"The Translator is a pacy, engaging political thriller. If you like your political thrillers to be plausible with plenty of heart, this is definitely a book for you."
The Translator is a pacy, engaging political thriller. It's also a love story between two former lovers who are determined to foil a Russian plot that could potentially destroy much of Western economy. The writing flows easily off the page, with a thought-provoking plot, taut and often-humorous dialogue, and vivid descriptions of people and places. The author is a former Moscow correspondent, who skilfully takes readers from the Scottish Highlands to Moscow and London. I liked that the main characters are not spies in the traditional sense, but are a translator and interpreter, one British and one Russian, thrown into an extraordinary situation. In the current political climate, The Translator felt very real – and perhaps a little too close to home. It's filled with intrigue, loyalty, betrayal and romance. If you like your political thrillers to be plausible with plenty of heart, this is definitely a book for you.
| Primary Genre | Thriller and Suspense |
| Recommendations: |
Win an Escape Challenge and a copy of The Spy and the Snake by M J Robotham
Closing date: 02/08/2026
A highly topical thriller about a Russian plot to cut the undersea communication cables linking the US to the UK. Also, a passionate love story between two people determined to stop this cataclysmic act.
Clive Franklin, a Russian language expert in the Foreign Office, is summoned unexpectedly to Moscow to act as translator for the British Prime Minister. His life is turned on its head when, after more than a decade, he discovers that his former lover, Marina Volina, is now the interpreter to the Russian President. At the embassy, Clive learns of a Russian plot to cut the undersea cables linking the US to the UK which would paralyse communications and collapse the Western economy. Marina stuns Clive with the news that she’s ready to help stop the attack, betraying her country for a new identity and a new life. Clive becomes the go-between, relaying Marina’s intelligence to MI6 back in London. What are the odds that two lovers, running the Moscow marathon with the FSB on their backs, can save Western Europe from economic meltdown?
Watch our exclusive interview with Harriet Crawley here -
The Translator features in the following genres: Thriller and Suspense, Fiction, Books with an Author Interview, Recommendations
The Translator is available in Paperback, Hardback
The Translator was written by Harriet Crawley and published by Bitter Lemon Press
The Translator has 416 pages
£15.29
