The Righteous Arrows: A Cold War Spy Thriller

by Brian J. Morra

In the hotly-anticipated second installment of The Able Archer series, readers reconnect with American Kevin Cattani and his older Soviet counterpart, Ivan Levchenko in the mid-1980s for a chilling Cold War saga of superpower confrontation. After Cattani barely escapes with his life from an East German bunker, he and Levchenko find themselves on opposite sides of the Soviet Union’s brutal war in Afghanistan, where Cattani supplies the Islamic resistance with advanced weapons to kill Russian troops. In facing new homegrown adversaries, both men question the roles they play in the deadly superpower duel.

“The Righteous Arrows” is an electrifying story of risky competition and the enduring legacy of the global war on terror that will appeal to readers who love thrillers and dynamic historical fiction.

328 pages, Hardcover

Published April 16, 2024

About the author

Brian J. Morra is a former U.S. intelligence officer and a retired senior aerospace executive. He helped lead the American intelligence team in Japan that uncovered the true story behind the Soviet Union's shootdown of Korean Airlines flight 007 in September 1983. He also served on the Air Staff at the Pentagon while on active duty. As an aerospace executive he worked on many important national security programs. Morra earned a BA from William and Mary, an MPA from the University of Oklahoma, an MA in National Security Studies from Georgetown University, and completed the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School. He is a senior fellow and member of the Board of Regents of the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies, a think tank that specializes in how advanced technology influences national security. He is also a non-resident senior fellow at the Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies, the world's preeminent think tank focused on air and space power in the 21st Century. He has provided commentary for CBS, Netflix and the BBC. His debut novel, “The Able Archers” won a National Indie Excellence Award for Military Fiction, and was a finalist in the Next Generation Indie Book Awards. Learn more at: www.brianjmorra.com

Reviews

[William Bentrim · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Righteous Arrows by Brian J. Morra

This book reinforces the futility of war. The Russian perspective provides a different view of Afghanistan than what is in our popular press. This takes place in the 80’s when Gorbachev was fueling hope that the Russian hardliners were a thing of the past. There was speculation that the CIA was providing Stinger missiles to the Afghans opposing the Russian presence in their country as punishment for the Russians supplying weapons to the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese.
The human part of the equation was Air Force Captain Kevin Cattani and Russian General Levchenko’s interaction. They were the principles in The Able Archers a previous Morra book. The author shows the person and the relationships of these two soldiers.
There is very little fighting but a lot of thought-provoking incidents in the book.
I highly recommend it.

[Joan Zahka · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the second book I've read by Brian Morra and totally enjoyed both. This one shares much more emotion than the first, although it's based on the same character. Both books are must reads in my opinion and were hard for me to put down.

[Cheryl Malandrinos · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the follow up to Able Archers, Brian J. Morra delivers a fascinating Cold War thriller that leads to a confrontation between U.S. Air Force Intelligence Officer Kevin Cattani and General-Major Ivan Levchenko on the battlefield in Afghanistan.

In April 1984, Cattani conducts a perilous covert mission inside a Soviet bunker. His love interest, Sandy Jackson, doesn't want him to go. She knows how close he came to being killed on his last mission, and nightmares of days in Cambodia still haunt him.

Alongside him will be the military liaison mission (MLM) team and Lydia Morelli, a civilian weapons analyst for the Defense Intelligence Agency. Petrified, she wants to get in, get what she needs, and get the hell out. The lack of prep time only seeks to heighten her fears. Ambushed, they barely escape with their lives, and the fallout is destined to create far-reaching repercussions.

The Righteous Arrows is the second book in the Able Archers series. It finds Kevin Cattani working on the opposite side of Ivan Levchenko after the failed mission with MLM. Giving the feeling of a ripped from the headlines type of story, this Cold War thriller packs a punch. The stakes are high and foreshadow the global war on terror.

Drawing from his own experience, Morra has crafted an engaging page-turner. Though I felt it read more like a biography than a novel, the material is riveting. I found the use of the first-person present tense a bit awkward, especially because it was used for both main characters--Cattani and Levchenko. The use of dates helps to position the reader in the right place, and the use of historical quotes adds relevant points of view for the reader. Having a list of characters at the onset is helpful as story moves along.

If you enjoy historical fiction, political thrillers, or military thrillers, The Righteous Arrows is for you.

[KRISTEN CONNELL · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Righteous Arrows: A Cold War Spy Thriller immediately establishes itself as a tense, high-stakes continuation of Brian J. Morra’s Able Archer series, bringing readers deeper into the psychological and geopolitical chessboard of the mid-1980s Cold War. Brian J. Morra delivers a narrative that blends espionage, military tension, and moral uncertainty within one of the most volatile periods of modern history.

What makes this installment particularly compelling is the dual perspective between American operative Kevin Cattani and Soviet counterpart Ivan Levchenko. Brian J. Morra uses their parallel trajectories not just to drive suspense, but to explore the psychological burden carried by individuals operating within systems of global power and conflict. Their experiences feel personal, yet deeply entangled in forces far larger than themselves.

I was especially drawn to how Brian J. Morra situates the story within the Soviet war in Afghanistan, a setting that intensifies both the physical danger and the ideological complexity of the narrative. The moral ambiguity of Cattani’s involvement in arming resistance forces adds layers of ethical tension, while Levchenko’s perspective offers a grounded look at loyalty, duty, and internal conflict on the opposing side.

The novel’s strength lies in its ability to maintain thriller momentum while also engaging with questions about identity, allegiance, and the long shadow of Cold War strategy. Brian J. Morra balances action-driven storytelling with reflective undertones, allowing the reader to experience both urgency and consequence.

Overall, The Righteous Arrows: A Cold War Spy Thriller stands as a gripping and intellectually engaging continuation of the series, appealing to readers who appreciate espionage fiction grounded in historical realism, strategic complexity, and character-driven moral tension.

[Susan Rees · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The Righteous Arrows" is another in the international intelligence fiction series by Brian J. Morra. Like with "The Able Archers," his first book, history buffs will appreciate the accurate descriptions of historically monumental cold war events that could only be done by a writer with personal experience and expertise. But more than that, Brian Morra is a fiction writer - in both books he creates an unusual relationship between an American intelligence officer and his Russian counterpart. Again, could anyone do this so well who hasn't had personal experience with the type of minds of both protagonists, and which Morra builds on the history and culture of their respective countries? If you haven't read the first Morra - you should read both for the insider's view of potentially cataclysmic intelligence events, first in the Far East, Germany, and then in Afghanistan, and for the development of the cross-border professional and personal relationship at the heart of the books. I loved both books, and expect that "Righteous Arrows" will follow "Able Archers" into production for our viewing pleasure.

[Anne Rubin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read an early preview copy of this book, and all I can say is wow! This one is even better than The Able Archers - and I thought that one was great! You get deeper insight into the main characters and get to know a few new ones as well. Fascinating historical perspective on a war that is not often spoken about - and the repercussions the US involvement inadvertently caused for the war on terror. Highly recommend.

[John Morgan · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Righteous Arrows by Brian Morra is a good historical novel set in the 1980’s. The story is about the interactions between USSR and USA in the cold war between Reagan and Gorbachev. The story is set in Germany and Afghanistan. It revolves around a General in the GRU and a young captain in the USAF intelligence and CIA. The main portion of the story concerns the Soviet army in Afghanistan and the provision of Stinger missiles to the Afghanistan resistance to the Soviet occupation. It is a well told story.

[Rick Miners · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read

Fascinating read of an important time in our contemporary history. Brian Morra brings great insight and perspective to story telling. I highly recommend the book. It should be a movie!!