ALGONQUIN IN MOSCOW

A spy-for-hire gets caught in a web of international intrigue in McMinn’s espionage thriller.

Moscow, 1977: An unnamed contractor narrates in the first person as he infiltrates a conference while posing as a doctor from West Germany. Flashbacks reveal that the operative was originally recruited from a reservation after attending a school for Indigenous children; he’s been sent to Moscow to investigate a testing site that may be connected to advances in a powerful new weapon (technology involving lasers and nuclear explosions, presented as an origin point for the infamous real-world Star Wars program). Before he can even begin to execute his mission, however, he realizes that his cover’s been blown when his contact leads him into a trap. Suddenly “flanked by a highly trained and well-prepped operations team,” the narrator finds himself the target of a relentless chase as he bounds through subways, back alleys, and shadowy corridors. Adopting new identities, interrogating subjects, outsmarting police, and crossing paths with other spies, he finds himself caught in an ever-expanding web of double-crosses involving U.S. Marines, Asian triad gangsters, Moroccan intelligence operatives, and members of the Russian elite. Just what he’s been sent to accomplish, who hired him, and whether he’ll escape with his life remain in question as the narrative continually reshuffles the deck. “Paranoia is adrenaline, and it keeps me alert,” the narrator observes, and McMinn delivers adrenaline in spades. The author deftly creates tension through a first-person perspective attuned to every detail, and the chase sequences and interrogations yield satisfying suspense. Flashbacks reveal a fascinating backstory, particularly those detailing the narrator’s upbringing on a reservation. However, many of the novel’s strongest points regarding Indigenous American perspectives on global espionage are obscured by the convoluted plot. Employing a multilayered structure reminiscent of a John le Carré thriller, McMinn piles on too many twists, leaving both narrator and reader completely in the dark. The result is an energetic novel that ultimately sacrifices coherence for complication.

A breathless thriller that leaves its best ideas buried.