Title: Inside the Cold War
Author: Norman L. Miller
Publisher: Crown Books NYC
ISBN: 978-1956095388
Pages: 278
Genre: History/Historical Fiction
Reviewed by: Jack Chambers
Pacific Book Review
It is often said that those who do not learn from the past are doomed to repeat it. With tensions around the world growing between the Western World and Russia, especially in the wake of the horrific war the nation started with Ukraine, people cannot help but to think of the days of the Cold War and the tales of spies and espionage that went with it. The best way to learn how to move forward as these tensions rise is to sometimes take a step back in time and examine how we arrived at this point to begin with.
In author Norman L Miller’s Inside the Cold War, the author utilizes a fictional tale based loosely upon real-life events in his own life. A sequel to the acclaimed novel IceSpy, the novel finds former CIA operative turned Olympic bobsled coach Shawn Murphy forced back into a tense international scene. After his Soviet Union counterpart defects to the United States, it is discovered he cannot recall the formula for the sled composite he had developed in the Soviet Union, which the U.S. Navy hopes to use to reformat their navy to be the superior force on the planet. Shawn is forced to return to the Soviet Union to locate the documents the coach hid in an effort to locate the formula needed to complete the mission. With time running out and the risk of an international incident hanging in the balance, a last-minute decision must be made before it is too late.
The author did an incredible job of finding just the right balance between world-building and historical accuracy. The richly developed characters in this book feel as authentic as one can get in a story of this magnitude, and does an excellent job of reflecting the real-life experiences of the author and the history behind this era. The tension of the Cold War could be felt at every turn, and the vastness of the settings of this novel allowed the reader to feel the weight of the international mystery and the consequences that would follow in the wake of failure. The almost heated and romantic nature of the spy thriller could be felt in the author’s writing style, and the attention to detail the author used when showcasing the seedy behind the scenes nature of the sport of bobsledding, from the connections to the Mafia to how the sport became a battleground in the Cold War and so much more, make this story truly shine.
This is the perfect read for those who enjoy historical-fiction and history, especially those who enjoy a flair of spy thriller storytelling and political intrigue. As a fan of the genre, I was mesmerized by the honest and authentic voice for which the author wrote, and the imagery the author used in his writing to really bring this narrative to life on the pages.
Enthralling, thrilling, and masterfully written, author Norman L. Miller’s Inside the Cold War is a must-read historical-fiction and political thriller novel, and the perfect sequel to “IceSpy”. The twists and turns in the narrative and the action-packed scenes of the novel really brought the heart of this genre to life, and the writing itself really keeps readers feeling as if they could see this playing out as a film on the screen.
