Espionage Thriller Puns

I've spent the last 3 hours looking for this TV show/movie to no avail. It's a action/drama TV show with a similar(ish) plot to Person of Interest and a similar production value and release date to Homeland,

From what I can remember, it's an American show whose plot follows an Ex-Government agent (from either some 3 letter agency (CIA, Etc.) or some fake special off the books type thing) who is running from lots of people. I can't really remember why, but it's something like he's on a kill list, or was framed, or is in possession of some special device or information, and I think (could be wrong) his agency disavowed and cut all ties with him.

I remember the trailer playing all the time on Hulu Ad Breaks. It had shots from an American East coast city (New York or Boston, maybe), including one with an above ground train. It could be set there entirely, or could be international (guess based on supposed plot.) There was a lot of shooting, running, and general spy action stuff. The lead was a white male, late 20s or early 30s, with dark hair (helpful, I know).

It would have been released in the mid to late 2010s. I'm 17, and have been using Hulu for about 5 ish years, so it was most likely running during any year from 2016 to now (meaning that it could have had, for example its last season in 2016, or run from 2018-2019, etc), but probably began pre-pandemic.

All of the aforementioned facts are based on what I can remember, so anything could be incorrect, so don't limit answers to exactly what is on the page. Let me know about any questions!

Edit: It was advertised on Hulu, but because of that, it would have probably been on cable at the time.

I know it sounds like I'm asking for a lot. I'm an amateur writer and I'm looking for easy and rather simple (although not simplistic) stories that are suspenseful and full of action and intrigue.

I don't want them to be too complicated, I am looking for something that i could easily analyze structurally and that i could use as an inspiration.

I love Larsson's Millenium saga, but i would look for something shorter and less complex.

I am considering Ludlum's novels. Do they fit my description?

Thanks!

Most of the 40k stuff I've read so far doesn't really have at much moral ambiguity to them, or much showcasing of the various ways different factions in this galaxy may interact with/manipulate one another. I was wondering if anyone knows of any good political 40k books? Something along the lines of House of Cards, or the John le Carre only in the 40k setting?

Watched Argo and Beirut today, looking for something similar? As I recall, the Last King of Scotland might scratch that itch but it's been a while. Thanks for any suggestions!

How did I not know this movie existed? I watched it this week after coming across it by chance and it befuddles me Five Fingers is not remembered, it seems to be missing from the lists of best espionage movies. I've searched through numerous lists of espionage/spy movies and it's never mentioned. Correct me if I'm wrong. It really feels like this classic movie has just not been seen by many people and has therefore been left off lists which means a wider audience is just not aware it exists.

I’d put it in the same category as the very best in the genre including Hitchcock’s Notorious (1946), the excellent yet under watched 36 Hours (1965) and perhaps the greatest espionage movie of all time The Spy Who Came In from the Cold (1965). I encourage everyone to watch the aforementioned movies, all of them are superb.

This film is carried by James Mason and his debonair charm, it’s probably the best performance in his career.

Directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz one of the golden era of Hollywood’s best directors responsible for All About Eve (1950) and other classic films Guys and Dolls (1955), Suddenly, Last Summer (1959) and Cleopatra (1963). Michael Wilson wrote the script and was one of the superb writers blacklisted by Hollywood during the McCarthyism era in the 1940/1950s. Some of the screenplays he wrote include A Place in the Sun (1951), The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) and Lawrence of Arabia (1962). A writer/director team of such quality is the foundation for Five Fingers (1952) which is a seriously fun and thrilling spy movie set in Turkey during the second world war and made all the more interesting because it’s based on real events involving Elyesa Bazna.

James Mason is our treacherous protagonist Diello. He desires great wealth and is willing to sell top British intelligence to the Nazi intelligence officers in Turkey. Mason with his erudition and suave and dapper appearance of course convinces the Germans he is as a British intelligence agent. The Nazis consider him “highly trained, an Oxford-bred aristocrat, you know the type arrogant, spoiled, cynical and completely decadent”. However, James Mason is not an intelligence agent but merely the personal valet to the British ambassador. Diello is a man of service, he’s always attending to the Ambassador and therefore hearing every detail of British military intelligence during the second world war. He knows the locks and combinations where the highest value intelligence is stored.

The va

It had the feel of an 80s or 90s action movie like Blade Runner or something.

edit: it may have been Japan rather than China

Lots or little action, I don't care either way as long as it's gripping.

Can be on any streaming service.

I'm not really a series kinda person. Hardly watched 15 shows to date, but I'm unable to sleep (insomnia and shit) and I have a day off tomorrow. I have an itch for something along the lines of Sicario and/or The Family Man (an Indian web show).

Any recommendations?

Here's the list of all series that I've watched:

1. Sherlock

2. Suits

3. Mr Robot

4. How to Get Away with Murder

5. Breaking bad

6. True Detective

7. House of Cards

8. Newsroom

And a few Indian shows like Mirzapur, Sacred Games and The Family Man.

If you see, there's a small pattern. I love battle of the minds and good dialogue.

PS: please don't recommend me shows with 5-6 seasons like The Wire, saying it's a must watch. I know and I will watch. Just not this time. I can't spare more than a day and I wanna binge.

Oh, and no anime, all right? Not in the mood for it.

Thanks in advance.

(I don’t know if this is the right place to post, but I chose this one because it is one of my very favourites.)

I (19M) deeply enjoy writing novels. As of late, I have been mostly writing mystery novels. But during a conversation with a friend (fellow leftist), we got onto the topic of the video game rainbow six and then onto the author Tom Clancy. Mr. Clancy was a known right-winger and anti-leftist. So we started speculating on what a Military/Espionage thriller with a heavy leftist influence? What would a Leftist CIA look like? What would be the threats that this organization would deal with?

Me and my friend have some answers to these questions. However, I was interested in hearing other National-leftist opinions as well.

I just want to be properly thrilled. I should be fast-paced and a real page turner.

Yes, I know the book is called "Six Days of the Condor," but most know the movie version.

To start:

I don’t really like giving out info about myself, but here we are. I’m above an 21 female, and i’m on nearly every day. If i ever feel like I won’t be active for the day, i’ll shoot you a message beforehand. I’d ask that my partner sends at least above 2 paragraphs per reply, but different scenes call for different things. Moving on,

As of recent, ive been really big on cheesy, overly-exaggerated political thrillers. MGS, Killer7, you name it. Obviously, this is what this post is gonna be about. Give it a read and lemme know if you’re interested!

It has been one year since all W.M.D.’s were destroyed by every nation on Earth.

The conflict between East and West had finally been laid to rest, with the world seemingly reaching a calm, confident peace throughout each country. Every war had been settled, new trade agreements and immigration policies had been finalized, and even the tension: between countries like the U.S. and China had been laid to rest.

At least, in the public eye.

Behind the scenes, a more sinister leech had begun to spread. While the point of conception had yet to be determined, the United States had a pinpoint on where it had spread to.

Japan.

A group of 7 elite operatives had begun a revolution, threatening the sacred peace that once blanketed the Earth. Their motives are unknown, but what is known is that they need to be eliminated.

This is where our characters come in.

So, obviously, this is taking heavy inspiration from Killer7, and I plan on having many similar themes and ideas, if slightly bent and altered to fit whatever themes we wanna throw in. It’d have heavy political thriller influence, along with your typical action-movie-esque scenes throughout. Toss in some deep character development, and we got our own little weird MGS-ripoff.

If you have any ideas, or are interested, fire me a message.

Hello,

This is GK. I wrote my first novella a few weeks before, rechecked it, and started searching for a beta reader. After tons of searches, I found that beta readers are available here. This is a story based on terrorism and spying.

Blurb: Fredrick Loren, an American intelligence agent, is assigned to Kabul to stop a dangerous terrorist organization from attacking major cities in America.

Please, who like the blurb and want to beta read this book comment below.

Link: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1xMTD7ojsjp1QO7HJtbUI4yxMi8fijPTMQwyL6Bx73Fc/edit?usp=sharing

With regards,

GK.

I have completed the following series and was looking for similar titles.

Mitch rapp

Court gentry

Scot harvath

James Reece

Dewey Andreas

Jack reacher

The war planners

I have just bought book 1 of the victor the assassin series but still need more. I can usually destroy an entire series in about 2 weeks (average 5 to 6 books a week) depending on number of books.

Hey there PubTips!

This is my second attempt (here's the first attempt), after some wonderful feedback last week from u/chowyunfacts*,* u/abstracthappy*,* u/undeadbarbarian and u/scaper2k4*. The range of notes I got was very, very helpful and I think I've got the query both shorter and clearer now. A few notes before we dive in:*

• This query is specifically for a UK agent at a conference, who I will be paired with randomly. It seems to be much more common to lead cover/query letters in the UK with the book overview, so I'm going with that order. When I reuse and personalise this query for US agents, I will probably switch it up and put the overview stuff at the end along with my personal details.
• I've tried to give a better feel for the core of the story and the central conflict, as well as doing the worldbuilding with a more character focused POV. Let me know if this does/doesn't work.
• I'm thinking about changing the title, but don't have a strong candidate yet. So far they're all some variation of 'burning'. If anyone has feedback on the existing title or potential future ones, please let me know.

So here it is, at a svelte 300 words exactly, including salutation:

Query

Dear AGENT NAME

I can’t wait to meet you at CONFERENCE!

I’m seeking representation for STRINGERS, a speculative espionage thriller complete at 120,000 words. STRINGERS will appeal to adult audiences who enjoy the books of Ian McDonald (RIVER OF GODS, THE DERVISH HOUSE) and the fast-paced action of quality military SF like the FRONTLINES series by Marko Kloos. STRINGERS is a standalone novel, with series potential.

The Burner creed is simple. The world is ending. So take what you can, while you can. Collapsing ice sheets, baking sun and rising seas suggest they might be right. Now, Istanbul lies in their path, a city on the edge of a European continent already wracked with conflict and fear.

Leo Mackay is a stringer, a freelance covert agent. He is part of the web of mercenaries, security contractors and black marketeers who have filled, for a price, the power vacuums left by collapsing nation-states. Now, he’s heading into Istanbul on a new job. Sally Forbes, government handler, was tracking a rogue agent responsible for the deaths of dozens of other stringers. Now he’s dead too, gunned down on a Beyoğlu backstreet. It looks like a simple contra

Hello PubTips! Wow, I am nervous about this. I had planned to do this in a month or two, once I completed my third full edit, but I have been given the chance to submit my query plus 2,000 words of my novel for an agent/publisher 1 to 1 session during a virtual convention I will be attending in June. I'm really looking forward to hearing feedback from everyone here. I have to submit my query before the 10th of May, so any and all feedback before then is hugely appreciated.

Thanks for taking the time to read this. Now I'm going to close my eyes and click submit.

Query

Dear AGENT NAME

I’m greatly looking forward to meeting you at CONVENTION.

I’m seeking representation for STRINGERS, a near-future speculative espionage thriller complete at 120,000 words. STRINGERS will appeal to adult audiences who enjoy the gritty, lived-in futures seen in the film works of Neil Blomkamp (District 9, Elysium, Chappie), the intricate locale-based futurism in the books of Ian McDonald (Brasyl, River of Gods) and the fast-paced action seen in quality military SF such as the Frontlines series by Marko Kloos or the work of Dan Abnett.

The Burner creed is simple. Take what you can, while you can, because the world is ending. Half the world now lies in their wake, cities burned and survivors desperate. Collapsing ice sheets, baking sun and rising seas suggest they might be right. Now, Istanbul lies in their path, a city on the edge of a European continent already wracked with conflict and fear.

Leo Mackay is a stringer, a freelance intelligence agent contracted to do the dirty work of the few remaining stable governments. Now he’s heading into Istanbul, given the task of cleanup and extraction. Trager, another stringer, lies dead on a city street, gunned down after leaving his own trail of destruction. Sally Forbes, his government handler, needs to be brought home to explain her failure. It’s a simple job. Tie up loose ends. Then get out, before the city falls.

But clean breaks are hard in this packed, panicking megapolis. Together, Mackay and Forbes must discover who killed Trager and what he may have uncovered. Along the way, they will be drawn into the defence of the ancient city, into the mystery of the relentless, churning destruction of the Burner advance and their own complicity in the chaos. They will both have to decide why they are there and what they’re willing to truly fight for.

Stringers is currently a standalone novel, though with series pote

I'm trying to get back into reading.
Looking for a spy-espionage thriller set in Europe after the cold-war era with lots of mysterious conspiracies and shady-government dealings.

Counting on you folks!

I read and liked Jennifer Lynn Barnes’ “The Fixer,” “The Inheritance Games,” and “Killer Instinct.” I also liked “They Call me Alexandra Gastone” and “Prep School Confidential.” Please rec me more books like these, specifically with female protagonists. Thanks!

Basically, indy!Harry or grey!Harry, except instead of being "Harry's a complete arse who burns his bridges and inherits a bunch of titles and stuff from dead people," it's taking notes from stuff like the Jack Ryan series or Three Days of the Condor.

Logline: An amnesiac spy tries to recover his memories by hunting a former friend through post-war Europe. Takes inspiration from Homer's The Iliad.

Hi there. Recently completed this draft and was hoping to get some feedback. Am open to swaps. Any feedback is welcome- would love emphasis on story/character.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1nWAWU9MW6lZhhkqQdrZC84s3q_juvkM9/view?usp=sharing

I really enjoy the spy/espionage books where the main character has a funny/sarcastic personality. Along the lines of John Corey (Nelson DeMille), Sean Drummond (Brian Haig), Myron Bolitar (Harlan Coben), and Mark Beamon (Kyle Mills). Can anyone recommend some similar authors/books with these type of characters? Thanks!

A source close to the development, reveals, "Ronnie Screwvala's RSVP has been planning an action film for sometime now. It's an espionage thriller which will be mounted on a big scale. They wanted a young actor to play the lead and offered it to Sidharth. He liked the script and agreed to be part of the project. The film is a well conceptualised spy thriller with several stunts and action sequences in it."

The source further adds, "After Uri worked wonders for the banner, the team was working on this film's pre-production, which revolves around the India-Pakistan cross border relationship. Sidharth will play a RAW agent in Pakistan."

Five Fingers (1952) - https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0044314/?ref_=ttawd_awd_tt

How did I not know this movie existed?

Directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz one of the golden era of Hollywood’s best directors responsible for All About Eve (1950) and other classic films Guys and Dolls (1955), Suddenly, Last Summer (1959) and Cleopatra (1963). Michael Wilson wrote the script and was one of the superb writers blacklisted by Hollywood during the McCarthyism era in the 1940/1950s. Some of the screenplays he wrote include A Place in the Sun (1951), The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) and Lawrence of Arabia (1962). A writer/director team of such quality is the foundation for Five Fingers (1952) which is a seriously fun and thrilling spy movie set in Turkey during the second world war and made all the more interesting because it’s based on real events involving Elyesa Bazna.

James Mason is our treacherous protagonist Diello. He desires great wealth and is willing to sell top British intelligence to the Nazi intelligence officers in Turkey. Mason with his erudition and suave and dapper appearance of course convinces the Germans he is as a British intelligence agent. The Nazis consider him “highly trained, an Oxford-bred aristocrat, you know the type arrogant, spoiled, cynical and completely decadent”. However, James Mason is not an intelligence agent but merely the personal valet to the British ambassador. Diello is a man of service, he’s always attending to the Ambassador and therefore hearing every detail of British military intelligence during the second world war. He knows the locks and combinations where the highest value intelligence is stored.

The valet draws his former employer Countess Anna Staviska (Danielle Darrieux) into his money making plan. Staviska, a Frenchwoman and the widow of a Polish Count used to have a life of infinite luxury and indulgence but her wealth was confiscated by the Nazis and she left Warsaw “Bombs were falling. I felt I was in the way”. She has settled in neutral Turkey but is now poor so she is perfect to be recruited by Diello.

Mason’s Diello delivers wholly accurate and top class intelligence to the Germans week after week but the Nazis are paranoid and believe they are being enticed into a trap. They are wary of British intelligence playing the long game but the Germans are so impressed with the intelligence they keep paying the extortionate monetary fee deman

To start:

I don’t really like giving out info about myself, but here we are. I’m above an 21 female, and i’m on nearly every day. If i ever feel like I won’t be active for the day, i’ll shoot you a message beforehand. I’d ask that my partner sends at least above 2 paragraphs per reply, but different scenes call for different things. Moving on,

As of recent, ive been really big on cheesy, overly-exaggerated political thrillers. MGS, Killer7, you name it. Obviously, this is what this post is gonna be about. Give it a read and lemme know if you’re interested!

It has been one year since all W.M.D.’s were destroyed by every nation on Earth.

The conflict between East and West had finally been laid to rest, with the world seemingly reaching a calm, confident peace throughout each country. Every war had been settled, new trade agreements and immigration policies had been finalized, and even the tension: between countries like the U.S. and China had been laid to rest.

At least, in the public eye.

Behind the scenes, a more sinister leech had begun to spread. While the point of conception had yet to be determined, the United States had a pinpoint on where it had spread to.

Japan.

A group of 7 elite operatives had begun a revolution, threatening the sacred peace that once blanketed the Earth. Their motives are unknown, but what is known is that they need to be eliminated.

This is where our characters come in.

So, obviously, this is taking heavy inspiration from Killer7, and I plan on having many similar themes and ideas, if slightly bent and altered to fit whatever themes we wanna throw in. It’d have heavy political thriller influence, along with your typical action-movie-esque scenes throughout. Toss in some deep character development, and we got our own little weird MGS-ripoff.

If you have any ideas, or are interested, fire me a message.