Jason Matthews is a 33 year veteran of the CIA, who has turned his considerable knowledge of espionage into a fantastic debut novel.  Reviewers have said it is the best thriller you will read this year.

Jason and his wife (who also worked for the CIA) appeared on CBS This Morning on June 4^th.  They gave a fascinating interview recounting their lives as CIA agents.  You can view it here.

Mr. Matthews is the first American spy to take a turn at writing fiction.  Authors John le Carre, John Buchan, Graham Greene, Somerset Maugham, Ian Fleming and Stella Rimington all worked for the British intelligence community.

Red Sparrow is about a hotheaded rookie spy, Nathaniel Nash, who is pitted against a gorgeous Russian intelligence officer, Dominika Egorova.  The story takes place in Moscow, Helsinki, Athens and Washington.  Mr. Matthews is very skilled with his writing – smart, fluent, great dialogue and extremely knowledgeable.  The book is filled with seemingly classified information –  both American and Russian.  It’s a wonder the manuscript got past the redacting committee at Langley!

If you like thrillers, you’ll want to put Red Sparrow on your summer reading list!