From a hidden enclave in the maze of Tehran, an Iranian scientist who calls himself "Dr. Ali" sends an encrypted message to the CIA. It falls to Harry Pappas to decide if it's for real. Dr. Ali sends more secrets of the Iranian bomb program to the agency, then panics. He's being followed, but he doesn't know who's onto him, and neither does Pappas. The White House is no help---they're looking for a pretext to attack Tehran.
To get his agent out, Pappas turns to a secret British spy team known as "The Increment," whose operatives carry the modern version of the double-O "license to kill." But the real story here is infinitely more complicated than he understands, and to get to the bottom of it he must betray his own country.
The Increment is The Spy Who Came in from the Cold set in Iran, with a dose of Graham Greene's The Human Factor to highlight the subtleties of betrayal.
Narrator Dick Hill and author David Ignatius jump back into the spy game with the new chief of the CIA's Office of Iran Operations, Harry Papas. Hill's even and controlled pacing belies the tension that builds as Papas investigates an email from a Tehran scientist, Dr. Ali, who hints that Iran continues to pursue nuclear weapons. Hill quickens his pace and draws the reader into the netherworld of an undercover team called "The Increment" as they race to get Ali out of Iran before an unnecessary war can begin. This thrilling story of high-level intrigue is greatly enhanced by the ever-reliable Hill. R.O. (c) AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine