Lenin's Roller Coaster

"[A] splendid saga of espionage during the Great War . . . Downing is a master of action . . . [He] also slips in plenty of historical reality--women's suffrage, revolutionary hopes, progressive politics, Irish nationalism--without ever losing sight of the story."
--The Globe and Mail

"A dizzying ride through the Russian Revolution and its loops and curves into WWI politics . . . packed with historical information and detailed place descriptions."
--Historical Novel Society

"Downing is a master at grabbing the historical moment and holding it close, and he brings the tempestuous revolutionary era to vivid life here, setting it against what appears to be a doomed love story."
--Bill Ott, Booklist

"A sensitive yet action-packed novel of conflict both on international and interpersonal levels."
--Bruce Tierney, BookPage

"History buffs and espionage fiction fans will enjoy this entertaining novel, which might also make a good choice for book groups commemorating the centennial of the Bolshevik Revolution."
--Library Journal

Praise for the Jack McColl novels

"Downing is a master at bringing little-known history to light and building great plots around it. It helps that he knows how to pace a story and develop characters that stay in the mind. Can't wait for the next episode."
--The Globe and Mail

"[Downing] is a master at bringing the past to life through the careful and often
loving observation of even minor players and through the artful deployment of specific detail. In addition, Jack McColl's debut has a zest, an exoticism and a joie de vivre well-suited to an era when best sellers were being written by Zane Grey, suffragettes were demanding the vote, and opium parlors were a readily accessible temptation."
--The Wall Street Journal

"Engrossing . . . Comparisons to W. Somerset Maugham's classic stories about Ashenden, another gentleman spy, are well deserved."
--The Seattle Times

"Downing reaffirms his place as one of the finest espionage writers with this engaging historical thriller."
--Bruce Tierney, BookPage, Top Pick in Mystery

"A brilliant historical portrait and a captivating love story to boot. A remarkably engaging world tour of pre-World War One espionage featuring an honorable protagonist begging for a long series."
--Lyndsay Faye, author of The Fatal Flame

"Moves along briskly and offers interesting facts about events now a century past.
It's always entertaining."
--The Washington Post