The Interpreter's Secret

by Andrew Rosenheim

'A brilliantly original drama of the new Russia-United States relationship - a suspenseful thriller with style and heart.' Simon Mason

In Stockholm for a G20 summit, the interpreter Thomas Weaver is summoned by the White House Chief of Staff to an off-the-record meeting with a Russian general. Expecting routine diplomacy, what Weaver gets instead is a chilling glimpse into a secret arrangement between Washington and the Kremlin. Warned never to divulge what has been said, Weaver discovers he has accidentally recorded the meeting – the only evidence that it took place.

Now under threat, he escapes to the safety of a friend’s house in the English countryside, and then on to London. Yet even there he senses danger. Unsure where to turn, Weaver finds unexpected help from the enigmatic Lily Churchill, whose own loyalties are a mystery. As the two begin to grasp the significance of what Weaver has heard, he and Lily are forced to go underground to hide from their unknown pursuers, who seem determined to silence Weaver for good.

The Interpreter’s Secret is a sophisticated literary thriller about corruption, conspiracy, and the lethal confusions of language.

Genres: Espionage

297 pages, Paperback

Published June 18, 2026

About the author

Andrew Rosenheim was born in Chicago and came to England as a Rhodes Scholar in 1977. He has lived near Oxford ever since. Rosenheim worked in electronic publishing and artificial intelligence for over fifteen years, and ran Amazon UK's Kindle Singles. He has written for the TLS, The Spectator, The Times, The Guardian, The Independent, The Daily Telegraph, The Tablet, The New York Times Book Review, among other publications. Rosenheim is the author of nine novels, including Hands On (1993), a satirical novel featuring a precursor to ChatGPT, the Nessheim trilogy (The Accidental Agent; The Informant; Fear Itself), Without Prejudice, Holly Lester, and a memoir, The Secrets of Carriage H.

Reviews

[Peter Fleming · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is something of a slow burn thriller, but one that delivers for the patient reader, as political machinations gradually morph into a story of conspiracy and the world of espionage. It is a cleverly constructed story, with a start that sets up the predicament that weaver comes to find himself in. The middle sees him realising the danger, the man in a situation outside his knowledge and control, that favourite of Alfred Hitchcock male leads. He needs help but struggles who to turn to, until it comes from an unexpected source. The final third picks up the pace considerably as it develops into the classic chase. Here just who is trying to eliminate him is not clear, the Russians, the US Secret Service or even possibly MI6 crosses his mind. The best thing is to keep running. The threat of danger is an undercurrent to the story, there some near misses and violence which is given more impact by the nature of its suddenness.

The plot mines the current geo-political landscape, where cold war period espionage is replaced by one that engineers public unrest. Outright battles are not fought with weaponry but by undermining public opinion and influencing elections. This neatly dovetails in with corruption at the heart of western government and the regular espionage motif of betrayal. Weaver hears a simple misguided comment and now he represents a risk to be eliminated.

Central character Weaver is not hero material, more a bit of a wet blanket. He is engaging because he becomes self-aware and reflective, just when his life is in danger.

Help for Weaver comes in the form of the exotic and enigmatic Lily. She is half Vietnamese and immeasurably more streetwise and clued-up than Weaver. Supposedly a businesswoman who helps start-up businesses survive, but it seems that this is some kind of front. As they go from one scrape to the next, Weaver vacillates between falling for her and having doubts about her probity, just who does she work for. As a mismatched couple, the building of an understanding is between them is the glue that holds the story together.

An intelligent and thought-provoking thriller that captures the spirit of the finest literary espionage works.

[Luis Gouveia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I still remember the Nessheim trilogy from several years ago, especially Accidental Agent. With those books in mind, I approached this one with high expectations.

It is a definite slow-burn thriller, but one that really rewards the patient reader until before the end. It draws you in gradually, as political manoeuvring develops into a much larger story of conspiracy and espionage. The idea of using an interpreter as the gateway into the world of international intrigue is both original and fascinating, offering a brilliant behind-the-scenes look at a major conference from a perspective we rarely get to see.

The story takes its time building the suspense, and as the danger closes in, the question of who is trying to eliminate him keeps you guessing, could it be the Russians, the US Secret Service, or even MI6?

With the help of Lily, a truly unforgettable and formidable character whom we come to know better as the story unfolds, he begins to unravel the mystery and realize just how much trouble he is in.
While the buildup creates a lot of anticipation, I felt the final explanation didn’t quite deliver the payoff I was hoping for. Also, the final chapter feels like an old fashioned mistery/thriller book with an extensive, and sometimes not easy to follow, explanation given by Lily imitating the detectives of those earlier books.

[Patrice Gotting - #prdgreads · Rating 4 out of 5]

My Thoughts: I went into this one a little bit blind, I didn’t read the synopsis properly and went on the cover and the title alone, wrongly assuming this would be historical fiction.

Imagine my surprise when I realised this was a modern day political thriller, we’re following Weaver who is attending the G20 summit as a translator, but plans change when he is instead taken to a private meeting between the White House and a Russian General! He’s a little confused but goes along anyway, not that he has a choice, what he didn’t expect was for that meeting to leave him being hunted down by people, did he hear something he shouldn’t have done, do they think he’s a spy? He’s not really sure but soon finds himself in hot water up to his neck!

With the help of Lily, a lady who is very hard to describe but definitely a force to be reckoned with he starts to piece things together and realise just how much danger he’s in!

This one is a definite page turner it reels you in slowly and before you know it you’re that enthralled by the writing style and that engrossed in the story that you just can’t stop yourself turning the pages & before you know it ‘just one more chapter’ has turned into the whole book!

[Pgchuis · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a copy of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley.

Weaver, an interpreter for the US government is to his surprise pulled out of trade talks to interpret at a clandestine meeting between a Russian General and the US President's Chief of Staff. Suddenly everyone is trying to kill him, and Weaver realizes, when trying to make sense of what the meeting was about, that he has inadvertently recorded most of it.

He is rescued by a woman called Lily who he meets through an old friend, but she is suspiciously adept at counter-surveillance tactics and Weaver is unsure if he can trust her.

This was really good: Weaver was a likeable hero and the fact that he wasn't sure himself what terrible secret everyone thought he knew meant that the narrative could spell it out helpfully (for me) as it became apparent. It is interesting to think about how much confidential information interpreters are privy to.

Recommended.

[Greville Waterman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read a couple of this author's Jimmy Nessheim 1930's thrillers about ten years ago and really enjoyed them so I took a chance on this book and was richly rewarded as this was a truly original political thriller with a twist that I have never come across before featuring an interpreter, Weaver , who manages to blunder into danger and inadvertently become entangled in a deadly game of blackmail between the Russians and the USA where both sides are determined that he does not live to reveal what he has learned.

Aided by the perplexing Lilly Churchill who helps to lead him through a potential minefield of conflicting interests all comes good in the end but it was an intriguing and well put together read that I thoroughly enjoyed and can highly recommend.

[James Hodge · Rating 1 out of 5]

Tripe

This is one of the worst thrillers I have ever read. A promising premise ruined by over-elaborate plotting and the consequent need for wordy explanations. The principal characters are unbelievable; the dialogue daft; and the whole work boring in the extreme. I surprised myself by keeping going to the end: I wanted to see how the author would tie the various plot strands together. He dis so by a long and barely comprehensible pages-long duologue. To make matters worse, there is far too much about fly fishing. To the would-be reader: do not waste time on this drivel; it will serve only to irritate.

[Lisa reads alot Hamer · Rating 5 out of 5]

A twisty political thriller that I found completely gripping.
The plot was very clever an interpreter privy to all sorts of conversations and I loved that Weaver was a likeable character and found himself in all sorts of danger and threats all accidentally
Full of tension and suspense I throughly enjoyed this read, a new author to me but I will be looking at his other books for sure.

[A J HOOPER · Rating 2 out of 5]

Low key spy story. An interpreter hears something secret then finds the whole conversation has been recorded, mistakenly on a disguised tape reorder . His side kick Lily seems too knowing to be true and how Weaver didn't understand she was working for England I will never know.

[Tom Barry · Rating 2 out of 5]

Five stars at the start, really promising - clear, tight and a great plot. But what happened after that? Muddled, complicated and confusing characters and a plot so complex it was impossible to follow - I failed to finish.

[Masha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nicely paced + full of the kind of crunchy side details that are so satisfying to read. Very twisty + left me guessing! Enjoyed the interpreter angle too, very novel.

[Luca Facchini · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyable fast-paced thriller. The protagonist's work as an interpreter is interesting but it's an even better tool for plot. There's a great female character I liked too. Topical about Russia and America.