In The Cardinal of the Kremlin, Tom Clancy's cutting-edge research takes readers inside Soviet and American attempts to develop a Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI). The Soviets have begun successful tests of their system, located near the border of Afghanistan. Americans race to implement their own system, Tea Clipper, so as to maintain strategic parity. Cardinal of the Kremlin, however, is more about the shifting allegiances of the intelligence community and the unstable world of late 1980s U.S.-Soviet relations than it is about military technology. Colonel Mikhail Filitov is the Cardinal, the CIA's ear in the Kremlin and a steady source of the latest Soviet secrets. Passing microfilm through a chain of agents that begins in a Turkish bath, the Cardinal exposes a double agent in the American SDI program. Unfortunately, the KGB also knows that they have a mole in their midst. In tightly crafted narrative that rapidly cuts from the Kremlin to Afghanistan to Washington, D.C., the Americans rush to pull Filitov and his associates out before his cover is blown. Jack Ryan returns as the moral center in a world often dominated by egos and politicking, and John Clark, ex-Navy SEAL and current CIA agent makes his first appearance in a Clancy novel (though his early life is chronicled in Without Remorse). Clancy hits his stride in this outing, meshing a plot that earns the name "thriller" with bang-on depictions of SDI systems and a varied and interesting cast of characters. Moving beyond black-and-white depictions of the "evil empire", he delves into the altogether greyer world where political ideals meet reality. –Patrick O'Kelley

The Cardinal of the Kremlin by Tom Clancy is a gripping political thriller that delves into the world of espionage and international intrigue. This book is part of the popular Jack Ryan series and follows the story of CIA analyst Jack Ryan as he navigates a high-stakes mission involving a Soviet intelligence officer. With Clancy's trademark attention to detail and suspenseful storytelling, The Cardinal of the Kremlin is a must-read for fans of the genre.