To be honest, I have no admiration for the CIA, particularly because they are always portrayed - and are here as well - as being gung ho American even to the extent of making sure that American fast food is available. McCloskey says there was a hot dog vending machine in the original headquarters building and it may still be there.

The author is a former CIA analyst and his knowledge is all over this superb debut spy thriller … full of the paranoia, tedium and terror of spying’ – The Sun Change the plan you will roll onto at any time during your trial by visiting the “Settings & Account” section. What happens at the end of my trial? David McCloskey is a former CIA analyst whose writing bears the stamp of authenticity, and the book has received much praise by former Agency personnel. It was a finalist for the International Thriller Writers’ Best First Novel Award in 2022. Narrator Andrew Wehrlen is described as having a strong, friendly and confident voice, and he uses it to make Sam Joseph a convincing American character. At the same time, he manages to create distinctive voices for the many Syrian characters as well.Damascus Station is simply intoxicating. A vortex of love, loyalty, murder and damn good espionage." Don Hepburn Other details jump out at the reader as well, and I had to ask him about a few of them. True or false? But the cat and mouse chase for the killer soon leads to a trail of high-profile assassinations and the discovery of a dark secret at the heart of the Syrian regime, bringing the pair under the all-seeing eyes of Assad’s spy catcher, Ali Hassan, and his brother Rustum, the head of the feared Republican Guard. For cost savings, you can change your plan at any time online in the “Settings & Account” section. If you’d like to retain your premium access and save 20%, you can opt to pay annually at the end of the trial. Ultimately, I was interested in telling an authentic story: one that described the actual CIA, its tradecraft and operations and the real Syrian war. The story came to life as I wrote. Over time — and this was not obvious at the beginning, by the way — it became clear that the relationship between Sam and Mariam was this story’s emotional core. Their relationship provided a lens for the operations, the intrigue and the civil war. The novel became their story.

A thrilling portrayal of espionage, love and betrayal… utterly brilliant& guaranteed to keep you pinned to your sunlounger’– Dorset Magazine Author David McCloskey was a Syria specialist for the CIA for six years. He knows whereof he writes in this novel about espionage in Syria. Damascus Station is filled with the acronyms and jargon that officers of the agency, like employees throughout the government, throw around so casually. Employees of the Agency are officers, never “agents.” Spies recruited within Syria are “assets,” or, rarely, agents. He describes in detail the techniques Sam uses in his two tours in Syria to avoid detection. And he introduces us to gadgets developed by the CIA’s Technical Services Division that would make James Bond’s Q salivate with envy. The book comes across as a primer on tradecraft.Q: Sam tells Mariam about a handler who used a taxidermied cat as a dead drop, “The agent would stuff papers and messages in a compartment that had once held intestines.” Damascus Station is simply marvellous storytelling...a stand-out thriller and essential reading for fans of the genre' - Financial Times Mr. McCloskey, who grew up in Minnesota and studied international relations, worked as a political analyst in CIA headquarters and from field stations in the Middle East. For an authentic representation of what it’s like to work in intelligence, look no further than Damascus Station. McCloskey has captured it all: the breathtaking close calls, the hand in glove of tech and ops, the heartbreaking disappointments, the thrill of a hard-won victory." Alma Katsu Superb breathlessly gripping thrilling & truly terrifying, written in unadorned style by an CIA agent, almost real in its details of CIA espionage in Syria, savage feuds within Assad palace, intrigues of Mideast. Highly recommended' - Simon Sebag Montefiore

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In Syria, a CIA officer has disappeared, and presumed killed. Sam Joseph is a CIA case officer in Paris and is tasked with recruiting Mariam Haddad, a Syrian national who works in the Syrian palace. The plan is for them to work together to identify the man responsible for the missing spy. However, Miriam is a beautiful woman and during the course of the recruitment, they fall for each other. Sam knows this is forbidden by the CIA; a case officer should never enter into a relationship with an agent. He struggles to hold his distance and assumes that once in Damascus, they will see each other only as the mission requires. I could not put down McCloskey’s gripping spy novel Damascus Station.…A must-read for anyone interested in Syria or espionage." Clarissa Ward Damascus Station is simply marvellous storytelling… a stand-out thriller and essential reading for fans of the genre’– Financial Times If you do nothing, you will be auto-enrolled in our premium digital monthly subscription plan and retain complete access for 65 € per month.

Q: Live bomb tests have been used on cadavers wheeled out on Rollerblades and suspended on IV poles.

Featured Reviews

But the cat and mouse chase for the killer soon leads to a trail of high-profile assassinations and the discovery of a dark secret at the heart of the Syrian regime, bringing the pair under the all-seeing eyes of Assad's spy catcher, Ali Hassan, and his brother Rustum, the head of the feared Republican Guard. Damascus Station is simply marvellous storytelling...a stand-out thriller and essential reading for fans of the genre." Financial Times