Moskva: 'The new Le Carre' BBC Radio 2 The Sara Cox Show

Description

Seven meets Deutschland 83 in this outstanding serial killer thriller for fans of Gorky Park or Child 44 Christmas Eve 1985. The shaved, blood drained body of a young man is found in Red Square; frozen solid - like marble to the touch - missing the little finger from his right hand. A week later, Alex Marston, the fifteen-year-old daughter of the British Ambassador disappears. Army Intelligence Officer, Tom Fox, posted to Moscow following the death of his own daughter, is asked to help find her. But as Fox's investigation drags him deeper towards the dark heart of Soviet establishment, his fears for Alex's safety grow as it looks like she could become a sadistic killer's next victim.

Jack Grimwood, a.k.a Jon Courtenay Grimwood, was born in Malta and christened in the upturned bell of a ship. He grew up in the Far East, Britain and Scandinavia. Apart from novels, he writes for national newspapers including The Times, Telegraph, Independent and Guardian. Jon is two-time winner of the BSFA Award for Best Novel, first with Felaheen, and then End of the World Blues. His literary novel, The Last Banquet, published under the name Jonathan Grimwood, was shortlisted for Le Prix Montesquieu 2015. His work has been translated into fifteen languages. He is married to the journalist and novelist Sam Baker. Island Reich is his third thriller. jackgrimwood.com jonathangrimwood.com j-cg.co.uk @joncg

Like the city herself, Jack Grimwood's Moskva is richly layered, stylish, beautifully constructed, and full of passion beneath the chills. Part political thriller, part historical novel, part a story of personal redemptions, Moskva cements Jack Grimwood as a powerful new voice in thriller writing. Not to be missed. -- Sarah Pinborough Even better than Child 44 * Telegraph * Given that the definitive thriller in 1980's Moscow already exists (Martin Cruz Smith's Gorky Park), Jack Grimwood's Moskva looks like a crazy gamble. But it's one that comes off . . . * Sunday Times * Tom Fox is well drawn, the action scenes are filled with energy and tension, but the real hero of Moskva is Russia itself, bleak, corrupt, falling apart, but with an incurable humanity -- Tom Callaghan A compulsive and supremely intelligent thriller from a master stylist -- Michael Marshall A first-rate thriller - Moskva grips from the very first page. Heartily recommended -- William Ryan Hard to know what to praise first here: the operatic sweep of this mesmerising novel; the surefooted orchestration of tension; or the vividly realised sense of time and place; all of these factors mark Jack Grimwood's Moskva out as something special in the arena of international thrillers -- Barry Forshaw * Financial Times * Memorable characters, powerful recreations of history and an unrelenting pace that will keep you breathless. A striking debut in the genre. -- Maxim Jakubowski A sublime writer . . . I felt glimmers of Le Carre shining through the prose. -- CrimeSquad If you love thrillers Jack Grimwood is the name you need to remember... -- Viv Groskop * BBC Radio 2, Sara Cox Show *