Review: Moscow X by David McCloskey

I enjoyed Damascus Station, but this book didn’t work nearly as well for me. One problem is that the characters just aren’t as interesting; Artemis (Proctor) is awesome, but we see very little of her after the fun opening scene, and Sia, Max, and Anna aren’t nearly as interesting, and don’t feel like real people. Another problem is there just doesn’t seem to be as much at stake: the operatives are middling criminals in Russia, and the consequences of all the spy work is to create a minor annoyance for Putin (a slap on the wrists). Finally, it doesn’t feel as gritty and tense as the previous book. It’s still reasonably entertaining, and I appreciate an attempt to tell a story of somewhat realistic-sounding intelligence work, but it doesn’t come together as whole.

Rating: 3 stars