Traitor by David Hagberg

At one time, I was an avid reader of Hagberg’s Kirk McGarvey books but for some reason he fell off my radar. Last reviewed book was 2018's Face Off. There’s been four other books since then so I’ve missed a lot. McGarvey is remarried to Pete. She is a CIA interrogation expert who has a good aim. He now has a below-the-knee prosthetic limb. And somewhere along the way, he did a favor for Putin. Otto Reneke’s wife Louise has been killed, he renamed his computer AI (no longer, ‘his darlings’) Lou in memory of his deceased wife. And he too has remarried, to a CIA analyst, Mary. Lots has happened.

Traitor (2022) opens up with a bang. Remember Otto is McGarvey’s long-time friend and computer savant. In some previous books, Otto managed to hack into the intelligence networks of Russia, Pakistan, and North Korea. Those tasks were insanely difficult and to save him from having to retrace his steps, Otto inserted a back door known only to him so he could slip in and out quietly.

But somehow, one of those back doors was penetrated, but not closed. Whomever on the other side now had access to the CIA’s deepest secrets. When it’s known that Otto’s back doors are a 2-way street, the CIA assumes that Otto left the return access on purpose. Ergo, Otto must be a traitor for ‘the other side’. Otto is arrested and put into confinement for interrogation.

All this happens while Kirk and Pete are in Japan looking for a place to call home (after their Florida and Greek island homes became unsafe and unlivable. More back story I’ve missed). Mary calls, tells McGarvey what’s happening, and they rush back to DC.

No one in the know thinks Otto is a traitor. For one reason, the evidence against him is just too overwhelming to be true. Even Aldrich Ames left a trail. There must be a mole trying to set Otto up for a fall. And over the years, Otto's digital abilities at meddling in other countries affairs has resulted in not only a level of respect, but also quite a few enemies.

The rest of the book is about the mole hunt. And the hunt takes McGarvey and Pete into deep dives into what they can find connected to the Russian Embassy, the FBI, Moscow, the SVU and GRU, Pakistan, and North Korea. While he is challenging his ability to handle jet lag, attempts on his and Pete’s life, Mary’s life, not to mention the murders of dang near everyone who crosses McGarvey path, most of which were killed by someone not named McGarvey.

Still puzzled why I lost track of Hagberg. His books are taut thrillers full of interesting characters, some of which (Otto in particular) can be a bit over the top when it comes to their genius ranking. Otto's eccentricities can be quite amusing, too. For example, his favorite snack is Twinkies washed down with a Heineken. He preferred 'uniform' at the CIA headquarters is a CCCP ball cap over a KGB sweatshirt. While McGarvey’s leg keeps him from physically chasing down the opposition, his mind wasn’t affected, and he can assemble a puzzle faster than anyone else involved.

How does Kirk McGarvey stack up to Brad Thor’s Scot Harvath? Each are the super-spy hero for an author. If I had to come down to one trait, I might say that McGarvey is more of a thinker and Harvath is quicker to pull the trigger. Maybe after reading the next book about each, I might be humming a different tune. I’m sure some enterprising reader out there has penned a ‘compare and contrast’ essay on these two.

I looked up Hagberg’s books in order. Traitor is #29 in the Kirk McGarvey series (he has two earlier series for a total of 39 titles in print). Many are familiar and pre-date this blog. Not sure which titles I might go back to read. Two in particular and tripped my trigger. The first, of course (Without Honor, 1989) and whichever book puts McGarvey and Putin in the same room. How these guys keep dreaming up so many stories for a character is beyond me. That’s why I’m a reader and not a writer.