The Helsinki Affair

In which spy craft runs in the family.

Amanda Cole has the CIA in her blood. Her father, Charlie, was a field operative for years until his abrupt relocation from Helsinki to a desk job at Langley. Amanda is a trusted agent as well, respected and on the rise.

Charlie’s past and Amanda’s present dramatically collide in Anna Pitoniak’s novel, The Helsinki Affair.

Amanda is 40, single, sarcastic and ambitious. She’s not super-warm or vulnerable but is excellent at her job. Her backstory is revealed in pieces throughout the book, telling of a most un CIA-like youth – she bummed around the world and drank too much among other things. But then in a complete 180 she decided to follow in her dad’s footsteps and use her strengths for good.

The Helsinki Affair is a spy thriller featuring a female lead and her female mentor, both of them intimidating in their own fashion. But it’s not a girly or loudly feminist novel. Amanda and Kath are interesting, complicated and not defined by men. The way they work their macho informants is a pleasure to witness and their interpersonal relationship is honest and based on mutual respect. They call each other on things and aren’t afraid to contradict. I enjoyed their scenes together.

The story begins when a bored Amanda (“the hardest part of the job wasn’t the action, it was the moments of passivity”) gets visit from a Russian who claims to know about an impending plot against a US senator. Amanda believes the walk-in, or at least thinks it warrants attention, but her gut instincts don’t convince her boss. It’s a disaster with positive results for Amanda who ends up with a promotion.

Some people are great at figuring out mysteries before they’re revealed, at following along and keeping track of characters. Me – not so much. The plots and players in The Helsinki Affair had me flipping back a few times, checking to be sure I had names and details right. This is not to say that the plot is convoluted or messy – it’s just me and my brain.

The plot, which revolves around finance and Russian oligarchs is smart and believable. As the novel goes back and forth in time, telling Charlie’s story alongside Amanda’s, Pitoniak’s writing shines. She lays out the story with just enough detail, and all her characters are believably human.

There’s no easy or happy ending in a tale where the betrayal comes from all corners, but it was unsatisfyingly satisfying in its raw honesty.

I finished The Helsinki Affair and immediately put Pitoniak’s Our American Friend on hold (“fantastic fun and spectacular” per the blurbs on the back of the book). I want more of this talented and inventive author.