Doomed Spy

by J.R. Rogers

As a British spy and Soviet mole Edgar Davies knew, and as everyone else in MI6 must have known, there was only one way to catch a spy and that was to discover him in his act of betrayal. Davies, an ordinary man disenchanted with his life, plans to defect to the Soviet Union and bring with him years worth of British operational secrets. From Leopoldville in the Congo, to the quiet South American capital of Montevideo, Uruguay, Doomed Spy is a psychological spy thriller set in an unconventional distant posting at the height of the Cold War. At the center of the intrigue are three intelligence officers: Edgar Davies, a seasoned British MI6 officer posted to Montevideo, Anastas Molotov, a young KGB officer who had befriended him last year in Africa, and now wants to defect and, across town operating from his secure attic command post in the Italianate mansion that is the Soviet Embassy, the KGB Rezident, Colonel Oleg Nadiensky.
Davies and Nadiensky are seasoned operatives in the opaque clandestine world of espionage. But to the casual eye, and on the diplomatic cocktail circuit where the two are never seen together, the Britisher is not what he seems. He has close secret ties to the Rezident who recruited him years ago in Belgium. All the while Molotov is carefully crafting his own plan to defect to the British, bringing with him an explosive secret.
With a cast of unforgettable characters, and a compelling plot, Doomed Spy is an extraordinarily evocative human drama charged with friendship, illicit love, and betrayal that powerfully evokes the tension, people, and intrigue of the Cold War.

453 pages, Paperback

First published March 12, 2013

About the author

J.R.ROGERS is a novelist of 20th century foreign intrigue and espionage thrillers. He has written eight novels with this theme and is working on his ninth due in 2024 titled An Assemblage of Spies and set in Havana and Valparaiso, Chile in the 1940s.

He also writes short stories that have been published in Steam Ticket, TrainWrite, The Legendary, TRC, The Copperfield Review, Outside In Literary and Travel Magazine, River & South Review and Driftwood Press.

Reviews

[Patrick Greenwood · Rating 5 out of 5]

A riveting cold war novel with impeccable story telling!

What is exceptionally crafted novel with so much intrigue, drama, and plot twists. Not since John Le Clare'S TINKER. TAILOR, SOLDER, SPY have I been so well entrenched with the great spy novel! A true must read!!

[Carmen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this novel quite engaging despite some of its flawed characters; and at times thought that the spying occupation sounded a little mafia-like to me with the way they dispose of members who have gotten themselves into compromising positions. I wonder what happened to Edgar Davies wife at the end of the novel. I got a copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Skyler Boudreau · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m left a little conflicted on this one. I loved the beginning, but as the story progressed, I found myself losing interest. A full review can be found on my website.
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[D.A. Bale · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had mixed emotions about this novel and am having difficulty placing a rating on it. As a child growing up in the Cold War era and the saber-rattling threat of nuclear war at the forefront, I was immediately intrigued and drawn into once again visiting the realm of the spy network.

I secretly dreamed of being a spy, you know. Confession time too - I actually know someone who was a spy during this time period. :-)

So going in, I was immediately pulled into the espionage and intrigue on the sides of the Soviets and the British, their work dancing with one another as they tried to turn the other into double agents. The urgency of the young Soviet spy worrying about his wife back home was palpable, the worry of the aging agents as they tired of the game and looked forward to retirement - but couldn't let their guard down yet, and the myriad of support teams on both sides of the equation as they tried to read one another and discover who was real and who was Memorex.

But before a quarter of the way into the story, it was pretty obvious who the turncoat was and then the story blatantly revealed that information - and I didn't like that. Immediately the palpable tension and sense of urgency in the story deflated like a popped balloon and the wind in my sails died out with the revelation. Yes, again it was already obvious, but I feel it would have been so much better if that information had been strung along - like Kevin Costner's character in the movie No Way Out. After that the story merely rambled for me, and I quickly lost interest about events and what happened with the characters.

The initial descriptions of the scene and setting were great, giving me a sense of actually being there. However, description at times became overwhelming and rambling about the smallest details that began to detract from the story instead of enhance it. Pacing dragged and made it feel as if I was slogging through heavy, wet concrete.

Point of view changed many times within a scene but avoided being jarring most of the time because once it switched hands, it typically stayed in that one head until the next switch within that scene. This could easily be fixed in most cases by simply adding a scene break. I personally feel that would also help speed pacing somewhat by breaking up several overlong chapters.

Initially the characters were intriguing, but as the story moved forward they rather lost a sense of depth and seemed to be making decisions or doing things simply because that was the way the story was supposed to go. I could understand if someone did something out of character once or twice, but to change entirely was a bit much. Some motivations felt muddled, as if even they weren't sure why they were doing something but they did it anyway - and most of the time to their own detriment. Most people learn to trust their instincts and respond accordingly (especially trained spies). It left me scratching my head several times that the characters didn't stay true to themselves.

I kept reading, though, expecting some big, spectacular finish that maybe I wasn't seeing coming. The end came and went - and I turned off my Kindle feeling even more deflated. When I picked up this novel I expected something along the lines of the aforementioned movie. Sadly it didn't stir me.

Were there times when my heart was pumping? Yes. Did I feel like I was present in the location(s)? Yes. Was it intriguing revisiting the Cold War? Yes.

And for that I'll settle on a very tentative three star rating.

[Yves Fey · Rating 4 out of 5]

J.R. Rogers weaves a complex, layered tapestry where the muted grey tones of the spy world are brightened by the sun-washed colors of Montevideo, and centered with a splash of blood. The book builds smoothly, becoming more enthralling as the wide array of deftly drawn characters are put into play—characters whose values vary from morally ambiguous to morally bankrupt. The capital of Uruguay in the year 1961 is the unusual primary setting, but we are often whisked away, like the spies, to the Congo, to England, and to Russia. America is there, but only as myth. Doomed Spy is an absorbing read, and lovers of Le Carré, Graham Greene, and Charles McCarry should be happy to embark on this intricately plotted novel. While not as rich stylistically as those masters, the writing is strong and sound. Rogers uses both wide strokes and carefully selected detail to firmly ground the reader in the reality of this all too nebulous world of intrigue and betrayal. In this world, lives are lost on the simplest misstep, carefully constructed plots vanish into thin air, and the characters variously bumble and nimbly dodge through the shadows, not knowing they are on their way to doom.