"Leningrad, at first glance, was a faded beauty that had stopped wearing makeup—all the buildings, the pastel facades, needed paint. “Rain,”the driver said. “Very unusual this time of year. The afternoon will be better.”More a hope than a forecast, Simon thought. The rain, the mist over the canals, seemed part of a deeper melancholy. The imperial scale of St. Petersburg, without the crowds, the old government ministries, made the city feel empty. Moscow, by contrast, hummed with purpose. This was more like a ballroom after a party, just streamers left, and half-filled glasses."

Kanon imagines an American defector under Khrushchev who decides he wants to return to the US, and enlists his publisher brother to help. Kanon is good on the unseen ramifications of spying, from partners to the fallout of those left behind. I found this took a while to get going but by half way through was gripped.

It is usually a difficult task to find a well written spy thriller these days - don't get me wrong, there's a plethora of great mystery/thriller writers around creating masterpieces every which way you turn but a mystery/thriller with a large aspect of the plot surrounding politics & espionage, is sometimes an impossible task. Fear not! Joseph Kanon is here with exactly what you desire. Due to the majority of books that class themselves as 'spy thrillers' being pretty abysmal, I go into reading these novels with a degree of resignation, though now, thanks to Mr Kanon my faith has been somewhat restored. His previous bestselling novel Leaving Berlin falls into the same genre and was done excellently, I really needn't have worried about Defectors as he has already proven his worth as a technically brilliant master of the epic espionage adventure!

Defectors is set in 1960's Moscow, when the Soviet Union is gaining international recognition & admiration from the launch of Sputnik. CIA agent Frank Weeks, a notorious defector to the Soviet Union, is to publish his memoirs - shocking his brother Simon. Simon, a publisher in The Big Apple is looking to try and publish his brother's memoirs but knows that the US government will never allow it, thinking of it as KGB propaganda. However, this doesn't deter Simon from trying to publish as he views it as finally giving him the chance to learn why Frank chose to betray his country and his family. What he discovers in Moscow is far more shocking than he ever imagined...

In a genre where the books tend to be either awful or magnificent, with absolutely no middle ground, Kanon is a breathe of fresh air and someone you can trust to fill out a novel with superb detail, after all he is a bestselling author for a reason!

Defectors is enthralling and captivating from the first page and through his vivid descriptions, I felt as though I was right there. The relationship between the two brothers and what they go through together is a common thread throughout the whole book. A truly thrilling tale of espionage and betrayal against a historical backdrop.

If you are a fan of political spy thrillers please read both Defectors & Leaving Berlin, I cannot praise his writing enough. It is true intelligent literary fiction with lots of pleasant historical detail and family relationships - how they evolve along with the circumstances. I will certainly be awaiting his next book with anticipation. It's rare that an author can make this kind of impact on me having read just one of their novels.

A KILLER IN THE ESPIONAGE GENRE - THIS WILL KNOCK YOUR SOCKS OFF! TRUST ME ON THIS ONE.

I would like to thank Joseph Kanon, Simon & Schuster UK Fiction & NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest & impartial review.

Frank Weeks defected to the USSR shortly after the end of WW2, betraying his country, the CIA and his family in the process. In the early 1960s his brother Simon is invited to Moscow to help Frank edit his memoirs for publication in the USA. On arrival, after being primed by the CIA, Simon is reacquainted with his brother and his brother’s wife (a former lover of Simon himself) and is plunged into a murky maelstrom of intrigue. It soon becomes clear that Frank intends to do rather more than publish his memoirs and Simon is envisaged as an essential instrument for his main purpose.
I so admire these literate, intelligent novels written by Joseph Kanon. This one certainly maintains the very high standard of his others. The crisp, convincing dialogue drives the narrative. There are surprises and shocks beautifully developed along the way. There is a parade of defectors including the fictional such as Frank, as well as the real, such as Guy Burgess. There is a real sense of paranoia and a surreal attempt by the defectors to see themselves as safe and happy in the socialist paradise when all around them the evidence argues against. These are men and women who have been traitors to others before. They will do so again. Trust no-one.

See above--the download didn't include the text. Such a pity only to have discovered this recently, since a new book by Kanon is an event. Too bad for me.

Superb spy novel mixed with family drama. This was a real page-turner. A compelling story of a brother who defected to the Russians after World War 2 and a brother who didn't. They are reunited after 12 years and the novel twists and turns with very solid character development.

The Kindle download is faulty and does not allow you to access the actual book after the first few introductory pages.

I can't review something I'm unable to access.

Sorry.