Every year or two the novelist Joseph Finder releases a new spy thriller. Many of his books treat industrial espionage, others the more familiar themes of international intrigue. Now, in his 19th novel, The Oligarch’s Daughter, Finder returns to the high-stakes game pitting Russian intelligence against the CIA. The novel is set in the present day with the war in Ukraine in the background. In it, he introduces us to Arkady Galkin, a powerful and ultra-wealthy oligarch who has moved to New York City. Finder’s hero is Grant Anderson, a young American who we soon learn had married the titular oligarch’s daughter—when he went by another name. Mystery piles on mystery as we only slowly untangle the threads of the story. It’s a tour de force of the novelist’s craft.
The hero of this new spy thriller is not who he seems
Only when his past intrudes in the shape of a gunman sent to kill him do we realize that the young man named Grant Anderson is not who he seems. Five years earlier he had left behind a life in New York City as a wealthy and successful investment manager. Now, under the new name, he lives near the coast in New Hampshire building boats. He has constructed a new life there with a set of close friends and a girlfriend who’s an artist. But the gunman means this new life is at an end. He sets out to claim a new identity yet again, pursued by his enemies. Meanwhile, the FBI and the CIA crop up in the story, adding new layers of confusion and suspense.
The Oligarch’s Daughter by Joseph Finder (2025) 447 pages ★★★★★
The real-life world of Russian oligarchs
Although our sympathies lie with Grant Anderson, or whoever he really is, Arkady Galkin is a far more imposing figure. Finder portrays him in familiar fashion, with a 500-foot, seven-deck megayacht, palatial homes around the world, and a multibillion-dollar fortune that multiplies before our very eyes. But lest we think of him as a caricature, it’s worth a look at just who these “Russian oligarchs” really are and how they got to be who they are.
The website History Hit explains in simple terms. “The Russian oligarchs who came to prominence in the 1990s were opportunists who took advantage of the messy, wildly corrupt market that emerged in Russia after the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991.” But this first generation of oligarchs represented a rival power center to Boris Yeltsin’s successor, Vladimir Putin. The new strongman, who came to power in 1999, gradually dispossessed them. He transferred their assets to a new crop of super-wealthy men under his control. Those are today’s oligarchs. Allegedly, some of the assets they claim are actually Putin’s. Many observers claim that the Russian president’s net worth, including these assets, may be as high as $100 billion. And that’s credible. Collectively, Russia’s new ruling class has looted the nation to the tune of trillions of dollars.
An AI’s brief review of this novel
I asked Claude-AI, version Sonnet 4, the chatbot from the company Anthropic, to write a 300-word review of this book. It appears below, verbatim except for the subheadings I inserted for reading ease. To my mind, this is an impressive display of AI working at its best.
A masterfully crafted thriller
Joseph Finder returns with another masterfully crafted thriller that cements his reputation as one of contemporary fiction’s premier suspense writers. “The Oligarch’s Daughter” delivers everything readers expect from the genre while exploring timely themes of Russian influence, corruption, and survival in today’s geopolitical climate.
The novel follows Paul Brightman, a New York hedge fund manager whose life spirals into nightmare territory after marrying the daughter of a Russian oligarch. When his past catches up with him, Paul must assume a false identity—Grant Anderson—and disappear into small-town New Hampshire, where he spends five years in hiding, building boats and accepting only cash payments to avoid leaving any traceable record.
A dual timeline structure
Finder employs a dual timeline structure that proves both ambitious and effective. The present-day narrative maintains breathless tension as Paul’s carefully constructed new life crumbles, while flashbacks reveal how he became entangled with dangerous Russian interests. This storytelling approach creates a sophisticated puzzle that gradually reveals the full scope of the conspiracy Paul faces.
The author demonstrates his trademark expertise in spycraft and international intrigue, weaving together elements of Russian organized crime, CIA operations, and FBI investigations. The result is a thriller that feels authentically grounded in contemporary geopolitics while maintaining the propulsive pacing that keeps pages turning.
Strong character development
Character development remains strong throughout, with Paul/Grant emerging as a compelling everyman-in-peril protagonist. His transformation from privileged financier to desperate fugitive feels genuine, and his resourcefulness in evading multiple pursuing agencies creates genuine investment in his survival.
Finder’s writing strikes the perfect balance between accessibility and sophistication. The prose is clean and efficient, never sacrificing clarity for unnecessary complexity, while the plotting demonstrates careful attention to detail and logical progression.
“The Oligarch’s Daughter” succeeds as both an entertaining thriller and a reflection of our current political moment, offering readers a gripping escape that feels unnervingly plausible in today’s world.
About the author
Joseph Finder is the author of 19 novels (mostly spy fiction) beginning in 1991 and one nonfiction book, published in 1983. Two of the novels have been adapted as screenplays for major Hollywood films. Finder was born in Chicago in 1958. According to Wikipedia, “Finder majored in Russian studies at Yale University, where he graduated summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa. He received a master’s degree from the Harvard Russian Research Center and later taught on the Harvard faculty.”
For a detailed biography of the author, go to his page on Book Series in Order. It begins, “Joseph Finder was born to be a spy.” And it delivers on that extravagant promise. What follows is a fascinating story that leads to his recruitment by the CIA and his subsequent decision to write professionally instead of recruit spies in the field. It’s one of the best author bios I’ve ever come across.
For related reading
I’ve reviewed many of the author’s novels. You’ll find them at Industrial espionage, spies, and high finance: the Joseph Finder thrillers.
For background, check out Good books about Vladimir Putin, modern Russia and the Russian oligarchy.
There’s other great reading at:
- The 15 best espionage novels
- Good nonfiction books about espionage
- Best books about the CIA
- The best spy novelists writing today
And you can always find the most popular of my 2,300 reviews, and the most recent ones, on the Home Page.
