Soviet Sources [Mass Market Paperback]

Robert Cullen (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 22, 1992

A former Newsweek Moscow correspondent concocts a suspenseful story of an American reporter who crosses the thin line between journalist and spy when he ferrets out top-secret party information that leaves him running for his life. Reprint. NYT. K. PW.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

One wishes this first-rate yarn had been published a year ago, so much have recent events surpassed it. Colin Burke, Moscow correspondent for the Washington Tribune is fed news that Gen. Secretary Ponomaryov, a driving force of glasnost , has had a stroke. Burke's source is Kusnetsov, a wily journalist whose own source is Andrushin, head of the KGB. Burke is none too subtly warned off the story as the White House responds to Andrushin's move against glasnost. With deeper involvement, including an affair with Marina, a young Russian actress, Burke realizes the CIA and White House are willing to sacrifice him. The plot spins toward a desperate attempt by Burke and Marina to escape to Finland. In his first novel, former Newsweek Moscow correspondent Cullen effectively depicts Russian life and character ("Russia is like an alcoholic. A strong man--a tsar, a Stalin--is our alcohol."); the White House's manipulative cynicism ("We can't be seen as wimpy"); and the scheming of apparatchiks both East and West. 50,000 first printing; major ad/promo.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Cullen has drawn on his stint as Moscow correspondent for Newsweek to produce a smooth offering of contemporary suspense. Colin Burke, who covers the Moscow scene for a large Washington daily, learns of the well-concealed illness of the progressive Soviet leader. Unfortunately, after he breaks the story, he finds it was fed to him as part of a KGB plot to promote a more hard-line regime. When the Soviets set an elaborate trap for him, Burke turns to the U.S. embassy for assistance only to become the victim of a double-cross, as they attempt to use his predicament for political ends. Unlike some recent novels that have become quickly dated by the swift improvement in East-West relations, Soviet Sources draws strength from the daily news of detente, glasnost, and perestroika. This elegant and eminently readable novel is reminiscent of the best quasidocumentary fiction of Arthur Hailey.
- John North, NorCom Enterprises, Toronto
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback
• Publisher: Ivy Books (March 22, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0804107998
• ISBN-13: 978-0804107990
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.3 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,128,284 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Super Book, April 9, 2002

By 

John G. Hilliard (Toronto Canada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Soviet Sources (Mass Market Paperback)

Great book, it is not often that an author can come up with such a comprehensive book as this on his first try. This had it all, a great story, good characters, wonderful action and a quick pace. This is an exciting book. It really made me happy reading the book; it was like a great game of treasure hunt where you find everything. Each time I was ready for a plot twist, action of drama it was there. The characters just explode in your memory - you do not get them out of your head. Overall great effort.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars like being there, July 28, 2006

By 

Bill Frazier (Big Timber, MT USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Soviet Sources (Colin Burke) (Paperback)

I first read this book years ago when it was first published and always thought it was one of the best, and most realistic, stories of the cold war period. Having spent a lot of time in Moscow during those years, I felt that the author really captured the ambience of that world. I am glad to see it has been re-published; I will order another copy. More than most, it really made the reader feel in and familiar with the Russia of that time.

5.0 out of 5 stars A Great Read, September 16, 2010

By 

X-Wonderbug "x-wonderbug" (NE Illinois) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Soviet Sources (Colin Burke) (Paperback)

This is the first of a trilogy (hopefully more) by Author Cullen, who obviously has weaved this factional novel based on his actual experience in the former USSR. Altho dated now, it can be very entertaining if the background is accepted as pre-"Fall of Communism" USSR. The main theme in this as well as the two sequels featuring journalist Colin Burke, is the utter squalor and corruption of the Russian society, and the autocratic government, which, as made clear in the sequels, certainly hasn't changed much from then to present. The plot and writing are lively and interesting, and the descriptions of the Russian society and government are very enlightening, if anyone has had a different impression of Russia.