Red Sparrow | A Rose for Sergei

I recently finished reading Red Sparrow by Jason Matthews.  It’s a fiction spy vs. spy thriller.  Mr. Matthews, a former CIA operative, gives you an inside peek at clandestine goings on in the world in his award winning first novel.  He had me at espionage.  I’ve always loved mystery and intrigue.

One of my favorite lines from Red Sparrow:

“We cannot have foreign diplomats harmed on the streets, even if they are meeting with Russian traitors,” said Egorov with a snort.  “The FBI will start mugging our officers in Georgetown if this happens again.”

—Jason Matthews

This passage caught my attention because of my own true story, A Rose for Sergei, about meeting and dating Soviet KGB defector Sergei Kourdakov.  Sergei’s cautious actions were very similar to the people in Red Sparrow.  I wasn’t completely surprised at some of the things Mr. Matthews talked about because of where I used to work.  His book, however, was an eye-opener for me concerning all the foreign agents strolling around.  My heart raced when I read how they stealthily conducted surveillance.

My take-a-way from his book?  I now realize why I never noticed anyone following Sergei and me, even though Sergei warned me.  I wasn’t trained in that area, but Sergei was.  He knew.  My heart-stopping moments when reading Red Sparrow?  I also now know why Sergei Kourdakov always insisted that I drive, and why he slid out of view in the car seat whenever we went out.

Red Sparrow is an incredible read, one that I can highly recommend.  Excellent book Mr. Matthews!  You gave this writer the chills.

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