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Throw Away the Key: A Novel
A former CIA locksmith turned glorified janitor is haunted by a botched Cold War operation with ramifications that extend to the present day.
New York Times bestselling author Jason M. Hough pens a fast-paced thriller packed full of action, perfect for fans of Alma Katsu and David McCloskey.
Lars Bergman is no ordinary janitor. He’s the CIA’s locksmith.
Formerly part of the CIA’s infamous Surreptitious Entry Team, Lars is now responsible for every padlock, safe, and secure door across the CIA headquarters. He’s never met a lock he couldn’t pick…except one, which he tried and failed to open during a botched mission in Warsaw at the end of the Cold War.
Cruising toward retirement, Lars’s life is upended when a senior CIA official dies and he’s called upon to open the safe in her office. Inside the safe is a clue only Lars would notice, left by someone he’d worked with in his heyday. As he investigates, Lars soon realizes that his failed Warsaw operation has come back to haunt him and perhaps give him another chance at picking the one lock that’s ever eluded him.
What Lars doesn’t realize is that what the lock is protecting could have dire ramifications for the organization he has spent his whole adult life safekeeping.
New York Times bestselling author Jason M. Hough pens a fast-paced thriller packed full of action, perfect for fans of Alma Katsu and David McCloskey.
Lars Bergman is no ordinary janitor. He’s the CIA’s locksmith.
Formerly part of the CIA’s infamous Surreptitious Entry Team, Lars is now responsible for every padlock, safe, and secure door across the CIA headquarters. He’s never met a lock he couldn’t pick…except one, which he tried and failed to open during a botched mission in Warsaw at the end of the Cold War.
Cruising toward retirement, Lars’s life is upended when a senior CIA official dies and he’s called upon to open the safe in her office. Inside the safe is a clue only Lars would notice, left by someone he’d worked with in his heyday. As he investigates, Lars soon realizes that his failed Warsaw operation has come back to haunt him and perhaps give him another chance at picking the one lock that’s ever eluded him.
What Lars doesn’t realize is that what the lock is protecting could have dire ramifications for the organization he has spent his whole adult life safekeeping.
315 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 14, 2026
About the author
Jason M. Hough
28 books581 followersJason M. Hough (pronounced 'Huff') is the New York Times bestselling author of The Dire Earth Cycle and the near-future spy thriller Zero World. In a former life he was a 3D artist, animator, and game designer (Metal Fatigue, Aliens vs. Predator: Extinction, and many others). He has also worked in the fields of high-performance cluster computing and machine learning.
The Darwin Elevator began life in 2008 as a project for National Novel Writing Month. The book released on July 30th, 2013 and reached the New York Times Bestseller list the following week. Darwin was Jason’s first published fiction. The subsequent books in that trilogy were released that same summer, along with a prequel novella, The Dire Earth, in 2014.
Jason's latest novel, Zero World, released on August 18th, 2015 from Del Rey Spectra (US) and Titan Books (AUS/NZ). Publishers Weekly called it “a thrilling action rampage that confirms Hough as an important new voice in genre fiction.”
He lives near Seattle, Washington with his wife, two young sons, and a dog named Missbuster.
The Darwin Elevator began life in 2008 as a project for National Novel Writing Month. The book released on July 30th, 2013 and reached the New York Times Bestseller list the following week. Darwin was Jason’s first published fiction. The subsequent books in that trilogy were released that same summer, along with a prequel novella, The Dire Earth, in 2014.
Jason's latest novel, Zero World, released on August 18th, 2015 from Del Rey Spectra (US) and Titan Books (AUS/NZ). Publishers Weekly called it “a thrilling action rampage that confirms Hough as an important new voice in genre fiction.”
He lives near Seattle, Washington with his wife, two young sons, and a dog named Missbuster.
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
January 13, 2026
Lars Bergman looks like your average CIA janitor, but his past is anything but ordinary. You get pulled straight into a world of secrets, old mistakes, and high-stakes espionage, and you feel every bit of Lars’s regret and obsession.
The action is fast and the suspense never lets up. It’s one of those thrillers where it’s not just about guns and chases. It’s about clever minds, old secrets, and one man finally facing the lock that haunted him for years.
Honestly it was a good read just not something I’d usually pick up
The action is fast and the suspense never lets up. It’s one of those thrillers where it’s not just about guns and chases. It’s about clever minds, old secrets, and one man finally facing the lock that haunted him for years.
Honestly it was a good read just not something I’d usually pick up
September 5, 2026
A former CIA locksmith becomes embroiled in a conspiracy in Throw Away The Key, a clever and highly entertaining novel with plenty of surprises. Lars Bergman was a field operative, known as a “burglar” for his lockpicking skills, now nearing retirement and working as a janitor at CIA headquarters. When an old colleague dies, he’s asked to open the safe in her office where he finds a clue only Lars would recognize, and that sets him off on a wild caper to unravel a mystery. While Lars’ deeds are somewhat implausible, it’s easily overlooked in this suspenseful and enjoyable read that’ll keep you guessing.
September 4, 2026
Simply put, this is a good book. Good story, great main character and fun to read. Enjoy
June 5, 2026
Very enjoyable. An interesting take on the spy novel — some classic elements/tropes included, but the protagonist offers some alternative twists on them. Plot really picked up about 1/4 of the way in. Ending good, but maybe a bit predictable? Nevertheless, if you like spy novels, I’d recommend you give this a try.
July 28, 2026
A very original espionage novel.The principal character is a locksmith at the CIA , a glorified janitor.A retired active burglar for the agency, he spends his days changing locks at Langley.He is called to open a safe on the top floor by the Director and from this an exiting chase begins as he follows clues left for him by an ex colleague.
Great chase sequences, even the descriptions of lock picking are interesting!
A final confrontation at Langley where it all started.Nice plotting and very original.
Great chase sequences, even the descriptions of lock picking are interesting!
A final confrontation at Langley where it all started.Nice plotting and very original.
September 11, 2026
Title: Throw Away the Key by Jason M. Hough
⭐⭐⭐⭐ Star Rating: 4
Vibe Check: came for the CIA locksmith, stayed for the impossible safe, Cold War secrets, and the realization that apparently retirement is not an option when you have spent your entire life opening things governments desperately wanted kept closed.
Lars Bergman is not your average janitor.
He is the CIA's locksmith.
Which is honestly a job title I did not know I needed until this book.
Lars spent years working with the CIA's Surreptitious Entry Team before settling into a quieter role handling locks, safes, and secure doors at headquarters.
He is basically the guy you call when everyone else has stared at the lock and said absolutely not.
Except there is one lock he couldn't open.
And naturally, that one lock comes back to haunt him.
Because retirement apparently isn't allowed when you have unfinished Cold War business.
When a senior CIA official dies, Lars is called in to open her safe.
Inside is a clue connected to someone from his past.
And suddenly that botched mission in Warsaw isn't staying in the past.
I really liked the premise here.
The idea of a highly specialized former CIA operative being dragged back into a mystery because of a lock he couldn't open years earlier is exactly the kind of thriller setup that works for me.
It gives Lars a very specific skill set without turning him into another generic action hero.
He isn't just tough.
He knows locks.
And apparently knowing locks can get you into a LOT of trouble.
The Cold War connection also gives the story a nice layer of history and mystery.
There is a sense that something has been buried for years and Lars is finally being forced to dig it back up.
Tropes included: retired operative, Cold War secrets, CIA intrigue, impossible lock, buried conspiracy, action thriller, mystery, espionage, and one man getting dragged back into a life he thought he had left behind.
Did they deliver?
Yes.
Fast-paced, intriguing, and built around a premise that immediately made me curious.
My only issue was that I wanted a little more character depth in places.
The mystery and action were doing most of the heavy lifting, and I think a little more emotional investment in Lars would have pushed this into five-star territory.
Petty Complaint: Lars is literally the CIA locksmith and someone still thought there was a lock he couldn't open.
That feels personally offensive.
Overall, Throw Away the Key was a smart, fast-moving thriller with a great central premise and a protagonist who has a very specific set of skills.
Four stars.
Would I recommend it?
Yes, especially for readers who like espionage, Cold War mysteries, action thrillers, secret government operations, and protagonists who solve problems with brains before bullets.
⭐⭐⭐⭐ Star Rating: 4
Vibe Check: came for the CIA locksmith, stayed for the impossible safe, Cold War secrets, and the realization that apparently retirement is not an option when you have spent your entire life opening things governments desperately wanted kept closed.
Lars Bergman is not your average janitor.
He is the CIA's locksmith.
Which is honestly a job title I did not know I needed until this book.
Lars spent years working with the CIA's Surreptitious Entry Team before settling into a quieter role handling locks, safes, and secure doors at headquarters.
He is basically the guy you call when everyone else has stared at the lock and said absolutely not.
Except there is one lock he couldn't open.
And naturally, that one lock comes back to haunt him.
Because retirement apparently isn't allowed when you have unfinished Cold War business.
When a senior CIA official dies, Lars is called in to open her safe.
Inside is a clue connected to someone from his past.
And suddenly that botched mission in Warsaw isn't staying in the past.
I really liked the premise here.
The idea of a highly specialized former CIA operative being dragged back into a mystery because of a lock he couldn't open years earlier is exactly the kind of thriller setup that works for me.
It gives Lars a very specific skill set without turning him into another generic action hero.
He isn't just tough.
He knows locks.
And apparently knowing locks can get you into a LOT of trouble.
The Cold War connection also gives the story a nice layer of history and mystery.
There is a sense that something has been buried for years and Lars is finally being forced to dig it back up.
Tropes included: retired operative, Cold War secrets, CIA intrigue, impossible lock, buried conspiracy, action thriller, mystery, espionage, and one man getting dragged back into a life he thought he had left behind.
Did they deliver?
Yes.
Fast-paced, intriguing, and built around a premise that immediately made me curious.
My only issue was that I wanted a little more character depth in places.
The mystery and action were doing most of the heavy lifting, and I think a little more emotional investment in Lars would have pushed this into five-star territory.
Petty Complaint: Lars is literally the CIA locksmith and someone still thought there was a lock he couldn't open.
That feels personally offensive.
Overall, Throw Away the Key was a smart, fast-moving thriller with a great central premise and a protagonist who has a very specific set of skills.
Four stars.
Would I recommend it?
Yes, especially for readers who like espionage, Cold War mysteries, action thrillers, secret government operations, and protagonists who solve problems with brains before bullets.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Lars Bergman is a quiet man who enjoys his status as the CIA’s locksmith. Formerly part of the CIA’s infamous Surreptitious Entry Team, Lars is now responsible for every padlock, safe, and secure door across the CIA headquarters. He has never met a lock he couldn’t pick, except for one, which he tried and failed to open during a botched mission in Warsaw at the end of the Cold War. New technology, led by his daughter, is making him increasingly redundant, and Lars is cruising toward retirement. That all changes, however, when a senior CIA official dies and Lars is called upon to open the safe in her office. Inside the safe is a clue only Lars would notice, left by someone he had worked with in his heyday. As he investigates, Lars soon realizes that his failed Warsaw operation has come back to haunt him and perhaps give him another chance at picking the one lock that eluded him. What Lars doesn’t realise is that what the lock is protecting could have dire ramifications for the organisation he has spent his whole adult life safekeeping.
It is an intriguing set-up, and the rest of the plot flows very smoothly with Hough judiciously mixing the contemporary storyline with flashbacks to the Warsaw operation. There are good twists and turns, although some are predictable, and the book moves at a very good pace. Lars’ search for the truth takes him on an exciting journey outside of America and there are some well executed set-pieces, including a tense one in a Swiss bank. Lars and the other characters are nicely etched, especially the enigmatic Miss Thorne, who has an unique and interesting job.
Adding to the enjoyment is plenty of fascinating background on locks and lockpicking, including some amusing scenes at a lockpicking conference called Lockcon. There is also the usual convincing spycraft and skillful escapes, and interesting reflections on the changing nature of espionage.
In short, Throw Away The Key is a fast paced and very exciting spy thriller, with enough quirks to raise it above most of the crowd. Put it on your ‘books to watch out for’ list.
4.5 rounded up to 5 for enjoyment value
It is an intriguing set-up, and the rest of the plot flows very smoothly with Hough judiciously mixing the contemporary storyline with flashbacks to the Warsaw operation. There are good twists and turns, although some are predictable, and the book moves at a very good pace. Lars’ search for the truth takes him on an exciting journey outside of America and there are some well executed set-pieces, including a tense one in a Swiss bank. Lars and the other characters are nicely etched, especially the enigmatic Miss Thorne, who has an unique and interesting job.
Adding to the enjoyment is plenty of fascinating background on locks and lockpicking, including some amusing scenes at a lockpicking conference called Lockcon. There is also the usual convincing spycraft and skillful escapes, and interesting reflections on the changing nature of espionage.
In short, Throw Away The Key is a fast paced and very exciting spy thriller, with enough quirks to raise it above most of the crowd. Put it on your ‘books to watch out for’ list.
4.5 rounded up to 5 for enjoyment value
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
Cryptic clues – a photograph and a seemingly innocuous document – found in the safe of a deceased senior CIA officer whom Lars worked with many years before sets him on a trail that leads back to Warsaw, the location of a failed ‘off the books’ mission back in 1989. It’s a failure that’s stuck in his mind ever since because it involved one of the very few locks he was unable to pick and, worst of all, he left a trace of his attempt to do so.
Disguising his trip as a long overdue vacation, Lars sets out on a private mission to uncover the truth, weaving a trail across Europe aimed at covering his tracks so as not to attract the attention of his bosses. It means using the ‘tradecraft’ he learned while in the field all those years ago, such as how to spot covert surveillence. Along with his exceptional lockpicking skills, he has to use a good deal of ingenuity, constructing lockpicking tools out of virtually nothing, and his ‘sixth sense’ for when something’s not quite right.
There are some terrific set-pieces, including one in a Swiss bank that could have come out of a heist movie, and some narrow escapes. Lars is definitely a character you can’t help rooting for and I liked he was able to call in favours from people he’d helped over the years.
Eventually, the trail leads back to CIA headquarters and some dramatic scenes as a conspiracy years in the making is revealed. It’s here that Lars’ ingenuity really comes to the fore, proving that the weak points in any organisation’s security are usually at the back door and come with a High Vis jacket.
It’s clear the book is the result of extensive research, especially into locks and lockpicking. I’m not sure I could unpick a lock using the descriptions in the book but that’s my failing not the author’s. However I could bandy around terms such as ‘wiper tension bar’ and ‘shim’. And I now know there is such a thing as competitive lockpicking and that there’s an annual LockCon conference attended by lockpicking experts from across the world.
Throw Away the Key is a really entertaining, well-paced spy thriller. Think the love child of Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy and Mission Impossible.
Disguising his trip as a long overdue vacation, Lars sets out on a private mission to uncover the truth, weaving a trail across Europe aimed at covering his tracks so as not to attract the attention of his bosses. It means using the ‘tradecraft’ he learned while in the field all those years ago, such as how to spot covert surveillence. Along with his exceptional lockpicking skills, he has to use a good deal of ingenuity, constructing lockpicking tools out of virtually nothing, and his ‘sixth sense’ for when something’s not quite right.
There are some terrific set-pieces, including one in a Swiss bank that could have come out of a heist movie, and some narrow escapes. Lars is definitely a character you can’t help rooting for and I liked he was able to call in favours from people he’d helped over the years.
Eventually, the trail leads back to CIA headquarters and some dramatic scenes as a conspiracy years in the making is revealed. It’s here that Lars’ ingenuity really comes to the fore, proving that the weak points in any organisation’s security are usually at the back door and come with a High Vis jacket.
It’s clear the book is the result of extensive research, especially into locks and lockpicking. I’m not sure I could unpick a lock using the descriptions in the book but that’s my failing not the author’s. However I could bandy around terms such as ‘wiper tension bar’ and ‘shim’. And I now know there is such a thing as competitive lockpicking and that there’s an annual LockCon conference attended by lockpicking experts from across the world.
Throw Away the Key is a really entertaining, well-paced spy thriller. Think the love child of Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy and Mission Impossible.
July 16, 2026
I love how unique the main character, Lars Bergman, is in this book! Imagine being a field operative locksmith, with the ability to open almost any lock in the world, to now working as “janitorial” staff back at CIA headquarters. Lars’ capabilities are very much underestimated as the contents of a safe send him on an unsanctioned chase across Europe. I was thoroughly engaged and invested in his mission from the beginning, and surprisingly, the details of picking various locks only added to the tension and thrill, instead of boring me! I did guess the villain behind all of it quite early on, but the motives were unexpected. A fun and bingeable read with a one-of-a-kind main character - definitely recommend!
Thank you to Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley for my advance copy of this book.
Thank you to Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley for my advance copy of this book.
July 10, 2026
Arc Review: This made me want to learn how to pick a lock. This was such a fun and interesting story about a former CIA locksmith turned janitor. The inclusion of all of the fieldwork and spy style CIA work was so fun to read and made me want to watch James Bond or something. I truly felt immersed in this story and loved the attention to detail for the inner workings of not only locks and lock picking but the CIA itself! Hough’s writing style is so well executed and I definitely will be keeping an eye out for his future works as well as looking for more stories similar to this!
Thank you so much to Crooked Lane for the physical ARC copy in exchange for my honest review!
Thank you so much to Crooked Lane for the physical ARC copy in exchange for my honest review!
Want to Read
July 14, 2026From Kevin Hearne's newsletter:
"As for what I’m reading: Y’ALL. I just finished reading a new one from Jason Hough. If you haven’t heard of Jason, the dude knows how to tell a story. And this new book, which comes out in July, was so much fun. It’s a modern spy thriller with a little splash of Cold War drama in there, which is of course lots of fun now that we’re no longer living in it. But I also dig it because the hero is so unlikely: An old locksmith a biscuit away from retirement."
"As for what I’m reading: Y’ALL. I just finished reading a new one from Jason Hough. If you haven’t heard of Jason, the dude knows how to tell a story. And this new book, which comes out in July, was so much fun. It’s a modern spy thriller with a little splash of Cold War drama in there, which is of course lots of fun now that we’re no longer living in it. But I also dig it because the hero is so unlikely: An old locksmith a biscuit away from retirement."
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Thanks to @crookedlanebooks and @netgalley for the advanced reader copy.
I enjoyed diving into the world of locksmiths with an international mystery. Lars leverages his “janitor” status to investigate the clues left for him. He flexes skills that he hasn’t used in years and calls in favors throughout the agency.
It was fun to watch Lars figure out the next steps and uncover the mystery - using limited technology and just basic sleuthing skills.
Overall this book is a solid mystery/thriller and one that will keep you reading to the end.
What underrated skill do you have?
I enjoyed diving into the world of locksmiths with an international mystery. Lars leverages his “janitor” status to investigate the clues left for him. He flexes skills that he hasn’t used in years and calls in favors throughout the agency.
It was fun to watch Lars figure out the next steps and uncover the mystery - using limited technology and just basic sleuthing skills.
Overall this book is a solid mystery/thriller and one that will keep you reading to the end.
What underrated skill do you have?
August 2, 2026
Brilliantly loveable characters, a well told thriller...still so curious how all these details must have been researched to create such a masterpiece
August 15, 2026
This book was great from the hook at the start to the final twist reveal at the end.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews