The French Illusion

 

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Many thanks for the free book, Penguin Random House Audio! John Grisham wrote a spy thriller, and I'm here for it. 

The French Illusion is a high stakes game of cat and mouse that plays out on an international stage.

American honeymooners Chelsea and Paul are kidnapped in Paris, the ransom is paid, but only the wife comes home. And this is not the first time it's happened. 

A young CIA analyst comes up with a daring plan to find Paul and apprehended the kidnappers. She recruits a young lawyer from the Justice Department to pose as bait for the kidnappers. It's a daring plan that could have deadly consequences. 

This is a fast, tense, revenge story with a counterterrorism twist underneath. The ending a felt a little rushed to me and wrapped up a little too tidy. But ultimately was satisfying. 

Michael Beck's narration is fantastic. He's a perfect fit for mix of political intrigue and action. He also does a great job juggling accents and numerous characters. 

This is a great choice for a reader looking for the tension filled espionage mixed with adrenaline filled action. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Grab a copy at Bookshop.org and help an indie bookstore while you're at it.

If you liked this review, you might be interested in my review of Gisham's The Widow.

About the Author

John Grisham is the author of more than fifty consecutive #1 bestsellers, which have been translated into nearly fifty languages. His recent books include Framed, Camino Ghosts and The Exchange: After the Firm.

Grisham is a two-time winner of the Harper Lee Prize for Legal Fiction and was honored with the Library of Congress Creative Achievement Award for Fiction.

When he’s not writing, Grisham serves on the board of directors of the Innocence Project and of Centurion Ministries, two national organizations dedicated to exonerating those who have been wrongfully convicted. Much of his fiction explores deep-seated problems in our criminal justice system.

Follow John on Instagram and visit his website for more news and information about his books.

Beyond Honor

 

This post contains affiliate links. If you buy through them, I earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. It just helps keep this space going.

Thank you Simon & Schuster Audio, Atria Books, and Megan Beatie Communications for the gifted copies.

An Alaskan hunting guide, a New York developer in over his head, and a CIA analyst chasing a conspiracy straight into the Oval Office. This debut ties all three together and never lets up.

Beyond Honor by K.B. Brodsky is an old-school, globetrotting political thriller with the pacing of a modern action novel, and it's a debut. Bill and Karen Brodsky are a husband-and-wife writing team, which explains nothing about how they pulled this off on the first try.

Three threads: Kevin Rhoads is young Alaskan hunting guide whose tracking skills make him CIA paramilitary material. When his team is killed, his grief turns into something sharper, and the man who goes into Siberia on a solo extraction has vengeance on his mind. Real estate developer Peter Michaels is desperate for financing. He takes money from the wrong people in Moscow and finds himself owned. Analyst Whitney Skyler uncovers foreign operation that involves the Oval Office. Whitney and CIA Director Cynthia King leverage a thirty-year debt of honor to try to free an American agent rotting in a Russian prison.

To say there's a lot going on is an understatement. What impressed me is that none of it tangles. The threads converge into a fast-paced edge-your-seat thriller. 

I went back and forth between print and audio and ended up doing most of it on audio. Narrator Jacques Roy handles a huge cast without a single moment where I lost track of who was talking. That's harder than it sounds.

A sequel is already announced and I'm in. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Out now. 

Grab a copy of Beyond Honor from Bookshop.org and help out an indie bookstore while you're at it.

I you enjoyed this review, and want more espionage, you might be interested in my review of The Shadow Friends by Tess Gerritsen.

About the Author

K.B. Brodsky is the pen name of Bill and Karen Brodsky, a husband-and-wife writing team based in New York City and Colorado. Beyond Honor is the first book in a series. Follow the authors on Instagram and visit their website for more news and information about their work.

The Shadow Friends

 

This post contains affiliate links. If you buy through them, I earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. It just helps keep this space going.

Thank you to Amazon Publishing and Megan Beatie Communications for the gifted ARC.

I started this series with book three and it was just fine.

Tess Gerritsen’s The Shadow Friends was definitely the thriller I needed at the right time. It’s a smart, fast-paced spy story about a group of friends who are all retired intelligence agents. They call themselves the Martini Club, and they spend their retirement on good food, good conversation, and a lot of drinks. Until duty calls.

When a renowned infectious disease expert and Russian defector turns up dead at a conference, followed by the murder of a hotel waitress, the group gets pulled back into the game. Ingrid recognizes the killer’s handiwork immediately. She’s seen it before, decades ago, on a mission that nearly got her killed.

I really liked Ingrid, her husband Lloyd, Maggie, and Declan. Gerritsen provides enough backstory that jumping in at book three never felt like a gap. I had a real handle on these characters and their friendship from page one. The pacing never let up, the tension stayed high, and the spycraft was sharp throughout. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This one is perfect for anyone who loves the idea of nosy retirees solving mysteries and saving the world at the same time. 

The Shadow Friends is out August 25. You can preorder a copy from Bookshop.org and help an indie bookstore while you're at it. 

You you enjoyed this review you might be interested in my review of Kills Well with Others. It's a funny and fast paced spy thriller about a group of retired female assassins who go back to work to find a mole in their former organization.

About the Author

New York Times bestselling author Tess Gerritsen earned international acclaim for her first novel of suspense, Harvest. She introduced Detective Jane Rizzoli in The Surgeon (2001) and Dr. Maura Isles in The Apprentice (2002) and has gone on to write numerous other titles in the celebrated Rizzoli & Isles series, most recently The Mephisto Club, The Keepsake, Ice Cold, The Silent Girl, Last to Die, Die Again, and I Know a Secret. Follow Tess on Instagram or visit her website more news and information her books.

The Tuxedo Society

 

Be gay. Do espionage. Save the world.

A down-on-his-luck actor thinks he’s going to a fancy dinner. He’s actually being recruited into America’s most fabulous covert operation.

The Tuxedo Society by Paul Rudnick is the most fun I’ve had with an audiobook in a long time, and I need everyone to know about it.

Andrew, a struggling actor and candle shop employee, is invited by his best friend Brock to what he assumes is just a really nice dinner with a group of very gay, very stylish guys. What it actually is? An introduction to the Tuxedo Society: a secret government intelligence network made up entirely of LGBTQ+ members. Licensed to kill. Impeccably dressed.

From the White House to the Vatican to the Summer Olympic Games, Andrew ends up tackling spies, thwarting assassinations, and facing off against oligarchs, crooked senators, and a smarmy televangelist with sinister plans for world domination.  Oh, and at one point he has to pose as a US Olympic diver and actually dive in competition. It’s exactly as chaotic and hilarious as it sounds.

This book is completely over the top, and it knows it. That’s the whole point. The characters are all wildly likable: Andrew, Brock, Reggie the Navy SEAL with a black-tie obsession, and a First Lady who also happens to be a world-leading archaeologist. The pace never lets up. The wit is sharp. The social commentary sneaks up on you in the middle of all the absurdity.

Narrator Daniel Henning is pitch-perfect. There are a lot of characters to track and I never lost a single one. That’s not easy to pull off.

If you’ve been looking for a summer read that’s pure, unapologetic fun, this is it. ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Thank you to Simon Audio for the gifted early listen. The Tuxedo Society is out today!

For more laughs with an LGBTQ+ lead, check out my review of I Might Be in Trouble.

About the Author

Paul Rudnick is the author of What Is Wrong With You? and Farrell Covington and the Limits of Style. His plays have been produced on and off Broadway and include Jeffrey, I Hate Hamlet, Regrets Only, and The New Century. He is the author of eight books, and he’s a frequent contributor to The New Yorker; his writing has also appeared in Vogue, Esquire, Vanity Fair, and more. His screenplays include Addams Family Values, Coastal Elites, In & Out, Sister Act, and the film adaptation of Jeffrey. Find more information about Paul and his work at his website.

I, Spy

 

She traded dead drops for drop-off lines. Turns out the PTA is just as dangerous.

I, Spy by L.M. Kemp is the spy thriller I didn’t know I needed. Now I want more.

Kendal Carter is a former operative who has spent four years trying to give her daughter Rosie the safe, normal childhood Kendal herself never had. That plan falls apart fast when her past catches up with her and she’s pulled back into the field — this time with a four-year-old in tow and a London school run as her cover.

What makes this work is Kendal. Her “mama bear” instincts aren’t just personality color. They drive every decision she makes. She’s tough, capable, and completely believable as someone who could shift between a playground pickup and a high-stakes op without breaking a sweat.

The pacing is tight from the start. No slow burn, no long setup. It’s just intrigue, action, and a story that moves. Yes, some of the characters lean into familiar spy thriller tropes, but it fits. And if you think something seems a little too good to be true at a certain point in the book… trust that instinct. You’ll get your “I knew it!” moment.

Ell Potter’s narration is fantastic. She nails both the emotional weight of the mother-daughter relationship and the cool, controlled tone of someone who knows exactly what she’s doing in the field.

This is a perfect beach or pool read. It’s smart. It’s fast, and it’s fun. I’d absolutely pick up a sequel. 🍿 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you @macmillanaudio for the listen! I, Spy is out May 5.

If you liked this, you might also enjoy my review of The Cormorant Hunt.

About the Author

L. M. Kemp lives and works in upstate London (Essex). She writes for a vast variety of creative, cultural, corporate and clandestine clients: most recently co-authoring personalized books for Wonderbly; reviewing pilot episodes, cheap perfumes and random Instagram accounts for Ralph Magazine; and editing lengthy and devastating reports for Greenpeace. For the last two years her work has been dominated by the research and development of I, Spy and a deep dive into the murky world of modern spycraft.

The Cormorant Hunt

 

What happens after you expose the CIA and manage to stay alive?

In The Cormorant Hunt, Michael Idov drops us back into the dangerous orbit of CIA operative Ari Falk, and he doesn’t ease up for a second. This is the second book in the Cormorant trilogy, and while Idov smartly provides enough backstory for new readers, the emotional and political stakes land harder if you’ve followed Ari from the start.

After blowing the lid off a massive conspiracy at CIA headquarters, Ari is lying low in the Republic of Georgia when a new mission finds him anyway. Enter Asha Tamaskar, a rising CIA officer with sharp instincts and her own carefully guarded agenda. She sends Ari undercover to infiltrate a European extremist group whose plans could tip the balance of power across the continent. What follows is a globe-trotting operation packed with surveillance, deception, and constant risk, where it’s never quite clear who’s using whom.

Idov keeps the pacing tight and relentless. The action moves fast and the spycraft is detailed without bogging the story down. Beneath the thrills, the book digs into themes of loyalty, moral compromise, institutional rot, and the personal cost of living in a world built on secrets. Trust is currency here and it’s always in short supply.

Santino Fontana’s narration is a perfect match for Idov’s prose.  He gives Ari a weary edge, sharpens the suspense, and keeps the momentum high even in the more political moments. It’s a performance that pulls you in and makes this one especially hard to pause.

Smart and full of intrigue, The Cormorant Hunt is a sharp continuation of the series and a standout modern spy thriller. Huge thanks to Simon Audio for the complimentary early listen. Out tomorrow! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Check out my review of The Collaborators. It’s the first book in this series. 

About the Author

Michael Idov is a novelist, director, and screenwriter. A Latvian-born American raised in Riga under Soviet occupation, he moved to New York after graduating from the University of Michigan. Michael’s writing career began at New York magazine, where his features won three National Magazine Awards, and he has served as the editor-in-chief of GQ Russia. He is also the author of The Collaborators, Ground Up, and Dressed Up for a Riot. Michael has worked on numerous film and TV projects, including Londongrad, Deutschland 83, Leto, and The Humorist. He and his wife and screenwriting partner, Lily, divide their time between Los Angeles, Berlin, and Portugal.

The Collaborators

 

Author: Michael Idov

Narrator: Santino Fantana

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

Year: 2024

Thank you Simon & Schuster Audio for the gifted audiobook! 

I like espionage thrillers, but they often take along time to unfold. There’s lots of time spent on the set up and not enough time spent on action. Luckily, Michael Idov’s The Collaborators isn’t like that. It’s a globe trotting, action packed adventure. 

Ari Falk is a young CIA operative who just lost his best asset, an outspoken critic of Russia. Ari sets out to find out  who killed his best asset and why. Along the way he meets Maya Chou, the daughter of billionaire who allegedly killed himself. Maya’s looking for answers too. Ari and Maya realize their quests for answers are somehow connected. But can they evade assassins to find the truth? 

I really liked the fast pace of the story. With a listening time of just over 8 house, this was an easy binge read for me. Both Maya and Ari are likable characters who are attracted to each other and work well together. There were lots of twists and turns throughout the story that kept me guessing. I also really enjoyed the various locations the characters visited. Their country hopping really kept the story moving. Santino Fantana’s narration was excellent. He really brought the characters and the settings to life. This is a top notch thriller and I’d love to see these characters again in the future. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

QOTD: Do you think you’d make a good spy? What skill set or characteristic do you have that would be useful for being a spy? 

I’m getting to be a woman of a “certain age” who’s often overlooked in public. I’d blend right into a crowd. 

#thecollaborators #michaelidov #simonaudio #audiobook #audiobookreview #audiobookstagram #espionagethriller #espionagefiction #thrillerfiction #bookrecommendation #audiobookreommendation #alwaysreadingm

The Ministry of Time

 

Author: Kaliane Bradley

Narrators: Katie Leung and George Weightman

Publisher: Simon Audio

Year: 2024

Thank you Simon Audio for the gifted audiobook! 

“Time,” she said, “is a limited resource like all of our resources.”

A book about time travel? Sign me up! In Kaliane Bradley's The Ministry of Time, a civil servant in the near future is offered a new job that comes with big promotion. Time travel is now possible & the ministry is gathering “expats” from across time to determine if time travel is feasible on a body & also on the fabric of space and time. The ministry has brought back several individuals from different periods in history. The civil servant’s job is to act as a “bridge” - living with, helping & monitoring expat 1847, Commander Graham Gore. Gore was on a doomed Arctic expedition. Now he’s learning to deal with computers, cellphones, washing machines, & a modern day woman. 

My quick summery doesn’t do justice to this impressive debt novel. It has something for every reader. It’s a combo of history, sci-fi, comedy, espionage, & romance. It’s full of interesting characters and a big twist at the end. This book pulled me in right from the beginning with its interesting & complex characters & intricate plot. Commander Gore was a real-life Royal Navy officer on the ill fated Franklin expedition. I liked the alternating chapters that gave a glimpse into Gore’s expedition and the man himself. 

The novel is also weighty enough to examine what it means to be a refugee both in and out of time. Gore’s bridge, the unnamed female main character, is the daughter of refugees. The plight of refugees has implications in not-too-distant future timelines. The narration by Katie Leung and George Weightman is top notch. 

All in all, this is a very entertaining and thought provoking novel. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Book Mail: Moscow Exile

 

Author: John Lawton

Publisher: Grove Atlantic 

Release date: April, 18, 2023

📪𝗕𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗠𝗮𝗶𝗹📪

#bookmailmonday but make it on Tuesday. 

Thank you Grove Atlantic Press and author John Lawton for this gifted copy! 

This was on my doorstep when I got home after spending last week at the beach. I had too much catching up to do yesterday and didn’t get a chance to post about it. 

𝗦𝘆𝗻𝗼𝗽𝘀𝗶𝘀: Charlotte is a British expatriate who has recently settled in the nation’s capital with her second husband, a man who looks intriguingly like Clark Gable, but her enviable dinner parties and soirées aren’t the only things she is planning. Meanwhile, Charlie Leigh-Hunt has been posted to Washington as a replacement for Guy Burgess, last seen disappearing around the corner and into the Soviet Union. Charlie is soon shocked to cross paths with Charlotte, an old flame of his, who, thanks to all her gossipy parties, has a packed pocketbook full of secrets she is eager to share. Two decades or so later, in 1969, Joe Wilderness is stuck on the wrong side of the Iron Curtain, held captive by the KGB, a chip in a game way above his pay grade—but his old friends Frank and Eddie are going to try to spring him out of the toughest prison in the world. All roads lead back to Berlin, and to the famous Bridge of Spies…

Sounds like lots of intrigue in the post WWII era! Can’t wait to dive into this one! Espionage thriller lovers mark you calendars. Moscow Exile publishes next Tuesday, April 18th. 

#moscowexile #johnlawton #groveatlantic #joewilderness #espionage #espionagethriller #spythriller #espionagefiction #moscow #coldwar #coldwarespionagethriller #thrillerbooks #bookstagram #spyfiction #bookmail #bookmailisthebestmail #bridgeofspies #joewildernessseries #publishingsoon 

Red London

 

Author: Alma Katsu

Publisher: G.P. Putnam’s Sons

Publishing date: March 14, 2023

📖 𝗕𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄 📖 

For some reason, I thought Alma Katsu only wrote horror. And I admit, I requested Red London from NetGalley awhile ago and didn’t really remember the plot summary. I really thought London would be painted red with blood during a zombie apocalypse or something. So imagine my surprise when I started reading the book and it turned out to be a spy thriller. And it’s a very good one at that! 

CIA agent Lyndsey Duncan is on an undercover assignment in London. She’s the handler for a turned Russian asset. But her original mission gets put on the back burner when MI6 pulls her into a mission to get close to the wife of a Russian billionaire banking oligarch. Russia’s war in Ukraine has brought a regime change and it’s anyone’s guess what the new leader will do. 

Lyndsey befriends Emily, the English born wife of oligarch Mikhail Rotenberg. Lyndsey and Emily become fast friends, giving Lyndsey unprecedented access to the oligarch’s household.  As Russia’s new leader puts pressure on Rotenberg, can Lyndsey count on Emily’s help before it’s too late? 

This was a fast and fun read for me. Lyndsey isn’t a James Bond type spy with bag full of high tech weapons. She’s armed with smarts, common sense, and her tradecraft. The story was fast paced and moved along briskly. This is the second book in the series. (Another thing I didn’t realize when I requested it.) I had no trouble jumping into the series without reading the first book. And looks like there’s going to be a third book in this series. Cleaver, fast paced, and intricate, Red London has something that will appeal to every reader. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Red London hits shelves on March 14th. Thank you to G.P. Putnam’s Sons and NetGalley for the digital review copy. 

#redlondon #almakatsu #gpputnamssons #espionage #espionagethriller #spythriller #espionagebooks #london #russia #cia #spyfiction #bookstagram #netgalley #bookreview #booksbooksbooks #crimefiction