This new release by Katherine Reay is EVERYTHING, y'all. A Cold War spy story featuring two strong women, it gripped me from page one and I finished it in one because it was so suspenseful and well done! If you liked the series "The Americans," you will love this story! Beautifully written, well researched, original concept within historical fiction...it checks all my boxes!

This book was an excellent historical novel! It is a beautifully written spy thriller with a duel timeline. I really enjoyed this one and the author’s style of writing.

The story is about two Russian women who seek to make their Cold War lives better. Anya and Ingrid are both well developed, lovable characters, faced with some very difficult decisions. The author weaves together the two women’s lives of sacrifices and love brilliantly.

So eye opening about the life in Russia during the Cold War. I would highly recommend this book and will be looking for more books by this author.

Thanks NetGalley and Harper Muse for an advance copy of this book.

I'm a long-time fan of Katherine Reay’s novels. A Shadow in Moscow, her new release, is a dual timeline story set in Cold War Moscow. Both stories feature strong women characters who make brave choices in the face of intense danger.

Alone after her parents' deaths at the end of World War II, Ingrid marries a man she doesn't know well who takes her home to Moscow. Over time, she learns more about her husband and his suspected role within the KGB. With the hope of creating a better future for her newborn child, Ingrid becomes a spy, giving the British government Russian military secrets she learns while acting the part of a perfect wife and hostess.

In 1980 Washington, DC, Soviet student Anya treasures the freedoms she experienced and people she met while studying at Georgetown University. With her degree earned, she's escorted back to Moscow by a KGB agent and struggles to reacclimate to her homeland. Her best friend's murder drives her to share Soviet military plans she's privy to due to her job with the US CIA to end the 1980s arms race.

Due to my lack of knowledge about Cold War history, the first chapters were somewhat confusing as I became familiar with the characters. But the plot quickly became very interesting as each women realizes her circumstances and uses her unique situation to pass along strategic information. I was amazed by the amount of planning required to safely share even the smallest bits of intelligence, and more than once, I held my breath while Ingrid or Anya were in a particularly dangerous setting. The ending of this novel is very satisfying. Ms. Reay shares small clues that hint at the conclusion, but after I figured out the link between the timelines, there was a surprising aspect that I particularly enjoyed.

The audiobook was a meaningful way to read this title. Talented and prolific narrators Lisa Flanagan and Saskia Maarleveld each narrated a main character, making it simple to track whose story was being shared.

Thank you to Harper Muse, Uplit Reads, Libro.fm, and NetGalley for the print, ebook, and audio editions of this intriguing and inspiring novel.

Special thanks to Harper Muse and NetGalley for the ARC of this book.

A glimpse into a network of spies in Soviet Europe. What a suspenseful book and thrilling. I don't think I will be in the minority on this one.

Great writing, great story, GREAT suspense and a surprise ending.

I have never read Katherine Reay but I definitely will look for past and future books. Highly recommend!

This one wasn't for me. Not really a historical fiction reader, but when I do I like based on content. Cold War wasn't my jam.

I believe this book was intended to be a follow up to The London House (not a sequel but in a similar sort of vein), which sadly I have not read yet. I shall read it soon.

It tells the story of a mother and daughter, Anya and Ingrid who over two generations struggle to survive in in the repression of the Soviet Union. Both women become embroiled in the dangerous world of espionage mainly for personal reasons. Ingrid’s decision is because she learned of the horrors wrought by Stalin in WWII including the horrific Katyn massacre. If it the account is true, it’s even worse than I thought: I always heard that Stalin killed army officers, but this account tells us of how every male of “fighting age” was rounded up and murdered, regardless of whether they were in the military.

Ingrid, although marred to a KGB officer, never believed in the “ideals” of Soviet Communism and struggled to reconcile her love for her husband with the atrocities committed by the government and her own experiences of freedom. Anya hears of this as a child, but her turning point comes after studying in America and the death of a close friend. (Though it must be noted Anya was a pretty terrible spy!)
This novel is thankfully free of a lot of the “American perspective” on Soviet Russia that one might’ve seen in the past. It’s not “bad” Communists and “good”, heroic Americans. As in real life, things are complex: there are nuances and shades of grey – Americans and British people sell one another out, betray their countries and people: and Soviets serve something greater at the risk to themselves. One comes to understand why and how people served on regime or another and why they acted according to the beliefs their society encouraged.
Shadow in Moscow is more than just a spy story though: into it is woven a tale of love and sacrifice in some of the worst circumstances. What would we do to make the world a better place for our children, and it truly “better”? What if our version of “better” conflicts with what our families, government or world says it should be?
Ingrid has a motto: “duc in altem” which is Latin for Dig in Deep. It neatly sums up the theme of this story “It was her code phrase for me when I was young and doing the right thing was going to be hard and it was going to hurt…. It was her way of telling me I can survive and rise above the pain – that right has its own rewards – especially when I chose it for myself”.

This novel isn’t Inspirational like a lot of the other works by this author- at least not in the traditional sense of religious/Christian fiction but I would call it “inspirational” because of the hopeful and uplifting tale in which self-sacrifice and love prevailed despite the dark world in which the characters lived.

Thanks to Harper Muse for approving my request for this title. This didn’t influence my review and all opinions expressed are my own.

A fascinating look into Cold War spies and their lives. With exemplary detail and research, Cold War Russia comes into focus, with it's many shades of grey and fear literally around every corner. The bravery of those who worked to bring freedom to a people locked in a system of fear is breathtaking. I was amazed at the danger the characters willingly accepted to help people that couldn't even recognize their need. The depth of character development in this novel is amazing. I felt each person was writing me a letter to let me know part of their family history. I wanted to yell at them when a big mistake was coming to try and help them avoid the coming disaster their choices were leading to. My heart went out to Ingrid and the choices life, and herself, lead her to. I was also amazed at how she picked herself up, looked at the reality in front of her, and moved forward with the decision she needed to make. I also love how Katherine Reay transported me to Russia. The cold felt like it was seeping into my house, the grey colour leaching into the colour of my present world. Katherine Reay is a master storyteller who weaves a world around the reader. When the story is done, the reader is left with a taste of the Cold War long after the book is done. I will definitely be looking forward to new books by this wonderful author. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I received a copy from Netgalley after publication, so I read it quite quickly. I went in with no expectations and found this book a fascinating and eventually a nerve-wracking read. Going back and forth in time from WWII and post-war Vienna to Moscow in the 50's and 80's,
Georgetown in the 80's and finally 2023.
A spy novel, a love story, historical fiction, and most of all, a mother daughter story.
As a woman of a certain age, a lot of the historical parts were in my memory, so that accounts for some of the nerve-wracking parts.
There were many heartbreaking sections, especially when Anya tried to explain America to her Russian friend. In the 80's there was a foreign student initiative to send Russia student to American Universities. Of course the KGB kept track of them, and they had to report for interviews, but when Anya, who had gone to Georgetown tried to explain "choices" to her friend, she couldn't understand.
I don't want to spoil the main surprise of this book, so I will just encourage you to read it.

Wow! There is so much going on in this story! Spies, intrigue, all kinds of WWII and Cold War stuff I had no idea about, or didn’t really understand because I was too young. I was fascinated and horrified by some of the lengths that the KGB went to because they were scared little rabbits who couldn’t withstand any scrutiny themselves. I found both Ingrid and Anya to be compelling heroines, strong women who stood up for right when their whole world was going left. There are heart pounding escapes, soul crushing moments, flashbacks that filled my eyes with tears of rage and injustice. And yet through it all, these women and others that support them are willing to sacrifice everything for justice and the greater good. There is a strong faith element that tied the timelines together and it’s clear what motivates our heroines and how that resonates when the connection between them is revealed. I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley and was not obligated to provide a positive review.

Both M16 and the CIA are betrayed by a moleat the highest level endangering the
lives of many and especially two very successful female spies.

Set over two time lines on 1954 and the 1980s, the story goes into several cities
in Europe covering many people and especially families who will be completely
disrupted by any breach in the layers and layers of deception, carefully built
over the years which made them bothso successful.

Two strong women - one the older Ingrid who is a dutiful wife, a charming hostess
never drawing attention to herself with British roots and who becomes so good at her
job and then there is Anya, just back from Georgetown University, leaving her heart
behind in America and now in a field with access to top secret information, living life
on the edge as a spy for the CIA.

It was a complicated story with many twists in the tale, but well balanced and
very enjoyable.

This was such a fun listen/read. Well developed story, characters, lots of historical details. At times this was thrilling, at times heartbreaking. I loved the analysis of the differences in social, economic and cultural mind sets between east and west.

this easily 4 stars from me, maybe 4.5. I always enjoy a good spy story, well this was a very pleasant find and I highly recommend.

Title: A Shadow in Moscow
Author: Katherine Reay
Genre: Historical fiction
Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Vienna, 1954

After losing everyone she loves in the final days of World War II, Ingrid Bauer agrees to a hasty marriage with a gentle Soviet embassy worker and follows him home to Moscow. But nothing deep within the Soviet Union's totalitarian regime is what it seems, including her new husband, whom Ingrid suspects works for the KGB. Upon her daughter's birth, Ingrid risks everything and reaches out in hope to the one country she understands and trusts--Britain, the country of her mother's birth--and starts passing along intelligence to MI6, navigating a world of secrets and lies, light and shadow.

Washington, DC, 1980

Part of the Foreign Studies Initiative, Anya Kadinova finishes her degree at Georgetown University and boards her flight home to Moscow, leaving behind the man she loves and a country she's grown to respect. Though raised by dedicated and loyal Soviet parents, Anya soon questions an increasingly oppressive and paranoid Soviet regime at the height of the Cold War. When the KGB murders her best friend, Anya picks sides and contacts the CIA. Working in a military research lab, Anya passes along Soviet military plans and schematics in an effort to end the 1980s arms race.

Alternating points of view keep readers on their toes as the past catches up to the present when an unprecedented act of treachery in 1985 threatens all undercover agents operating within the Soviet Union, and both Ingrid and Anya find themselves in a race for their lives against time and the KGB.

I didn’t thin it would be possible to read this straight through in one sitting, but I was wrong. The first part felt a little bit slow, but then I grew engrossed. I usually have a favorite when a book is told in dual POVs, but this time I didn’t. I loved Ingrid’s story, and I loved Anya’s, too. The Cold War setting was absolutely chilling, and I found myself on the edge of my seat through the whole last third of the book. An excellent read!

Katherine Reay is a bestselling author. A Shadow in Moscow is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Harper Muse in exchange for an honest review.)

This is my third read by this author and I think it’s my favorite so far. Told in dual POV and alternating timelines, this story follows two women, Ingrid and Anya, deeply entrenched in Moscow and working as spies for MI6 and the CIA respectively.

While these two women are complimentary foils for each other, their backgrounds are differing, and I enjoyed both timelines and characters immensely. Ingrid was raised in Austria by parents who acted as spies, which got them killed, and though she has a great love for her country, she came to the Soviet Union when she married and reluctantly adopted her new husband’s customs and restrictions. When her daughter is born, Ingrid is compelled to make the world a better place for her future.

In contrast, Anya was raised in the Soviet Union but received special dispensation to study in America and was overwhelmed by all the choices that Americans have the privilege of making for themselves every day from what to eat for lunch to the variety of sweaters available to purchase. When she returns to the Soviet Union, leaving the boy she fell in love with behind, her experiences and the loss of a loved one require her to take action for change in her country.

Ingrid is more practical and methodical in her approach, the perfect social hostess for a rising KGB agent, while Anya is young and brash while working in a military research lab, ready to make changes and frustrated by the way her hands are tied. Though as they both embark upon their careers as spies, there is some frustration with the slow approaches they must take to be safe and able to pass on information without being caught.

There is tension and suspenseful moments in each timeline as both women take calculated risks to find the hope of a better future. Recommended to historical readers interested in espionage and/or the Cold War.

Thank you to Netgalley and Harper Muse for a copy provided for an honest review.

This book was incredible! Told through two different points of view and dual times lines, both stories were fascinating. Anya is a Russian college student studying at Georgetown in the 80s, but once she graduates, she moves home to Russia. After her best friend is killed by the KGB, she begins to help the CIA covertly. The other story begins earlier in 1954 with Ingrid- she has lost a lot of family in WWII and agrees to marry a nice man. He moves them to Russia where she suspects that he’s working for the KGB. Ingrid’s mother was British and she begins to work for MI6 helping them against Russia.

This is a time period I haven’t read much and I need more! I loved the two female spies and i was absolutely in awe of their bravery, commitment and intelligence. I also loved Anya’s description of the US when explaining what it’s like to a friend who has only known life in Russia. I will say this book is a dense read that you do need to pay close attention, but it had some excellent twists that truly made me gasp. If you were a fan of the tv show the Americans, you would love this book.

Many thanks to @uplitreads @harpermusebooks and @katherinereay for my gifted book. A Shadow in Moscow is out now!

4.5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

This has been both a gripping and a fascinating read. While it is a work of fiction, it’s clear that author Katherine Reay researched thoroughly to create such an authentic reading experience. Written in two timelines, A Shadow in Moscow is set almost entirely in that city and spans the years from around 1944 through to the present day. Anya and Ingrid are superbly crafted characters that seem very much like real people. Their supporting cast is equally well created so that the impression as you readthe plot flows beautifully and there are enough high and low [oints to keep you turning the pages. This is a new to me author, but one I’ll definitely be looking for again. This book made for riveting reading!

Quick and Dirty
-dual POV, dual timeline historical fiction
-Cold War story with ties to WWII
-terrific audiobook narration
-fast-paced second half

thoughts
As an 80s baby, I recall the US/USSR rivalry well. Whether we were competing for gold in the Olympics or listening to leaders discuss nuclear armament, the division between our two cultures was often starkly on display. And though my friends and I didn't truly understand the importance of the fall of the Berlin Wall, I recall watching footage and clapping in unison in our classroom, hopeful that our leaders had finally achieved the impossible: harmony. I was a sheltered American child, who had no clue what life was like in the Soviet Union. Even now as a sheltered American adult, I struggle to understand life in post-Soviet Europe. Genocide and war rage in the Ukraine while Putin clutches hard to his power in Russia, and it feels sometimes like those Cold War stories are alive again. Spies, intrigue, plots, and coups are still very real things, making this new novel a marvel of historical fiction with very real modern-day implications. Maybe I've been watching too much television (highly recommend Slow Horses in Apple+), but it all feels very familiar and scary. As soon as I started A Shadow in Moscow I knew I was in for a wild ride. I was sucked into both storylines, eager to know what happened to both the brave women standing up for what they felt was right and just. Switching between the audio and physical made this a fast read for me, but I think the pacing would have kept me glued no matter the format. The ending felt right for the mood/tone of this novel, but don't expect a HEA. With little romance and far fewer frills, this book is for lovers of spycraft. And I, for one, loved it!

I was totally blown away by this story! This is one of my favorite reads of the year. Two separate stories of espionage weave together into a brilliant tapestry of sacrifice and love. I loved the whole premise, a story set against the backdrop of Russia during the Cold War, filled with intriguing historical detail. Usually in a dual-timeline I find myself invested more in one of the stories, yet I was captivated by both Ingrid and Anya's stories. Ms. Reay skillfully conveyed the paranoia felt by many.. This poignant story and its strong sense of place is utterly compelling. You won't be able to put it down.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author/publisher through Netgalley and was not required to write a review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Thank you to Katherine Reay, Harper Muse, and Netgalley for the Advanced Reader Copy for free in exchange for an honest review.

Blurb:
Vienna, 1954
Ingrid:
After losing everyone she loves in the final days of World War II, Ingrid Bauer agrees to a hasty marriage with a gentle Soviet embassy worker and follows him home to Moscow. But nothing deep within the Soviet Union's totalitarian regime is what it seems, including her new husband, whom Ingrid suspects works for the KGB. Upon her daughter's birth, Ingrid risks everything and reaches out in hope to the one country she understands and trusts--Britain, the country of her mother's birth--and starts passing along intelligence to MI6, navigating a world of secrets and lies, light and shadow.

Washington, DC, 1980
Anya:
Part of the Foreign Studies Initiative, Anya Kadinova finishes her degree at Georgetown University and boards her flight home to Moscow, leaving behind the man she loves and a country she's grown to respect. Though raised by dedicated and loyal Soviet parents, Anya soon questions an increasingly oppressive and paranoid Soviet regime at the height of the Cold War. When the KGB murders her bestfriend, Anya picks sides and contacts the CIA. Working in a military research lab, Anya passes along Soviet military plans and schematics in an effort to end the 1980s arms race.

I could feel the amount of research and time the author has put in. The book is written in alternating point of views and kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time. I love books based on wars, the role of women in those wars because women have always been underestimate and in many places we still are.
Even we as children fail to understand our mothers outside that specific role.
When I requested the ARC I had no idea what I was getting into but it surpassed my expectations.

If you love books based wars and the role of women in those wars, then this book is definitely for you.

This was an interesting historical fiction book that covered the time during the Cold War. It was also a dual timeline story which I enjoy a lot. You will get a very informative look at life behind the Iron Curtain. The two primary characters, Ingrid and Anya, are truly amazing women who put their own lives in danger to fight for freedom. The amount of research the author did is incredible. It was a little slow for me to become invested in the story, but I eventually did get hooked. The ending had me shaking my head and not believing the connections I had missed.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Muse for my advanced review copy. All opinions and thoughts are my own.

For more reviews, please visit my blog at: https://www.msladybugsbookreviews.com/. Over 1000 reviews posted!

This powerful story told in dual timelines is one that everyone should read. The two main characters were fully developed and I saw their lives unfold through the many phases of their lives.
Ingrid is from Vienna where her parents and her love worked for the British MI 6. At the end of WWII when they were seized and killed by the Nazis, Ingrid decided to join MI6 to provide the Allies with info to defeat the Nazis. WhenAdam (also MI6) asks her to marry and move to England she declines and moves to Moscow . She marries Leo, a Soviet and continues to inform MI6 of intel as Leo moves up in the KGB through the 1980s.
Anya grew up in Moscow and attends Georgetown university through theForeign Student Initiative. Her 4 years in the US opened her eyes to the many differences between this country and her homeland. However, to avoid defection, the KGB has weekly meetings to assure her loyalty and her return to Russia. A CIA recruiter meets with her to recruit her as an agent in Moscow when she goes home. After graduation, she leaves Scott ( her lover) and the US and resumes Soviet life.
The author described the oppression and control in The USSR during the Cold War, the restrictions imposed on its citizens and the absolute rule of the KGB. Her writing was descriptive and the story was engaging. It took me a while to catch onto the link between the 2 women, but I loved the twist.
The ending was emotional and the perfect finale to the story.
I received a complementary copy of this book from NetGalley and Harper Muse. The opinions expressed are entirely my own