The Cormorant Hunt

 

What happens after you expose the CIA and manage to stay alive?

In The Cormorant Hunt, Michael Idov drops us back into the dangerous orbit of CIA operative Ari Falk, and he doesn’t ease up for a second. This is the second book in the Cormorant trilogy, and while Idov smartly provides enough backstory for new readers, the emotional and political stakes land harder if you’ve followed Ari from the start.

After blowing the lid off a massive conspiracy at CIA headquarters, Ari is lying low in the Republic of Georgia when a new mission finds him anyway. Enter Asha Tamaskar, a rising CIA officer with sharp instincts and her own carefully guarded agenda. She sends Ari undercover to infiltrate a European extremist group whose plans could tip the balance of power across the continent. What follows is a globe-trotting operation packed with surveillance, deception, and constant risk, where it’s never quite clear who’s using whom.

Idov keeps the pacing tight and relentless. The action moves fast and the spycraft is detailed without bogging the story down. Beneath the thrills, the book digs into themes of loyalty, moral compromise, institutional rot, and the personal cost of living in a world built on secrets. Trust is currency here and it’s always in short supply.

Santino Fontana’s narration is a perfect match for Idov’s prose.  He gives Ari a weary edge, sharpens the suspense, and keeps the momentum high even in the more political moments. It’s a performance that pulls you in and makes this one especially hard to pause.

Smart and full of intrigue, The Cormorant Hunt is a sharp continuation of the series and a standout modern spy thriller. Huge thanks to Simon Audio for the complimentary early listen. Out tomorrow! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

QOTD: If you had to disappear and go into hiding like Ari Falk, which country would you choose to lay low in?

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About the Author

Michael Idov is a novelist, director, and screenwriter. A Latvian-born American raised in Riga under Soviet occupation, he moved to New York after graduating from the University of Michigan. Michael’s writing career began at New York magazine, where his features won three National Magazine Awards, and he has served as the editor-in-chief of GQ Russia. He is also the author of The Collaborators, Ground Up, and Dressed Up for a Riot. Michael has worked on numerous film and TV projects, including Londongrad, Deutschland 83, Leto, and The Humorist. He and his wife and screenwriting partner, Lily, divide their time between Los Angeles, Berlin, and Portugal.