WACT Book Club | September 2026

Damascus Station – David McCloskey (432 pages)

Damascus Station by David McCloskey is a tense modern espionage thriller set against the fear, violence, and political complexity of the Syrian conflict. The novel follows CIA officer Sam Joseph as he tries to recruit Mariam Haddad, a Syrian palace official, pulling both characters into a dangerous world of surveillance, loyalty, betrayal, and impossible choices. Written by a former CIA analyst with deep Middle East experience, the book brings unusual realism to contemporary spy fiction.

A gripping spy thriller of love, risk, and betrayal inside one of the most dangerous intelligence landscapes in the world.

Author’s Biography

David McCloskey is a former CIA analyst and the author of Damascus Station, Moscow X, The Seventh Floor, and The Persian. His intelligence background included work on the President’s Daily Brief, classified testimony to congressional oversight committees, and service in CIA field stations across the Middle East.

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