DoubleHelix
The Helix Project, Book 1
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3 Months Free
Buy for $16.42
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Narrated by:
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Nicholas Kennedy
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By:
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J.L. Calder
Winner - Best Thriller Audiobook for the 2026 PenCraft Awards!
In the shadows of power, survival is never guaranteed. Washington, D.C., 1996. - Mike Green built a career writing about dead girls, but nothing could have prepared him for the file he stumbles on at the National Archives: the death of Delilah Grennan, a murdered Soviet dissident with ties to the Russian underworld. What begins as research becomes obsession, until her voice bleeds into his and paranoia pushes him deeper into the shadows.
Dragged into a covert war between a global crime syndicate, intelligence agencies, and a political dynasty that considers him family, Mike learns too late that the only way to survive is sometimes to be buried. This work is a sprawling espionage thriller and political noir, blending elements of psychological introspection, high-stakes government machinations, and gritty character-driven drama. With an intricate narrative clockwork and a variety of perspectives, it weaves a story of secret operations, personal betrayals, identity rediscovery, and the interplay between institutional power and individual vulnerability. The multi-layered narrative and morally gray characters position it well among titles that mix high-stakes geopolitics with internal, personal drama.
©2025 Dwyer Street Press (P)2026 Dwyer Street PressContinue the series
Listener received this title free
Double Helix is a realistic geopolitical thriller mixed with Noir elements. The MMC is a writer of Noir dective thrillers and has close ties to a major political family. When he becomes obsessed with his newest book research he finds himself in real danger. Double Helix is aptly named for the twists and unexpected connections as past and present unravel.
I found the book both well written and quite believable. Calder takes the reader on a high-stakes ride from behind the scenes modern-day political posturing all the way back through the Cold War era, the Russian Mob, and espionage through agencies like MI6 and the KGB.
For Audiobook Readers: Nicholas Kennedy does a pretty decent job at narrating. He speaks with a quick cadence that I personally prefer over slower narrators. His female voices and accents are decent. Sometimes the accents come across as stereotypical or over done, but I feel that is an intentional choice due to the Noir elements of the story. Overall, he is a narrator I wouldn't mind listening to again.
Content Warnings: death, murder, drugs, alcohol, adult language, violence, kidnapping, stalking, forced isolation
Spies, drugs, politics, life, death, and self discovery!
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Listener received this title free
Poetically written thriller, smart but unpretentious
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