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cover of episode Michael Idov on Spy Fiction, OSINT, and Writing The Collaborators

Michael Idov on Spy Fiction, OSINT, and Writing The Collaborators

2025/4/15
logo of podcast Spybrary Spy Podcast

Spybrary Spy Podcast

Shownotes Transcript

Michael Idov, author of The Collaborators, joins Spybrary to discuss the spy novel everyone in our community is raving about. In this in-depth conversation, Michael shares how his Soviet upbringing, real-world intelligence events like the Ryanair Belarus 'hijacking' incident and Moscow taxi hacker chaos, and his love for British espionage fiction shaped his gripping debut spy novel. We also dive into his work on Deutschland 83, Deutschland 89, his admiration for OSINT warriors like Bellingcat, and his love letter to cities like Riga, Berlin, and London. ๐ŸŽง Topics include: Real-world events that feature in The Collaborators Why Michael sees spy fiction as a milieu, not a genre The delicate balance between spy realism and cinematic action OSINTโ€™s influence on modern espionage stories British vs. American spy fiction traditions ๐Ÿ”— Show Notes + Links: https://spybrary.com/261) ๐Ÿ“š Buy The Collaborators: https://geni.us/V8T5a) Join the Spybrary Spy Fiction Fans Community: https://www.spybrary.com/community) ๐Ÿ‘ Like, subscribe, and comment โ€” whatโ€™s your favourite modern spy novel?