Thrilling Russian spy novels have taught me as much about the internecine violence, bone deep corruption and shameless greed that characterizes Vladimir Putin and the toadies who surround him.

But David McCloskey's portrait of the Russian president in his novel "Moscow X," and the CIA's plot to steal millions from him, is delicious in its detail and ingenuity.

McCloskey, a former CIA analyst who was stationed in the Middle East, has concocted a hall of mirrors plot.

He moves from St. Petersburg, Russia, to an old-money horse farm in Mexico to the icy and soulless inner circle of Russia's government elite.

The author finished the first draft as Putin invaded Ukraine, and there are numerous references to the drain and political upheaval the war has created.

But the heart of the novel is the trio of Western operatives who are both colluding with and conniving against Russian Anna Andreevna Agapova, who will conclude that she is a traitor and a hero.

"I am both, like all good Russians."

The answer to the mystery character of the month: Alice in Wonderland.

— Kerri Miller | MPR News