Damascus Station A Novel

Finalist for the 2022 ITW Thriller Award for Best First Novel "Damascus Station is simply marvelous storytelling.…[A] stand-out thriller and essential reading for fans of the genre." —Financial Times A CIA officer and his recruit arrive in war-ravaged Damascus to hunt for a killer in this page-turner that offers the "most authentic depiction of modern-day tradecraft in print." (Navy SEAL sniper and New York Times bestselling author Jack Carr). CIA case officer Sam Joseph is dispatched to Paris to recruit Syrian Palace official Mariam Haddad. The two fall into a forbidden relationship, which supercharges Haddad’s recruitment and creates unspeakable danger when they enter Damascus to find the man responsible for the disappearance of an American spy. But the cat and mouse chase for the killer soon leads to a trail of high-profile assassinations and the discovery of a dark secret at the heart of the Syrian regime, bringing the pair under the all-seeing eyes of Assad’s spy catcher, Ali Hassan, and his brother Rustum, the head of the feared Republican Guard. Set against the backdrop of a Syria pulsing with fear and rebellion, Damascus Station is a gripping thriller that offers a textured portrayal of espionage, love, loyalty, and betrayal in one of the most difficult CIA assignments on the planet.

From the author of the international bestseller The Last Station, a superb historical novel of the Apostle Paul, whose tireless and epic preaching of the message of Jesus brought Christianity into existence and changed human history forever. In the years after Christ's crucifixion, Paul of Tarsus, a prosperous tentmaker and Jewish scholar, took it upon himself to persecute the small groups of his followers that sprung up. But on the road to Damascus, he had some sort of blinding vision, a profound conversion experience that transformed Paul into the most effective and influential messenger Christianity has ever had. In The Damascus Road novelist Jay Parini brings this fascinating and ever-controversial figure to full human life, capturing his visionary passions and vast contradictions. In relating Paul's epic journeys, both geographical and spiritual, he unfolds a vivid panorama of the ancient world on the verge of epochal change. And in the alternating voice of the Gospel writer Luke, Paul's travel companion, scribe, and ghostwriter, a cooler perspective on his actions and beliefs emerges -- ironic but still filled with wonder at Paul's unshakable commitment to the Christ and his divinity.

THE MAJOR MOTION PICTURE starring Jennifer Lawrence, Joel Edgerton and Jeremy Irons. Dominika Egorov, former prima ballerina, is sucked into the heart of Putin's Russia, the country she loved, as the twists and turns of a betrayal and counter-betrayal unravel. American Nate Nash, idealistic and ambitious, handles the double agent, codenamed MARBLE, considered one of CIA's biggest assets. He needs to keep his identity secret for as long as the mole can keep supplying golden information. Will Dominika be able to unmask MARBLE, or will the mission see her faith destroyed in the country she has always passionately defended? 'A great and dangerous spy-game is being played today between Russian intelligence and the CIA. Very few people know about it, including many of our politicians in Washington. But Jason Matthews does, and his thrilling Red Sparrow takes us deep inside this treacherous world. He's an insider's insider. He knows the secrets. And he is also a masterful story-teller. I loved this book and could not put it down. Neither will you' Vince Flynn 'Not since the good old days of the Cold War has a classic spy thriller like Red Sparrow come along. Jason Matthews is not making it up; he has lived this life and this story, and it shows on every page. High-level espionage, pulse-pounding danger, sex, double agents and double crosses. What more can any reader want?' Nelson DeMille

A sensational classic: this chilling tale of Siberian espionage is 'the best thriller I've ever read' (Philip Pullman) ranking with 'The Silence of the Lambs, Casino Royale and Smiley's People' (Spectator).'Hugely thrilling, brilliantly written, perfect ... I didn't want this book to end.' (Anthony Horowitz)WITH AN INTRODUCTION BY PHILIP PULLMANKolymsky Heights. A Siberian hell lost in endless night: the perfect setting for an underground Russian research station. It's a place so secret it doesn't officially exist; once there, the scientists are forbidden to leave. But one scientist is desperate to get a message to the outside world. So desperate, he sends a plea across the wildness to the West in order to summon the one man alive capable of achieving the impossible ... 'Sensationally good ... One of the great thrillers of the last century.' (Charles Cumming)'As significant as ... le Carré in bringing a gritty new realism to the thriller.' (Sunday Telegraph)'A breathless story of fear and courage.' (Daily Telegraph)

THRILLER OF THE MONTH ‘Superb . . . a blend of historical imagination and storytelling verve reminiscent of Robert Harris.’ The Sunday Times 'The most exciting, involving thriller I've read in an age, and I can't recommend it highly enough.' Mick Herron * A Treachery of Spies is an espionage thriller to rival the very best, a high stakes game of cat-and-mouse, played in the shadows, which will keep you guessing every step of the way. A body has been found. The elderly victim’s identity has been cleverly obscured but one thing is clear: she has been killed in the manner of traitors to the Resistance in World War Two. To find answers in the present, police inspector Inès Picaut must look to the past; to 1940s France, a time of sworn allegiances and broken promises, where the men and women of the Resistance fought for survival against Nazi invaders. But, as Picaut soon discovers, there are those in the present whose futures depend on the past remaining buried, and who will kill to keep their secrets safe. Old fashioned espionage might be a thing of the past but treachery is as dangerous as ever. * 'This is a rich vein for fiction, and Scott does it more than justice, with this beautifully imagined, beautifully written, smart, sophisticated - but fiercely suspenseful - thriller.' Lee Child 'The most exquisite story of heroism, deception, love and treachery you’ll find this year.' Simon Mayo 'A fast-moving tightly-wrought thriller. The destination is in fact as unexpected as it’s satisfying - and very thought-provoking.' Robert Goddard 'A Treachery of Spies is a masterclass in thriller-writing. It is a heart-racing, heart-wrenching read, conceived with passion and executed with frightening skill. An awe-inspiring achievement.' Giles Kristian

Based on the experiences of a real French spy, Jack Beaumont’s first-hand knowledge and experiences make this thriller plausible and frightening as you’re plunged into the very real world of terror, espionage, and danger. Alec de Payns is an undercover operative in the ultra-elusive French Y Division of the DGSE, a foreign intelligence service equivalent to the CIA or MI6. Code named Aguilar, de Payns is one of the division’s most accomplished agents working to neutralize international threats on a daily basis while simultaneously trying to balance his home life as a husband and father. When a routine mission to infiltrate a dangerous terrorist group unexpectedly goes belly up, Alec is faced with the unthinkable: that he may have been betrayed by someone in his close-knit team—and they may be trying to pin the blame on Alec himself. Back in Paris, Alec is assigned to investigate a secretive biological weapons facility in Pakistan which the DGSE believes to be producing a newly weaponized strain of bacteria, intended for release in France. As Alec works to uncover the facility’s secrets, he must also fight to clear his name and discover who the mole is before it’s too late. It’s not just his reputation that’s at stake—it’s the lives of his wife, two young children, and the entire population of Paris.

A CINEMATIC DEBUT OF A PROMISING YOUNG NOVELIST FROM LEBANON--A FAUX-THRILLER ABOUT A RECLU­SIVE BOTANIST WHO WIT­NESS­ES A POLIT­I­CAL MUR­DER AND IS DRAWN INTO A PER­SON­AL INVES­TI­GA­TION--A captivating thriller that reveals a family’s intergenerational secrets, a nation’s deepest fears, and an underground world of politics, religion, and society. Beirut at dawn. A bus leaves the Charles Helou station en route to Damascus. Seven passengers are on board, one of whom is a prominent Lebanese politician. Before crossing the border, the bus is accosted and derailed. All seven passengers are gunned down. A botanist studying a rare occurrence of acacias nearby witnesses the horror. While the nation around him plunges into conspiracy theories and chaos, the botanist realizes he holds the only clue to the mystery: his injured Acacia. This sends him on a quest for answers, through a minefield of national fears and family secrets, deep into a private underworld.

Things are looking bad for disgraced spy August Drummond. In emotional free fall after the death of his wife, fired for a series of unprecedented security breaches... and now his neighbour on the flight to Istanbul won't stop talking. The only thing keeping him sane is the hunch there's something suspicious about the nervous young man several rows ahead – a hunch that is confirmed when August watches him throw away directions to an old cemetery moments before being detained by Turkish police. When August decides to go in his place, it sets him on a path from which there may be no return...