A Reluctant Spy, David Goodman
A Reluctant Spy, David Goodman
List: $31.99 | Sale: $22.40
Club: $15.99

A Reluctant Spy
A gripping spy thriller debut

Author: David Goodman

Narrator: Norman Bowman

Unabridged: 10 hr 59 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Headline

Published: 09/17/2024


Synopsis

RIGHT PLACE. RIGHT TIME. WRONG MAN.

'Engrossing...ingenious...Goodman combines traditional elements - the nods to Buchan, Fleming and le Carré - with the topicality of 2020s technology and the threat from Russia' SUNDAY TIMES, THRILLERS OF THE MONTH
'A gripping debut, perfect for fans of Mick Herron and David McCloskey' THE SUN
'A twisty storyline and convincing action scenes make this a very promising debut' FINANCIAL TIMES
'A twisting, edge-of-your-seat tale of mercenaries, greed, corruption, and espionage' I.S. BERRY

Jamie Tulloch is a successful exec at a top tech company, a long way from the tough upbringing that drove him to rise so far and so quickly.

But he has a secret...since the age of 23, he's had a helping hand from the Legend Programme, a secret intelligence effort to prepare impenetrable backstories for undercover agents. Real people, living real lives, willing to hand over their identities for a few weeks in return for a helping hand with plum jobs, influence and access.

When his tap on the shoulder finally comes, it's swiftly followed by the thud of a body. Arriving at a French airport ready to hand over his identity, Jamie finds his primary contact dead, the agent who's supposed to step into his life AWOL and his options for escape non-existent.

Pitched into a deadly mission on hostile territory, Jamie must contend with a rogue Russian general, arms dealers, elite hackers, CIA tac-ops and the discovery of a brewing plan for war. Dangerously out of his depth, he must convince his sceptical mission handler he can do the job of a trained field agent while using his own life story as convincing cover.

Can Jamie play himself well enough to avoid being killed - and to avert a lethal global conflict?

'In the very top tier of espionage fiction' M. W. CRAVEN
'An excellent debut with terrific pace...will grip you to the end' JAMES SWALLOW
'I was on the edge of my seat the whole time' ANTONY JOHNSTON
'A rip-roaring page-turning keep-you-up-all-night thriller' NICHOLAS BINGE, author of ASCENSION
'Smart, riveting, and eerily prescient' SUNYI DEAN, Sunday Times Bestselling author of THE BOOK EATERS
'A pulse-pounding, twisting thrill-a-minute read that Slow Horses fans are going to absolutely love' ADAM SIMCOX

About David Goodman

David Goodman is an author of espionage and speculative fiction. He lives in East Lothian, Scotland with his family. You can learn more about David and his writing at his website, www.davidgoodman.net.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Anna on June 28, 2024

How on earth is this a debut novel? Takes everything I love about military fiction and distils it down into a tightly-plotted, fast-paced, complex espionage tale with a very human element. The twin storylines in London and Zanzibar were seamlessly interwoven so that I was fully invested in both, and......more

Goodreads review by Shauna on September 26, 2024

I'm not hugely into the spy/thriller genre - the story really has to be excellent for me to get into it. And this is such a book. It had me turning the pages into the early hours and I can absolutely see why this has already been optioned for TV. There is lots of action, nice twists and interesting c......more

Goodreads review by Lia on March 13, 2024

David Goodman is an excellent author. His short fiction in Clarkesworld is masterful and I was thrilled to be an early reader of A Reluctant Spy—where it turns out he's just as good at immersing his readers in farflung global destinations and pacy modern thriller twists. His knowledge of spycraft is......more

Goodreads review by Claire on January 31, 2025

Bordering on 4.5 stars!! Not being a big fan of the spy genre, but needing to read a spy novel for a book bingo competition, I was a little apprehensive when starting this book but it was gripping and I really enjoyed it!! Fast paced, full of twists and great characters- couldn't help but root for J......more

Goodreads review by Oliver on December 08, 2024

I read this just a week or two after MW Craven’s “Fearless” (cf. my review thereof) and was again left with the impression that the author's primary motivation in writing the book was to sell the film rights - it's another all-action thriller, even more gory and politically relevant this time, and s......more


Quotes

Innocents have been caught up in espionage ever since The Thirty-Nine Steps. David Goodman's engrossing thriller offers an ingenious variation on the trope. Goodman combines traditional elements - the nods to Buchan, Fleming and le Carré - with the topicality of 2020s technology and the threat from Russia SUNDAY TIMES

A rip-roaring page-turning keep-you-up-all-night thriller

Delving into the messy alliances of our post-Cold War world, A Reluctant Spy delivers a twisting, edge-of-your-seat tale of mercenaries, greed, corruption, and espionage set in sultry Zanzibar. Taut and suspenseful, it's as sharp as the salt and lime on a Tanzanian margarita.

Ultra-modern espionage, globe-trotting action and high-octane fun - this is Spooks on steroids

Gleaming with freshness and verve, A Reluctant Spy is a pulse-pounding, twisting thrill-a-minute read that Slow Horses fans are going to absolutely love. There's a new spy king in town...

Smart, riveting, and eerily prescient

A brilliant high concept, fast-moving and impeccably told. I was on the edge of my seat the whole time.

A Reluctant Spy hits the ground running and never lets up. Clever, witty and all too believable; it's in the very top tier of espionage fiction

All-too-relatable spy thriller that raised my heart rate and kept it hammering.

A Reluctant Spy is electrifying - a razor-sharp, warp-speed, tech-savvy spy thriller with a bang up-to-date geopolitical backdrop. Goodman will have you on the edge of your seat until the last page.