Red Sparrow

A Novel

By: Jason Matthews

Narrated by: Jeremy Bobb

Length: 17 hrs and 55 mins

Publisher's summary

The start of a major career! A gripping, highly commercial espionage thriller written with the delicious insider detail and up-to-the-minute insight only known to a veteran CIA spook.

In today's Russia, dominated by Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, state intelligence officer Dominika Egorova struggles to survive in the cast-iron bureaucracy of post-Soviet intelligence. Drafted against her will to become a "Sparrow" - a trained seductress in the service, Dominika is assigned to operate against Nathaniel Nash, a first-tour CIA officer who handles the CIA's most sensitive penetration of Russian intelligence. The two young intelligence officers, trained in their respective spy schools, collide in a charged atmosphere of tradecraft, deception, and inevitably, a forbidden spiral of carnal attraction that threatens their careers and the security of America's valuable mole in Moscow.

Seeking revenge against her soulless masters, Dominika begins a fatal double life, recruited by the CIA to ferret out a high-level traitor in Washington - hunt down a Russian illegal buried deep in the U.S. military and, against all odds, to return to Moscow as the new-generation penetration of Putin's intelligence service. Dominika and Nathaniel's impossible love affair and twisted spy game come to a deadly conclusion in the shocking climax of this electrifying, up-to-the minute spy thriller.

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©2013 Jason Matthews (P)2013 Simon & Schuster Audio

One of the Best Espionage Thrillers I've Ever Read

Smart and offering authentic spycraft detail accompanied by literary and psychological complexity and craftmanship,. With the boldness and sophisticated story-telling that made it cat-nip for a major film studio auction, Jason Matthews pulls off a rare combination of tension and romance. The menu of dishes at the end of each chapter, featuring a surprising blend of communist and capitalistic cuisine, is a playful and amusing counterpoint to the tension and real-life drama of the story. The narrator is brilliant in not overplaying the characters yet managing to convey the essence of each.person's life force. Perhaps, the best espionage thriller I have ever read!

More spy details than romance, but good

I don't normally read spy novels, but I love James Bond and Mission Impossible movies, and hubby and I were going to be listening on a road trip, so I opted for this book that sounded part spy novel, part romance.

It is written by a real intelligence agent apparently, and I can believe it, as the book had amazing details about how spies move, think, operate. These details made the story richer and fascinating, in my opinion.

The romance was definitely in there, but the reason I can't call the story really a romance has to do with the way the book was written: There is little dialogue, with the narrator telling you what characters are doing, feeling, thinking. That, plus the narrator's even, cool tone of voice kept the reader/listener at more of a distance. The romance was one aspect among many in the plot, no more no less.

I got caught up in the story because of the author's ability to build the characters (and fast!) and to make you feel you're right there. I think the story was somewhat predictable, which is strange for a spy novel (and to a newbie spy reader at that) but that did not detract at all from wanting to know the details of how it was going to play out.

I'm not sure how to rate the narrator, whether it was his reading or the author's "voice" (style of writing) coming through. The narrator was easy to understand and got inflections right on emotions when there was dialogue but overall he used an almost monotone or rather mono-emotion delivery with a cadence and pacing that was superimposed almost over the story. It did not detract from nor aid the story. In a way, it was perfectly fitting that it was cold ad distant, seeming to just "tell it like it is." Was his voice entertaining, no.

One issue I had with the audible experience was that the author tended to start chapters with this format: Mr. Smith, seeing that it was noon, headed out and.....That's not from the book! But starting the chapter with a name, and often the name is Russian and they all sound the same to me, means that I don't hear it at first and then a sentence or two later I'm wondering who is doing the action. In a printed book you can go back and look (and I also have a good visual memory) but you can't do that with an audible version (hard to find the right place to go back to) so at times I just had to listen and work it out.

Both hubby and I looked forward to getting back in the car after a pit stop to hear what happened next, so it worked great for our road trip!

Intense and So Entertaining--a new genre for me!

I never thought I would be interested in a spy story. Red Sparrow, however, was a great listen. I am very glad that I gave this new type of novel (for me) a chance and that I stumbled across this particular book, thanks to the great reviews from other listeners. I am hovering between four and five stars and only at the end of this review will I know what I decide.

There are lots of descriptions of what the story is about, so I won't try to do my own version. I will just say that I was captured right away and spent the greater part of two days glued to my little mp3 Sport, listening. It wasn't easy finding enough things to do that could support also listening to an audiobook for those many hours!

I enjoyed the characters, all of them. They were each fascinating in their own way, the good along with the evil ones. I especially liked Dominika, who was certainly not one-dimensional and often surprised me with her behaviors. And yet, her behavior was always reasonable given her circumstances, once I thought about it for a while.

I feel this is an author that knows his stuff and he confidently shows it. He knows it from the inside, which you will learn if you read his bio. I am sure we will hear a lot more from him in the future. Additionally, the narrator did a great job, too.

So, I am giving the book 4 1/2 stars and rounding up. Highly recommended to anyone who likes spy stories and those who would like to give one a try. I will be purchasing book 2 in the series in the near future!

Yeah... It's a winner!

There are not a lot of reviews on this book which is why I will chime in with my thoughts.

This is a first time author, and he has done an excellent job. I will certainly be an early reader of his next offering.

The Publisher's Summary is a tad melodramatic, but it is designed to sell as we all know. Still, no major errors.

This is for sure a clever spy novel, but to compare it to John le Carré as did one reviewer? Nope... but that is NOT to say it is not a great read. It is just that le Carré expects a sophisticated and highly educated reader and allows the plot to develop in the readers mind, and for that reason, he writes for a far more narrow audience.

Jason Matthews is what I would call, “A writer for the common man”, and that is NOT a negative. John le Carré is a hard read for many. With Matthews there is no need here to have your dictionary nor a bucket of patience at hand awaiting plot development. Matthews does an excellent job of building suspense right from the start... something I learned early to my regret in Chapter 1 when I decided to be late to a meeting just see what happened to the protagonist Nathaniel Nash. Caught me nicely off guard.

Recipes

If you have read the other reviews, you see some negative comments about the recipes. Oh geez people... get over it. This author ends each chapter with a recipe. So what! Sometimes they are what the characters ate in that chapter... other times just recipes more or less related to location/country. Any time an author uses his imagination to make his novel a bit different is, to me, a clever divergence from the norm. Just make sure you are not reading this book on an empty stomach... some of those recipes sound awfully good!

Authentic Detail

Ummm... I have no idea if all the details are authentic, and I doubt if there are many who do. Dominika (the Russian agent) supposedly was sent the Sparrow School where female spies were taught the sexual arts to use as agents. There seems to be no hard data to confirm the existence of a Sparrow School, but Tom Clancy did introduce the idea in one of his books. Who cares? It plays well in this book. As for all the other details? Same thing... I really read books like this for enjoyment. They call it fiction for a reason. It feels authentic and to me that is what is most important in a fiction novel. The CIA certainly does not come out looking much better than the old KGB, but that should probably not be much of a surprise.

Sex

OK... now I have your attention... Jason Matthews writes really good sex scenes! No raw nasty overdone fornication here. He gives the reader the passion without the need for vulgarity. I suspicion women will like this (though I may by just be inadvertently a sexist pig). In fact he writes it so well, especially from what I am guessing is the female point of view, that Jason Matthews is clearly in touch with his feminine side. Further, as sex between the lead characters is forbidden, it makes the wait all the better.


The Reader

Jeremy Bobb tries. He really does. However, he just reads... That's it. He simply does not have the breadth to bring life to the many characters and makes no attempt to add the accents and characterization so important in a novel of this type. I would suggest someone like John Lee for future novels, though there are certain many who could master the accents and make the book even better.


Overall?

The book offers lots of intrigue, action, suspense and enough humor that the other stuff does not overwhelm the reader. Unlikely to win any awards, but absolutely worth a credit and a few hours of your time. Get it.... oh... and be prepared for a follow-up novel. We leave a character nicely dangling!

Great book! Very well read.

There were times when the story would go so deep that you find yourself thinking "OK. I get it!" but he pulls it off the burner just before you say it. Its all worth it in the end.

better than the movie

I like many I would imagine found this book because of the movie (which I enjoyed). However my big concern was would it be the same exact story as I had seen on the big screen. I can assure you this is worth a listen to as its different enough from the movie. Granted it is the same. asic plot however many things were different and I
really enjoyed it.

Excellent story...I hope he writes a follow-up

A great thriller. It will hold you spell bound. A must listen to! I loved every minute.

More writing-less food....

What made the experience of listening to Red Sparrow the most enjoyable?

The overall story captured you from the beginning to the end.

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

Yes, you are just waiting for Dominka and Nate to 'really' get together.

Which character – as performed by Jeremy Bobb – was your favorite?

No one in particular, he did a very nice job.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Unfortunately already taken by Ian Fleming...From Russia with Love

Any additional comments?

Great plot, great story, had me captured...but honestly the food aspects were not necessary, when I got to that portion of the tape, I just moved onto the next chapter.

1st chaps hard to follow but then I was HOOKED!

I had to listen to the beginning chapters a few times, rewinding again to replay in attempt to follow what the heck just happened, who is who, where and when. I'm not sure if it was losing my attention and I was getting distracted or if it truly was a little confusing. All at once it came together all caught my attention and I was hooked! I did find some of the Russian names challenging to keep straight, especially the rhyming names, but that's a "me" problem, not a story or narration problem.
There were several opportunities to end the story but then I was pleasantly surprised to hear the narrator continue.
I was so addicted that when it did end I had that sad feeling when you wishfully search for a sequel to a story you aren't ready to let go of yet. GREAT NEWS, it's a trilogy! I had no idea, but immediately purchased book2. I'm downloading it as soon as I finish this review.

Just a GREAT all around book and listen!

What made the experience of listening to Red Sparrow the most enjoyable?

It's the story & it's really good!

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

Loved the way it made you think of difficult issues and brought out the "what would I do" in me!

Which character – as performed by Jeremy Bobb – was your favorite?

I loved the way he delivered the beautiful young lady!

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

It made me think how happy I am to be an American and how proud I am of the NSA & CIA! They aint perfect, but their mine!

Any additional comments?

Really look forward to next book!