Code Red by Vince Flynn & Kyle Mills (Atria/Emily Bestler) is the top holds title of the week. LibraryReads and Library Journal offer read-alikes for patrons waiting to read this buzziest book.

Because he owes a favor to crime lord Damian Losa, CIA counterterrorist agent Mitch Rapp ends up in Syria planning to block its distribution of a highly addictive new narcotic throughout Europe, which could undermine Losa’s business. Then Mitch learns that the drug was actually created by Russia as a weapon against the West. Mills again takes over Flynn’s durable Rapp.—Barbara Hoffert 

You Can Run by Karen Cleveland (Ballantine)

Three bold women star in the third suspense novel by former CIA analyst Cleveland (Keep You Close; Need To Know). Natasha Ivanovna is a Russian agent who aims to steal powerful new technology from the CIA by planting tips on the dark side of the internet. American CIA analyst Jill Bailey upends her life when her infant son Owen is kidnapped. She complies with the kidnapper’s demands: to approve a cable and never tell anyone of the incident; Owen is then returned safely. Four years later, the Pulitzer-hungry journalist Alex Charles dives into fresh clandestine tips. Her resulting exposé about faked intel at the CIA (as revealed by Natasha) puts Jill and her family in mortal danger. Convincingly, Cleveland puts Natasha, Jill, and Alex through a showdown. VERDICT Cleveland weaves technology, motherhood, and spydom’s skullduggery into a taut, alluring web. Acclaimed for fiendishly clever plotting, she whips up the story to a breakneck pace, then rewards readers with a knockout ending. Fans of Stella Rimington’s series about MI5 agent Liz Carlyle will thrill to the steely grit and brave hearts of Jill and Alex.—Barbara Conaty

Fatal Ally by Tim Sebastian (Severn House; LJ starred review)

A former British Intelligence asset, Moscow-based Arkady Mazurin wants to defect to the West. His contact in MI6 hasn’t heard from him in five years. Nevertheless, he claims he has information about a high-ranking Russian politician the Americans and the Brits will want. MI6 agent Margaret “Margo” Lane carefully devises a plan to extricate Mazurin from Russia, but the operation fails. Unbeknown to MI6, Mazurin had been betrayed by an upper-echelon American government official who is working with a Russian delegate to save his girlfriend—a spy who was caught in Syria. Margo must deliver a message to the United States, and her mission takes her to Russia, Syria, and into the depths of her conscience. VERDICT Former Moscow correspondent for the BBC and award-winning author Sebastian (Exit Berlin; Saviour’s Gate) delivers a gripping spy thriller. Fans of Clive Cussler, Tom Clancy, Charles Cumming, and John LeCarré will enjoy the well-developed characters and riveting twists that keep the pages turning.—Russell Michalak 

Red London by Alma Katsu (Putnam)

CIA agent Lyndsey Duncan returns for a new mission after taking down a mole inside the CIA in Red Widow. Now she’s been sent to London to handle Russian asset Dmitri Tarasenko, but after Russian oligarch Mikhail Rotenberg’s London house is attacked, MI6 asks Lyndsey to go undercover and befriend Mikhail’s British wife Emily to learn more. Katsu, a former intelligence analyst for the CIA and NSA, writes a suspenseful spy novel with careful attention paid to the fascinating tradecraft of espionage.—LJ Reviews