L'espion de la place rouge

The setting feels so vivid and authentic — I wonder what inspired the choice to set this story during that particular time period and how much research went into it.

The story had such a strong start and finish, but I felt the middle dragged a bit. Was that intentional to build tension or just how the story evolved?

It made the mystery feel all the more intense and believable. I'm curious if the author considered other genres or influences during writing.