Countdown

Maverick CIA agent Kirk McGarvey is given the task of stopping Arkady Kurshin, a ruthless assassin operating under the directives of a mad KGB colonel out to destroy glasnost and rekindle the Cold War

In this follow-up to Without Honor, Hagberg reintroduces CIA assassin Kirk McGarvey to unravel a complex puzzle that begins with Soviet agents infiltrating a nuclear center in Israel and hijacking a Pershing missile in Germany. KGB chief Valentin Baranov and his bloodthirsty field man Arkady Kurshin plan to reactivate the Cold War by destroying Israel's nuclear capacity and bringing down Gorbachev. McGarvey's heroics--ranging from Washington to Berlin--foil the scheme. Hagburg, an experienced adventure novelist, borrows from the best: his characters are reminiscent of Ian Fleming; his atmosphere of betrayal and disillusion owes much to John le Carre; and his novel's most exciting episode involves a submarine subplot worthy of Tom Clancy. Though Countdown offers few surprises, it is also a well-crafted secret-agent thriller that will not disappoint fans of the genre.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.

In this sequel to Without Honor (Tor Bks., 1989), a paperback original, Kirk McGarvey, ex-CIA assassin, is called into service again as his old enemy, Valentin Baranov, now head of the KGB, begins a move toward the annihilation of Israel and the destruction of Soviet-American relations. Baranov's goal is to bring down Gorbachev and take his place. He has sent Colonel Kurshin to steal a nuclear cruise missile and launch it at En Gedi, where Israel's secret nuclear weapons are stored. Foiled by McGarvey, Kurshin next kidnaps the nuclear submarine Indianapolis . As the tale rolls to a violent conclusion, the author deftly leads McGarvey toward the identity of a Russian mole entrenched in the CIA. Hagberg, who also writes as Sean Flannery, turns glasnost into a springboard for a new crop of espionage tales. This is a nonstop thriller, packed with suspense and action.
- Jo Ann Vicarel, Cleveland Heights - University Heights P.L., Ohio
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.