“There are tourists from all over the world. Most of them want to kill you.”—The Black Book of Tourism
In this contemporary international thriller that is reminiscent of John le Carré and Graham Greene, Milo Weaver has tried to leave his old life of secrets and lies behind by giving up his job as a “tourist” for the CIA—an undercover agent with no home, no identity—and working a desk at the CIA’s New York headquarters. But staying retired from the field becomes impossible when the arrest of a long-sought-after assassin sets off an investigation into one of Milo’s oldest colleagues and friends. Soon Milo is drawn into a conspiracy that links riots in the Sudan, an assassin committing suicide, and an old friend who’s been accused of selling secrets to the Chinese. With new layers of intrigue being exposed in his old cases, and with the CIA and Homeland Security after him, he has no choice but to go back undercover and find out who’s been pulling the strings once and for all.
In The Tourist, Olen Steinhauer—twice nominated for the Edgar Award—tackles an intricate story of betrayal and manipulation, loyalty and risk, in an utterly compelling novel that is both thoroughly modern and yet also reminiscent of the espionage genre’s most touted luminaries.
Download and start listening now!
"Having thoroughly enjoyed Steinhauer's cynical look at Eastern European espionage in 36 Yalta Boulevard and other earlier works, I knew I was in for a treat. Twisty, crafty and compelling ... you think you know the solution to the mystery, only to be fooled and then refooled. But the solution is only a fraction of the enjoyment of reading this author. Four days later, his characters still inhabit my head."
— Nancy (4 out of 5 stars)
“Narrator Tom Weiner gives Milo the gravitas of a man disillusioned by an amoral world. Milo faces danger, deception, and death at every turn, and Weiner makes it plausible…As well as handling Steinhauer’s mind-boggling pacing and serpentine plotting, Weiner turns secondary characters into individuals…A super spy thriller.”
— AudioFile“[Weaver] is the perfect hero for such a richly nuanced tale.”
— Booklist (starred review)“Superbly accomplished…Highly recommended.”
— Library Journal (starred review)“An outstanding stand-alone, a contemporary spy thriller…While plenty of breathtaking scenes in the world’s most beautiful places bolster the heart-stopping action, the real story is the soul-crushing toil the job inflicts on a person who can't trust anyone, whose life is a lie fueled by paranoia.”
— Publishers Weekly (starred review)“Tom Weiner enhances this wild ride through his fully-voiced presentation, giving each character a distinct identity, while using a brisk, matter-of-fact tone for the bridging narration.”
— Library Journal“A first-class spy novel—wry, intelligent, layered…the kind of thing John le Carré might have written if he knew then what we know now.”
— Lee Child, #1 New York Times bestselling author" Not a lot of substance, but a great spy thriller/page-turner. Can't wait to read the sequel. "
— Brandon, 2/16/2014" Great book - lots of action. "
— Joe, 2/9/2014" A tremendous effort, and a wonderful achievement. I found it both credible and entertaining. Wow! "
— Serge, 2/7/2014" Loved it. Really loved it. More than I thought I could love a spy novel loved it. "
— Clancy, 2/4/2014" Fun spy novel. Perfect beach read. "
— Claire, 1/20/2014" page turner, can't wait to start the sequel "
— Kurt, 1/16/2014" This book is as good as promised. Good characters and a fun plot that keeps you guessing as to how it will all turn out. It was good enough that I went and bought the sequel in hardback after finishing this one. Good stuff. Fans of the spy genre will be very satisfied. Check it out! "
— Jennifer, 1/11/2014" Too much gratuitous swearing. You would think an author with a gift of words could learn to express his/her sentiments w/o resorting to the lowest level of speech. "
— Erick, 1/5/2014" 3.5. Took a while to get a feel for the characters. "
— Caroline, 12/19/2013" A great start, but I think the second book is even better. "
— Jeff, 12/9/2013" Very well plotted spy novel. Lots of misdirection. "
— Bryan, 11/15/2013" This came highly recommended and I was surprised that I never really got into the story or the characters. I was hoping for something like Dragon Tattoo, but I guess I need to come to terms that nothing ever will compare. Exotic locations, sure, but not such a mystery and not so thrilling, "
— Jennie, 8/2/2013" Excellent book about being a spy - a secret spy (u.s. calls them tourists). Who can you trust? How do you have a family with all of these secrets? Keeps you guessing until the end. Excellent! "
— Kim, 6/9/2013" It was an okay spy novel. I don't know if the problem was that I was busy so took a long time to read it or it was just okay. Enjoyable but I wouldn't rush out to buy. (Also not the same plot as the fairly current movie of the same name w/ Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp...) "
— Carrol, 5/21/2013" A must read if you like spy novels. Looking forward to the rest of this series! "
— Shireen, 3/31/2013" This book has a lot of twists and turns and I have to admit I did not see what happened in the last 50 or so pages coming. A great thriller where nothing and nobody is ever who they seem or appear to be. "
— Kristin, 3/26/2013" A good entertainment read, in the spirit of John LeCarre. It's not a simple good guy versus bad guy story. Things are more nuanced than that, which I appreciated. "
— Chuck, 10/10/2012" Good enough for the plane. Mostly made me miss Le Carre's Cold War writing. "
— April, 1/18/2012" This is a good spy novel. I will review shortly. "
— Brad, 11/25/2011" Dunia mata-mata, jadi pengen tahu gimana rasanya setelah baca buku ini.... "
— Diah, 7/8/2011" Really not a fan of this book. I like crime/murder mystery novels, but I think that this had too much of a historical perspective. "
— Kim, 5/6/2011" This book kickstarts Steinhauer's 5-part series of crime/spy/literary/whatever novels about a fictional Soviet satellite nation during the Cold War. Wonderful, smart, engaging. "
— Thomas, 1/24/2011" This was not good. In fact this Eastern European crime series is not good. Two books were enough to convince me of that. Whatever changed in this author's life that produced the last two books was significant.<br/> "
— Joe, 1/15/2011" I bit hard to get through. "
— Tom, 8/2/2010" Evokes the paranoia of immediate post-war Europe. <br/>Well written, except for the acknowledgment page. <br/>(Annoyingly bad prose) "
— Anne, 6/29/2010" Terrific start to a 5 volume series in the post WWII, eastern European region. "
— Steve, 6/12/2010" Very good book for a first novel. Obvious in this book that Steinhauer is a major talent. "
— Amanda, 4/26/2010" Really liked the moodiness and sense of place. That bumped a so-so plot up to 4 stars. "
— Sarah, 4/24/2010" Eastern European homicide detective solves first murder in post-war country. Good read. "
— Eddie, 3/4/2010" Good, but, like The Tourist, very slow to start. The pacing here is a little bit less even, with too much piled up against the end of the novel, and some less-than-plausible twists to keep the protagonist alive, but still fairly interesting. "
— Kevin, 6/11/2009Olen Steinhauer is a New York Times bestselling author of ten novels, whose work has won the Dashiell Hammett Award, been a two-time Edgar Award finalist, and was shortlisted for the Anthony, the Macavity, the Ellis Peters Historical Dagger, the Ian Fleming Steel Dagger, and the Barry awards.
Tom Weiner, a dialogue director and voice artist best known for his roles in video games and television shows such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Transformers, is the winner of eight Earphones Awards and is an Audie Award finalist. He is a former member of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival.