The Confessions of Gabriel Ash, a literary Cold War thriller with echoes of John Le Carre and A Gentleman in Moscow, alternates between the glittery backdrop of 1980s New York and the sinister grottoes of Eastern Europe. The story UN Ambassador Gabriel Ash has to tell -- in a voice that''s sardonic, self-delusional, and uniquely his own -- will result either in his release from captivity or the loss of his life.