Shooting the Moon

<p><em>Shooting the Moon</em> is a taut atmospheric novel that immerses readers in two intertwined time periods-complex modern-day St. Petersburg and the bombed-out starving streets of besieged Leningrad during World War II.</p><p></p><p>James an American banker living in contemporary Russia finds himself caught in a tightening net of CIA pressure shifting loyalties and deadly espionage. His powerful client Mikhail Potanin has ties to shadowy business partners while James's girlfriend Nadia secretly works for the FSB-and for Mikhail. As a wave of high-profile murders rattles the city James begins to question the motives of everyone around him.</p><p>A mysterious locket found in a Leningrad cemetery draws James into the past where he uncovers the haunting story of Nurse Daria a young woman struggling to survive the brutal siege. Her fate becomes entwined with that of a nameless sniper-an AWOL soldier who prowls the ruins left by war targeting those he believes are responsible for carrying out Stalin's wartime orders. In a city on the edge of starvation and collapse their encounter leaves a mark that echoes decades later.</p><p></p><p>Told in parallel narratives <em>Shooting the Moon</em> explores power memory and the private choices people make in the face of fear.</p>