The Defection of A.J. Lewinter - (Shades of Grey) by Robert Littell (Paperback)

About the Book

"American scientist A.J. Lewinter has been a cog in the machine for a long time. Stuck studying ceramic nose cones for ballistic missiles, he has spent most of his academic career being overlooked. When he rushes into the Russian Embassy offering to defect, however, he finds himself suddenly in the spotlight, caught in a deadly cat-and-mouse game between the Soviet Union and the United States. On the Soviet side, Moscow's most powerful are hoarding resources, leaving the people hungry. In the US, public support is waning as more and more Americans protest the war. The deadlock has to end, but nobody wants to be the first to pull the trigger. Lewinter's appearance is a wild card and neither the KGB nor the CIA knows what to expect from him, but both sides know this-if he's telling the truth, his information could be the turning point of the Cold War. A darkly funny spy thriller that cemented longtime navy officer and foreign correspondent Robert Littell as one of the most brilliant voices of espionage fiction, The Defection of A.J. Lewinter is a shockingly prescient portrayal of international politics"--

Book Synopsis

A new edition of the spy classic by Robert Littell, New York Times bestselling master of the espionage thriller.

The black comedy follows a pawn in the American military complex whose decision to change sides might determine the outcome of the Cold War.

An engineer who's spent most of his career studying ceramic nose cones for ballistic missiles, American scientist A.J. Lewinter is used to being a cog in the military-industrial complex--until, while at a conference in Tokyo, he rushes into the Russian Embassy offering to defect.

Hard-edged US intelligence operative Leo Diamond sets out to determine what, if anything, Lewinter knows; on the Soviet side, KGB agent Yefgeny Pogodin must decipher whether this high-level defection is another ruse in a long-standing war. Neither global superpower knows what to expect from Lewinter, the wild card, but both sides know this: If he's telling the truth, his information could be the final turning point in the Cold War.

A darkly funny spy thriller from one of the most brilliant voices of espionage fiction, The Defection of A.J. Lewinter is a shockingly prescient portrayal of international politics.

Review Quotes

Praise for The Defection of A.J. Lewinter

Winner of the CWA Gold Dagger

"A perfect little gem . . . One of the best Cold War thrillers I've read in years."
--The New York Times Book Review

"This is dazzling work, literature of a high order that happens to address the madness of the Cold War . . . The Defection of AJ Lewinter is just about perfect."
--The Washington Post

"Concise, smart and funny, this novel turns Cold War spy clichés on their head. Though the ambiguous ending no longer terrifies, this book still packs a punch and seems prescient to boot. Those who only know Littell's more recent works should enjoy this fast, fun trip into the past."
--Publishers Weekly


Praise for Robert Littell

"If Littell didn't invent the American spy novel, he should have."
--Tom Clancy

"America's greatest living espionage novelist."
--Sarah Weinman, The Crime Lady

"Since his Cold War classic, The Defection of AJ Lewinter, Littell has been steadily creating his own subgenre, the counter-thriller, witty and highly original tales that play off clichés of the Cold War thriller and subvert them."
--The Washington Post

About the Author

Robert Littell is the author of twenty-one other highly acclaimed novels, many about the Cold War and the Soviet Union, including his masterwork, New York Times bestseller The Company, and the Los Angeles Times Book Award winner for best mystery-thriller Legends. An American born in Brooklyn, Robert Littell now lives in France.