An extremely effective modern espionage novel, filled with action and incident but also a profound knowledge of the people and factions of Syria, the complex maneuvers of spycraft, the gray areas, competing egos and overlapping priorities that make every day a journey through the minefield….[A] dazzling debut." Booktrib - Neil Nyren As a result, he had an easy time when CIA censors reviewed his work. “I did my own kind of filtering…I might have had one hundred fifty footnotes in there to show where stuff had already been through the PRB or where it just existed in the public domain, outside of WikiLeaks and stuff—which doesn't really count when you're trying to source things with them. So as a result, you know, they didn't touch much, to be honest.” Bashar was never meant to be president, but was thrust into the position after the death of his elder brother Bassel. While many at the time hoped Bashar, a trained ophthalmologist with a very-Western oriented wife, would open up the country, ushering in a new prosperity, reality turned out very different. Indeed, the Assad’s extended family system of governance was so entrenched, any demand for change was seen as an existential threat. Inspired by the Arab Spring elsewhere in the Middle East, young Syrians took to the street asking “why not us?” and demanded change from the Assads. Their protests were met with repression, violence, imprisonment, and abuse.

But the cat and mouse chase for the killer soon leads to a trail of high-profile assassinations and the discovery of a dark secret at the heart of the Syrian regime, bringing the pair under the all-seeing eyes of Assad’s spy catcher, Ali Hassan, and his brother Rustum, the head of the feared Republican Guard. Superb breathlessly gripping thrilling & truly terrifying, written in unadorned style by an CIA agent, almost real in its details of CIA espionage in Syria, savage feuds within Assad palace, intrigues of Mideast. Highly recommended' - Simon Sebag MontefioreSuperb breathlessly gripping thrilling & truly terrifying, written in unadorned style by an CIA agent, almost real in its details of CIA espionage in Syria, savage feuds within Assad palace, intrigues of Mideast. Highly recommended‘– Simon Sebag Montefiore

Dagher also brings the civil war home, connecting the reader with every day average Syrians. He writes affectionally of those fighting to survive on the front line, continuing to advocate (at the time of writing) for freedom and reform, and those part of the Local Coordination Committees—organizers of and reporters on, the protests on-the-ground. The tragedy is that the reader knows, especially now, that their efforts will not prove to be successful. Sam pursues the brothers with surveillance assistance and monitoring from CIA headquarters, along with an extensive human network inside Syria. He also identifies a potential insider who can help—Mariam, whose family is tied in with the regime but who also has reason to harbor hatred for the system. Were she to be discovered as an opponent of the regime, Mariam and everyone around her would face certain death. Summary: A CIA recruiter is tasked with recruiting a Syrian women with ties to the West to help find an American CIA agent being held is a Syrian torture chamber. Cloudy relationships may impede progress. Damascus Station by David was an outstanding read. Honestly I've never read a book with spies before.CIA case officer Sam Joseph, the hero of former CIA analyst McCloskey’s exhilarating debut, aims to recruit Mariam Haddad, an official who works at Damascus’s Syrian Palace, in Paris. At a diplomatic party, Sam rescues Mariam, who’s part of a Syrian government delegation, from the unwanted attentions of another guest, and they agree to meet for a drink the next evening. Mariam becomes a CIA asset, Sam teaches her the tradecraft she needs to operate without detection under the watchful eyes of her palace superiors, and they begin an illicit love affair. Sam follows Mariam to Damascus, where the plan is to hunt down a brutal pair of brothers, palace officials who kidnapped and killed an American spy. Their mission expands to deal with a larger threat. McCloskey portrays the brutal inner functioning of the Assad regime, as well as the CIA’s occasional ineptitude, while detailing such elements of spy craft as avoiding tails, maximizing dead drops, and operating safe houses. Refreshingly, as shown in the relationship between Sam and Mariam, he dares to be sentimental. Espionage fans will eagerly await his next. Agent: Rafe Sagalyn, ICM/Sagalyn. (Oct.) Publishers Weekly An astonishingly accomplished debut that masterfully mixes action, tradecraft lore, a grown-up Romeo and Juliet story and bags of untold intelligence about the conflict’– John Dugdale, The Times Best Thriller Books of 2023 McCloskey’s character development is rich and thoroughly enjoyable. Nearly every character, and there are many, receive an attention to detail that brings them to life, even if they are secondary to the plot. The analyst Zelda, the Office of Technical Services bombmaker Paulina, the Russian Volkov, the list goes on by McCloskey manages to imbue them with personality and vividness in a few short sentences, making them feel important and life-like. My personal favorite character was Artemis Aphrodite Procter, the no-nonsense Chief of Station Damascus, who suffers no fools and supports her people in the field, even if they require a punch in the mouth.