This book really ups the peril compared with Red Sparrow, and it was great. Perhaps a bit too long, a bit too much going on, but because it kept the thrills high and constant, I can forgive it. Looking forward to finishing the trilogy soon!

I ended up mainly enjoying this, but with some major reservations. Pros? The tradecraft and chat and CIA/FBI/Russian espionage organizational comments, fight descriptions and espionage strategy descriptions are among the best I’ve encountered in this kind of book. As someone who’s taught and spent time in Russia, the Russian cultural and social descriptions seem authentic. Downsides? The f*cking number of f*cking times that various characters f*cking accent their speech with f*cking f*ck as though the author were being paid by the obscenity. Even for these days when fictional tough guys wear themselves out and obscure the essence of their thoughts with swearing, this book stands out in a ludicrous way. Speaking of ludicrous, the sex scenes seem like 70’s male-centric porno and use embarrassing euphemisms for penis (“courting tackle”, “little weasel”) and breasts (“upper hamper”). Oh—and the recipes at the end of each chapter seemed charming for the first 4-5 chapters, but after that just seemed like a labored interruption. Sooo—if these things don’t bother you or the good at least slightly outweighs  the irritating (as it did for me) you may find this book a rewarding read. Recommended.