Books like Icon by Frederick Forsyth

It is summer 1999, and Russia is on the brink of anarchy. Amid famine, inflation, and rampant crime, the interim president in Moscow remains powerless. Former army sergeant‑turned‑politician Igor Komarov, leader of the right‑wing UPF, uses his booming voice to promise law, order, prosperity, and the revival of Russian greatness, facing a nation that mirrors the turmoil of the Weimar Republic. A stolen document—labeled the Black Manifesto—reveals his extremist agenda. Officially the West is powerless, yet in secret a coalition of elder statesmen dispatches the only person who can expose Komarov’s plans: Jason Monk, ex‑CIA operative dubbed “the best damn agent‑runner.” Monk, who vowed never to return to Moscow, is driven back by the name of former KGB officer Colonel Anatoli Grishin, who once tortured and murdered four of Monk’s agents after their betrayal by Aldrich Ames. Monk must infiltrate the heart of the inferno to stop Komarov, ensure the emergence of a new national icon, and settle his score with Grishin—all while facing ruthless enemies and a ticking clock.

First publish date: 1996