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Behind The Trigger: A psychological spy novel about two women on opposite sides of deception
In honor of Jewish Book Month, this ebook is available for only $0.99 for a limited time.
What if one impossible decision during a suspenseful mission shattered everything you believed about your past?
Set deep within the world of contemporary Israeli espionage, Behind the Trigger is a psychological spy thriller where covert operations collide with buried trauma, and the cost of trust is life or death.
Irit is no cliché female protagonist. She’s a Mossad field agent, mother, and wife - trained to complete missions, not confront her past. But when a thrilling assignment sparks an unexpected connection with Noor - the wife of a Syrian missiles engineer - everything changes.
Two strong female main characters, both bound by secrets, face off not just as adversaries, but as mirrors. Their growing bond becomes both a strategic intelligence asset and a raw, psychological reckoning neither of them saw coming.
In a world built on lies, mysteries, and drama, the most dangerous truth is the one you tell yourself.
If you love Daniel Silva, Tehran, or espionage fiction that reveals the truth about spying, this novel is for you. Written by a bestselling Israeli author and former intelligence officer, whose novel Operation Bethlehem won the 2023 National Jewish Book Award for Hebrew Fiction in Translation.
How will Irit and Noor's bond end when one woman’s triumph means the other’s ruin?
Click “READ NOW” to enter the hidden world of women in espionage, where emotion is weaponized, and loyalty cuts both ways.
Content This novel includes references to sexual abuse but contains no graphic descriptions. Reader discretion advised.
What if one impossible decision during a suspenseful mission shattered everything you believed about your past?
Set deep within the world of contemporary Israeli espionage, Behind the Trigger is a psychological spy thriller where covert operations collide with buried trauma, and the cost of trust is life or death.
Irit is no cliché female protagonist. She’s a Mossad field agent, mother, and wife - trained to complete missions, not confront her past. But when a thrilling assignment sparks an unexpected connection with Noor - the wife of a Syrian missiles engineer - everything changes.
Two strong female main characters, both bound by secrets, face off not just as adversaries, but as mirrors. Their growing bond becomes both a strategic intelligence asset and a raw, psychological reckoning neither of them saw coming.
In a world built on lies, mysteries, and drama, the most dangerous truth is the one you tell yourself.
If you love Daniel Silva, Tehran, or espionage fiction that reveals the truth about spying, this novel is for you. Written by a bestselling Israeli author and former intelligence officer, whose novel Operation Bethlehem won the 2023 National Jewish Book Award for Hebrew Fiction in Translation.
How will Irit and Noor's bond end when one woman’s triumph means the other’s ruin?
Click “READ NOW” to enter the hidden world of women in espionage, where emotion is weaponized, and loyalty cuts both ways.
Content This novel includes references to sexual abuse but contains no graphic descriptions. Reader discretion advised.
434 pages, Kindle Edition
Published August 15, 2025
11 people are currently reading
27 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
September 23, 2025
While many readers still can’t have enough of James Bond, sometimes swapping Bond with other characters but keeping Bond's world intact proves to be the greatest gift any writer can give their audience. In his book, Behind the Trigger, Yariv Inbar does exactly that. Not only does he write about contemporary espionage, but he also gives readers two favorable characters. And they’re all women. On one hand, Noor is a Syrian woman stuck in an unhappy marriage, and on the other, Irit is a Mossad operative good at her work, which she balances with family life. They meet in unfortunate circumstances, and Irit is advised to seize the opportunity as it presents itself; therefore, she aims to recruit Noor. Do things go as planned? Absolutely not. Secrets are exposed, as is childhood trauma. Simply put, this book explores the relationship between its two female protagonists, immersing readers into the marital challenges, the risk and flair of the espionage world, with the entire story rooted in the Israel-Syria fragile relationship.
Written from the point of view of Irit and Noor, Behind the Trigger brings so much to the surface. It’s bold in how it depicts marriage and life in general, especially in the Middle East, as viewed from a woman's point of view. On childhood trauma, the book psychologically ventures into Irit’s mysterious dreams, which have taken a similar pattern and clearly have a lot to do with something terrible done to her in the past.
The beginning is where it starts to get interesting. Irit ends up saving Noor’s life, for which Noor is grateful. The more Noor replays the events leading to the incident, the more things don’t add up. Usually, she’d close her door and was certain she did. So, how did Irit enter the house? Noor is a smart woman; she figures things out on her own and agrees to play along to confirm her suspicion. As for Irit, on the day she discovers the darker side of Noor’s husband, she does one thing anybody in her line of duty shouldn’t. Is it because she cares for Noor? Or because she needs closure for her childhood’s bad experience? Or both?
And there’s so much to talk about in this book. Shifting the narrative from Noor nor Irit is just one of them. The quality of writing, an immersive plot and strong characters afford it the must-read tag. For readers who’d loved Fredrick Forsyth’s novels, here’s another book to pick off the shelf.
Written from the point of view of Irit and Noor, Behind the Trigger brings so much to the surface. It’s bold in how it depicts marriage and life in general, especially in the Middle East, as viewed from a woman's point of view. On childhood trauma, the book psychologically ventures into Irit’s mysterious dreams, which have taken a similar pattern and clearly have a lot to do with something terrible done to her in the past.
The beginning is where it starts to get interesting. Irit ends up saving Noor’s life, for which Noor is grateful. The more Noor replays the events leading to the incident, the more things don’t add up. Usually, she’d close her door and was certain she did. So, how did Irit enter the house? Noor is a smart woman; she figures things out on her own and agrees to play along to confirm her suspicion. As for Irit, on the day she discovers the darker side of Noor’s husband, she does one thing anybody in her line of duty shouldn’t. Is it because she cares for Noor? Or because she needs closure for her childhood’s bad experience? Or both?
And there’s so much to talk about in this book. Shifting the narrative from Noor nor Irit is just one of them. The quality of writing, an immersive plot and strong characters afford it the must-read tag. For readers who’d loved Fredrick Forsyth’s novels, here’s another book to pick off the shelf.
October 6, 2025
Let’s cut to the chase: I could not put this book down. Yariv Inbar (a pseudonym) knows the world he writes about inside out. A bestselling Israeli author and former intelligence officer, Inbar delivers an insider’s view of espionage—and takes us far beyond it—in his latest psychological spy thriller, BEHIND THE TRIGGER.
Inbar writes the female perspective of espionage with striking authenticity, exploring dichotomies and the deep psychological toll of a double life. What makes a female spy successful? How does she balance motherhood, marriage, and espionage—carpooling one day, infiltrating enemy lines the next? And ... What is the price tag when she doesn't?
The author expertly weaves covert operations with the human factor—emotion, trauma, love, loss, duty, and desire—with rare precision and sensitivity. The novel is high stakes all the way as two fierce women—one a Mossad agent, the other the wife of a Syrian missile engineer—find themselves on opposite sides, yet forge an unexpected, complex bond. Strategic, raw, and propulsive on both sides – it is their unique relationship that anchors the novel.
Tense, fast-paced, emotionally charged, and gripping, BEHIND THE TRIGGER is a masterclass in suspense from start to finish.
Inbar writes the female perspective of espionage with striking authenticity, exploring dichotomies and the deep psychological toll of a double life. What makes a female spy successful? How does she balance motherhood, marriage, and espionage—carpooling one day, infiltrating enemy lines the next? And ... What is the price tag when she doesn't?
The author expertly weaves covert operations with the human factor—emotion, trauma, love, loss, duty, and desire—with rare precision and sensitivity. The novel is high stakes all the way as two fierce women—one a Mossad agent, the other the wife of a Syrian missile engineer—find themselves on opposite sides, yet forge an unexpected, complex bond. Strategic, raw, and propulsive on both sides – it is their unique relationship that anchors the novel.
Tense, fast-paced, emotionally charged, and gripping, BEHIND THE TRIGGER is a masterclass in suspense from start to finish.
September 2, 2025
This is a book so engrossing that you find yourself glued to it from beginning to end, and even though you want to read as fast as you can to learn what happens next at the same time you want to slow down because you don’t the book to end.
This book gives us the behind the scenes of the life of a female spy and the toll this kind of life takes on the life of said spy, psychological, physical and familial.
But also touches themes of childhood sexual abuse, marital abuse, infertility, sacrifices, secrets.
It is an amazing book.
This book gives us the behind the scenes of the life of a female spy and the toll this kind of life takes on the life of said spy, psychological, physical and familial.
But also touches themes of childhood sexual abuse, marital abuse, infertility, sacrifices, secrets.
It is an amazing book.
August 28, 2025
Two women are enemies and they will meet after one mission. It seems they were very similar but they also have many differences. A very interesting and intriguing read
I received an advance copy from hidden gems and a great thriller
I received an advance copy from hidden gems and a great thriller
August 16, 2025
A tense and engaging spy story that puts women at the center without falling into clichés. Strong, fast-paced, and refreshingly different from the usual genre. Loved it.
August 21, 2025
An excellent combination of spy plot and psychological thriller.
Surprising and engrossing plot spiced with interesting twists, give an unusual glimpse into the complex and fascinating world of women fighters in the secret service.
Surprising and engrossing plot spiced with interesting twists, give an unusual glimpse into the complex and fascinating world of women fighters in the secret service.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews