The Contaminant

Leonard Reiffel
1978

Pre-loved
Hardcover
Good condition
Foxing present

The Contaminant by Leonard Reiffel is a gripping technothriller that delves into the dark corridors of Cold War paranoia and covert operations. Set in the mid-1980s, the novel follows Randolph Clayton, the newly appointed Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who uncovers a clandestine project known as "M10"—a rogue operation by former Pentagon officials aiming to contaminate U.S. wheat exports to the Soviet Union with a carcinogenic agent. As the Soviet cancer rates soar and tensions escalate, Clayton's investigation leads to his untimely death in a suspicious plane crash. His brother-in-law, journalist John Schotty, inherits the explosive M10 report, which, once leaked, propels the world toward the brink of nuclear war. Reiffel, drawing from his background as a physicist and science journalist, infuses the narrative with authentic scientific and military details, crafting a chilling tale of espionage, ethical dilemmas, and the fragile balance of global power.