. The book begs the question, what went wrong with post-Soviet Russia? And the answer all points back to US involvement in their federal elections. (Which is to say that perhaps the pot is calling the kettle black here. Who’s to say?) That’s not to say that this is a perfect novel — it stretches incredibility at points, and the characters get painted into corners one too many times. But you know what? This book is fun! I had a whale of an entertaining time with this. I was sad that the book was over when I turned off my Kindle after reading the last 60 percent of it in one sitting. If anything sings of the praises of being a good book, that’s probably it right there.

The Collaborators is about a young American spy named Ari Falk trying to get an influential Russian blogger (who has crossed the government one too many times, maybe) out of the motherland. The blogger’s flight out of Russia, though, is made to make a forced landing where the blogger is plucked off the flight and, a day later, dies in the presence of the CIA agent. Meanwhile, the rest of his team dies in a shootout, seemingly to protect the fact that the blogger saw two other people — an older married couple — get off the plane with him. While Falk tries to pick up the pieces, he gets involved with the twentysomething daughter of a Russian millionaire living in the States. Said millionaire has recently taken his life, but both the agent and his daughter aren’t so sure he’s dead. And does the mystery have anything to do with the blogger’s tale? As things usually go, time will only tell if there is or is not a connection.

I don’t know what else to say about this spy novel that won’t sound like a repetition of this review’s first paragraph. It is sometimes bracingly funny, with witty dialogue, and also strikes a note or two of melancholy as this book isn’t afraid to kill off characters you have grown to like, if only for a brief time. It’s also a book that moves along at a breakneck speed and can be finished in five hours or less. Despite the slow beginning — portions of books set in airports tend to be a little slower paced, I guess, owing to bureaucracy — it quickly opens up and becomes one heck of a knuckle-dragging, double-crossing shoot-em-up that is Grade A. Again, some of it stretches the point of incredibility, but, of course, in this book, you can essentially read with your mind shut off and have things explained to you at the appropriate times. It has all the hallmarks of a good caper — the panache of a James Bond book but the brains of a John Le Carré read. You’ll want to spend time with The Collaborators, as this is a compelling book.

This brings me back to why I wouldn’t say I like to read spy fiction. Some of it has to do with the fact that a great deal of it is Eastern European, which isn’t as sexy since the end of the Cold War. However, I think the time is ripe for reimagining Russia as a political enemy once again, particularly considering the war in Ukraine. Strangely enough, this book is set in 2021, before the current invasion began. If the time is right for conspiracy theories and back-door politicking, that time is now. To that end, perhaps I’ll go back and read some of those spy novels of yore to get a sense of the craft and finesse that goes into making a compelling spy thriller. (If I have time — I have far more books on my TBR list than I imagined having at any point in my life.) Still, if The Collaborators proves anything, the spy thriller is alive and well, and Michael Idov is an author worth watching. There’s plenty here to be considered inviting, and that’s all you need to know. This is an extraordinary page-turner.