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The Russian Trilogy #1
Conspiracy in Kiev
A shrewd investigator and an expert marksman, Special Agent Alexandra LaDuca can handle any case the FBI gives her. Or can she? While on loan from the U.S. Department of the Treasury, Alex is tapped to accompany a Secret Service team during an American Presidential visit to Ukraine. Her assignment: to keep personal watch over Yuri Federov, the most charming and most notorious gangster in the region. Against her better judgment—and fighting a feeling that she’s being manipulated—she leaves for Ukraine. But there are more parts to this dangerous mission than anyone suspects, and connecting the dots takes Alex across three continents and through some life-altering discoveries about herself, her work, her faith, and her future. Conspiracy in Kiev—from the first double-cross to the stunning final pages—is the kind of solid, fast-paced espionage thriller only Noel Hynd can write. For those who have never read Noel Hynd, this first book in The Russian Trilogy is the perfect place to start.
398 pages, Paperback
First published September 23, 2008
196 people are currently reading
1115 people want to read
About the author
Noel Hynd
62 books218 followers I've been a published novelist for longer than I care to admit, since 1976. I'm frequently asked, however, how I first got published. It's an interesting story and involved both Robert Ludlum and James Baldwin, even though neither of them knew it --- or me --- at the time.
My first agent, a wonderful thorughly perofessional gentleman named Robert Lantz was representing Mr. Baldwin at the time. This was around 1975. Balwin, while a brilliant writer, had had some nasty dealings with the head of Dell Publishing. Dell held Jimmy's contract at the time and he could not legally write for anyone else until he gave Dell a book that was due to them. Nonetheless, he refused to deliver a manuscript to Dell and went to Paris to sit things out.
The book was due to The Dial Press, which Dell owned. Baldwin was widely quoted as saying....and I'm cleaning up the quote here, "that he was no longer picking cotton on Dell's planatation."
The book was due to The Dial Press. The editor in chief of The Dial Press was a stellar editor who was making a name for himself and a fair bit of money for the company publishing thriller-author Robert Ludlum. A best seller every year will do that for an editor. Anyway, Baldwin fled New York for Paris. The editor followed, the asignment being to get him to come happily back to Dial. As soon as the editor arrived, Baldwin fled to Algeria. Or maybe Tunisia. It hardly mattered because Baldwin was furious and simply wouldn 't do a book for Dell/Dial. The editor returned to NY without his quarry. Things were at a standstill.
That's where I entered the story, unpublished at age 27 and knowing enough to keep my mouth shut while these things went down. I had given 124 pages of a first novel to Mr. Lantz ten days eariler. Miraculously, his reader liked it and then HE liked it. It was in the same genre that Ludlum wrote in and which the editor at Dial excelled at editing and marketing.
My agent and the editor ran into each other one afternoon in July of 1974 in one of those swank Manhattan places where people used to have three martinis for lunch. The agent asked how things had gone in Europe. The editor told him, knowing full well that the agent already knew. The next steps would be lawyers, Baldwin dragged into US Courts, major authors boycotting Doubleday/Dell, Dial, maybe some civil rights demonstrations and.......but no so fast.
Mr. Lantz offered Dial the first look at a new adventure/espionage novelist (me). IF Dial wanted me after reading my 124 pages, he could sign me, but only IF Baldwin was released from his obligations at Doubleday. I was the literary bribe, so to speak, that would get Jimmy free from Dial. It seemed like a great idea to everyone. It seemed that way because it was. Paperwork was prepapred and paperwork was signed. Voila!...To make a much longer story short, Dial accepted my novel. The editor instructed me on how to raise it to a professional level as I finished writing it over the next ten months. I followed orders perfectly. I even felt prosperous on my $7500 advance. He then had Dial release Mr. Balwin from his obligation. Not surpringly, he went on to create fine books for other publishers. Ludlum did even batter. Of the three, I'm the pauper but I've gotten my fair share and I'm alive with books coming out again now in the very near future, no small accmplishment. So no complaints from me.
That''s how I got published. I met Ludlum many times later on and Baldwin once. Ludlum liked my name "Noel" and used it for an then-upcoming charcter named Noel Holcroft. That amused me. I don't know if either of them even knew that my career had been in their orbits for a month 1975. They would have been amused. They were both smart gifted men and fine writers in dfferent ways. This story was told to me by one of the principals two years later and another one confirmed it.
Me, I came out of it with my first publishing contract, for a book titled 'Reve
My first agent, a wonderful thorughly perofessional gentleman named Robert Lantz was representing Mr. Baldwin at the time. This was around 1975. Balwin, while a brilliant writer, had had some nasty dealings with the head of Dell Publishing. Dell held Jimmy's contract at the time and he could not legally write for anyone else until he gave Dell a book that was due to them. Nonetheless, he refused to deliver a manuscript to Dell and went to Paris to sit things out.
The book was due to The Dial Press, which Dell owned. Baldwin was widely quoted as saying....and I'm cleaning up the quote here, "that he was no longer picking cotton on Dell's planatation."
The book was due to The Dial Press. The editor in chief of The Dial Press was a stellar editor who was making a name for himself and a fair bit of money for the company publishing thriller-author Robert Ludlum. A best seller every year will do that for an editor. Anyway, Baldwin fled New York for Paris. The editor followed, the asignment being to get him to come happily back to Dial. As soon as the editor arrived, Baldwin fled to Algeria. Or maybe Tunisia. It hardly mattered because Baldwin was furious and simply wouldn 't do a book for Dell/Dial. The editor returned to NY without his quarry. Things were at a standstill.
That's where I entered the story, unpublished at age 27 and knowing enough to keep my mouth shut while these things went down. I had given 124 pages of a first novel to Mr. Lantz ten days eariler. Miraculously, his reader liked it and then HE liked it. It was in the same genre that Ludlum wrote in and which the editor at Dial excelled at editing and marketing.
My agent and the editor ran into each other one afternoon in July of 1974 in one of those swank Manhattan places where people used to have three martinis for lunch. The agent asked how things had gone in Europe. The editor told him, knowing full well that the agent already knew. The next steps would be lawyers, Baldwin dragged into US Courts, major authors boycotting Doubleday/Dell, Dial, maybe some civil rights demonstrations and.......but no so fast.
Mr. Lantz offered Dial the first look at a new adventure/espionage novelist (me). IF Dial wanted me after reading my 124 pages, he could sign me, but only IF Baldwin was released from his obligations at Doubleday. I was the literary bribe, so to speak, that would get Jimmy free from Dial. It seemed like a great idea to everyone. It seemed that way because it was. Paperwork was prepapred and paperwork was signed. Voila!...To make a much longer story short, Dial accepted my novel. The editor instructed me on how to raise it to a professional level as I finished writing it over the next ten months. I followed orders perfectly. I even felt prosperous on my $7500 advance. He then had Dial release Mr. Balwin from his obligation. Not surpringly, he went on to create fine books for other publishers. Ludlum did even batter. Of the three, I'm the pauper but I've gotten my fair share and I'm alive with books coming out again now in the very near future, no small accmplishment. So no complaints from me.
That''s how I got published. I met Ludlum many times later on and Baldwin once. Ludlum liked my name "Noel" and used it for an then-upcoming charcter named Noel Holcroft. That amused me. I don't know if either of them even knew that my career had been in their orbits for a month 1975. They would have been amused. They were both smart gifted men and fine writers in dfferent ways. This story was told to me by one of the principals two years later and another one confirmed it.
Me, I came out of it with my first publishing contract, for a book titled 'Reve
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 135 reviews
December 28, 2008
Currently reading this...... We've gone from Washington to the Ukraine and I think all hell is about to break loose.....
(After finishing) I really (!!!) liked this, but I'm a sucker for fast paced spy stories with a credible female main character. The story went all over Europe, to South America, back then to Europe. I LOVED THE MAIN character and really felt for her when something horrible happened to her around 40% into the book. This appears to be a series. I'm down for the next one....
(After finishing) I really (!!!) liked this, but I'm a sucker for fast paced spy stories with a credible female main character. The story went all over Europe, to South America, back then to Europe. I LOVED THE MAIN character and really felt for her when something horrible happened to her around 40% into the book. This appears to be a series. I'm down for the next one....
December 28, 2010
The product description describes this book as a "solid, fast-paced espionage thriller". Unfortunately, this book is anything but that.
The first approx. 40% of the book revolves around the main character, FBI Special Agent Alexandra LaDuca, getting ready to travel to Kiev. There is a brief bit of action in Kiev, then another 30% or so of the book is Alex recovering from and dealing with what happened in Kiev. This includes her traveling to Venezuela. There is a brief bit of action after she has been there several weeks, and then there's a final bit of action in France. But that's it. The tension and edge-of-your-seat drama that good thrillers include are conspicuously missing in this book.
The story is also heavily bogged down by long passages about various countries' history, politics, etc., only a small portion of which is necessary for the reader to know to understand the story. The rest struck me as filler. Yes, I'm glad the author researched so carefully, but I don't need to read *all* the research. At one point, I remember thinking, "oh good, now some plot" and then rolled my eyes when the narrative immediately veered off again into background information.
Alex is an interesting character. However, she didn't live up to her billing as a "shrewd investigator". "Connecting the dots" may take "Alex across three continents", but it wasn't she who was doing the connecting. She doesn't play an active role in figuring out anything in this book. She is a pawn. After the events in Kiev, she tries briefly to find out what really happened but is stymied and gives up. After the events in Venezuela, others tell her who was behind the events and why. After the events in Paris, others tell her who was behind the events and why. *sigh* I liked her and wanted her to do something besides be used by others with hidden agendas.
Alex's religiousness also seemed artificial to me, almost as if it was an after-thought, something that was added to the character after the book was already written. There are a few throw-away references to Alex going to church, and she wears a gold cross, although that is more for remembrance than its religious significance. However, she doesn't consciously think about the Bible, and it doesn't actively guide her actions (which is actually fine with me because I don't like in-your-face peachiness that is typical of a lot of "Christian" fiction). The most glaring instance of this is when she thinks about committing suicide because she thinks it would reunite her with her loved ones. Um, isn't committing suicide a sin in Christianity that would prevent one from entering heaven? Not once during that whole thought process, do I remember her thinking, "Wait, Christianity says this is wrong."
One other annoyance is that every single bit of dialogue in French, Spanish, or Russian was also repeated in English in the narrative...including such common phrases as "dos vedanya" (spelled differently in the book) and "donde". Granted, some of the translation was necessary, but translating foreign words and phrases that 99% of your readers are going to recognize made the text seem dumbed down.
Finally, the ending was a bit of a let down. The immediate threat to Alex is dealt with, but the larger threat (that all the bad guys haven't been caught) is apparently ignored and she goes on her merry way. Huh? I know this is the first of a trilogy so the story will continue in the next book, but the abrupt ending was disconcerting.
The first approx. 40% of the book revolves around the main character, FBI Special Agent Alexandra LaDuca, getting ready to travel to Kiev. There is a brief bit of action in Kiev, then another 30% or so of the book is Alex recovering from and dealing with what happened in Kiev. This includes her traveling to Venezuela. There is a brief bit of action after she has been there several weeks, and then there's a final bit of action in France. But that's it. The tension and edge-of-your-seat drama that good thrillers include are conspicuously missing in this book.
The story is also heavily bogged down by long passages about various countries' history, politics, etc., only a small portion of which is necessary for the reader to know to understand the story. The rest struck me as filler. Yes, I'm glad the author researched so carefully, but I don't need to read *all* the research. At one point, I remember thinking, "oh good, now some plot" and then rolled my eyes when the narrative immediately veered off again into background information.
Alex is an interesting character. However, she didn't live up to her billing as a "shrewd investigator". "Connecting the dots" may take "Alex across three continents", but it wasn't she who was doing the connecting. She doesn't play an active role in figuring out anything in this book. She is a pawn. After the events in Kiev, she tries briefly to find out what really happened but is stymied and gives up. After the events in Venezuela, others tell her who was behind the events and why. After the events in Paris, others tell her who was behind the events and why. *sigh* I liked her and wanted her to do something besides be used by others with hidden agendas.
Alex's religiousness also seemed artificial to me, almost as if it was an after-thought, something that was added to the character after the book was already written. There are a few throw-away references to Alex going to church, and she wears a gold cross, although that is more for remembrance than its religious significance. However, she doesn't consciously think about the Bible, and it doesn't actively guide her actions (which is actually fine with me because I don't like in-your-face peachiness that is typical of a lot of "Christian" fiction). The most glaring instance of this is when she thinks about committing suicide because she thinks it would reunite her with her loved ones. Um, isn't committing suicide a sin in Christianity that would prevent one from entering heaven? Not once during that whole thought process, do I remember her thinking, "Wait, Christianity says this is wrong."
One other annoyance is that every single bit of dialogue in French, Spanish, or Russian was also repeated in English in the narrative...including such common phrases as "dos vedanya" (spelled differently in the book) and "donde". Granted, some of the translation was necessary, but translating foreign words and phrases that 99% of your readers are going to recognize made the text seem dumbed down.
Finally, the ending was a bit of a let down. The immediate threat to Alex is dealt with, but the larger threat (that all the bad guys haven't been caught) is apparently ignored and she goes on her merry way. Huh? I know this is the first of a trilogy so the story will continue in the next book, but the abrupt ending was disconcerting.
January 4, 2009
Quite good. Very literate and wise thriller, the start of a series that I will be glad to follow. The story starts in Washington and runs through Kiev and then South America. Complex but thoughtful plot and the author, whom I've read before but not in this genre, REALLY knows his intrernational and diplomatic stuff. No profanity, by the way, just story, character and fast moving events. Darn good.
December 24, 2009
I've just finished reading three novels by this author. I'm not going to pad my statistics by claiming them individually because once you've read one, the others have nothing new to add.These books are also additions to the growing phenomenon of illiterate, technically ignorant authors of techno-thrillers. If you are trying to make your novel seem tough and gritty by including endless detail about the firearm the heroine is using as she faces danger, the details should be right. How much trouble is it to give the ms to someone knowledgeable in firearms and have them correct it? Clearly, it's too much trouble. In addition, the proof reading must have been done by someone for whom English is a third language - several words are used that sound like the word actually meant. But the sentence actually published is meaningless. What a mess.
These books are part of the Christian literature movement. They are meant to advance Christianity by presenting it in a context people like to read and will seek out. Fine idea, really badly done.
These books are part of the Christian literature movement. They are meant to advance Christianity by presenting it in a context people like to read and will seek out. Fine idea, really badly done.
October 12, 2017
I would not rate this as Christian fiction. There is very little Bible Scripture used in the story, and there is a lack of separation between the saved and the unsaved. Alex showed me little evidence that she was a Christian and she was the main character in the book. I do not recommend this book because of the material used.
October 6, 2014
I should have put this novel down after the first couple of chapters. For some unknown reason I stayed until the bitter end. One thing for sure, the remaining books in the trilogy will remain unread. Way too much packed into a convoluted story involving CIA, FBI, ABC, NBC, CBS - choose your own initials.
July 20, 2010
I would give this one 3 1/2 stars.
I was pleasantly surprised with this novel. I got it for free on my kindle and didn't know too much about it.
Alex is an FBI agent with the department of Treasury who goes "on loan" for a CIA operation. She gets pulled into a web of intrigue and a situation more complicated than she had bargained for - including an assassination attempt on the president of the U.S.A.
The story jumps around the world from Washington, to Ukraine, Venezuala, Rome and Paris. It is exciting and kept me reading.
This action/adventure novel was free of language and sex (so many of this genre are not) and I believe it was written by a Christian author. It is non-denominational and I think the author approached the religious aspect of the character very well and the book didn't get preachy.
There was quite a bit of political history that was sometimes a dry read, but overall the action moved along well and I liked the story.
I was pleasantly surprised with this novel. I got it for free on my kindle and didn't know too much about it.
Alex is an FBI agent with the department of Treasury who goes "on loan" for a CIA operation. She gets pulled into a web of intrigue and a situation more complicated than she had bargained for - including an assassination attempt on the president of the U.S.A.
The story jumps around the world from Washington, to Ukraine, Venezuala, Rome and Paris. It is exciting and kept me reading.
This action/adventure novel was free of language and sex (so many of this genre are not) and I believe it was written by a Christian author. It is non-denominational and I think the author approached the religious aspect of the character very well and the book didn't get preachy.
There was quite a bit of political history that was sometimes a dry read, but overall the action moved along well and I liked the story.
January 28, 2010
I read this book because it was a free Kindle download and was very pleasantly surprised. It was a great book. Sometimes it seemed like the main character was looking for trouble, but all in all it was interesting. The story takes place in three major places, Ukraine, Venezuela and Paris. The author took time to explain some of the cultural and historical aspects of these places but manages to make it interesting. It doesn't read like a history textbook. Also, after having read several supernatural series like the True Blood and Meredith Gentry Series, it was nice to read something and not have to wonder when the next (sometimes) graphic sex scene was going to take place. I'm currently reading the sequel to this book, Midnight in Madrid and am enjoying it also.
August 7, 2012
A very involved story with lots of separate strands - Paris, Rome, Kiev, Washington, Venezuela. It fills the bill as a suspense filled spy story, but in the end I wonder, "What was the point of the story?" It seemed to portray a dark or negative view of every country mentioned, especially regarding Ukraine and regarding US intelligence. Religious faith seems important in the life of the main character, but not decisively so. Perhaps things will resolve better by the end of the trilogy. From my perspective, it failed the Phillipians 4:8 test.
December 31, 2010
2 1/2 stars. I got this on Amazon for my Kindle because they were offering it for free. Once I got into it, I realized this was a Christian book, though the author wasn't preachy about it, so it was okay. I enjoyed the story and the religious parts weren't slap-you-in-the-face. I enjoyed the story but wasn't really surprised by any of it - most of the "twists and turns" are completely obvious and cliched.
December 31, 2009
I liked the book, but found the mixture of action adventure and christian lit a little confusing. The book is a good cia thriller and I like Alex as a lead character. Sometimes there is a little too much political background. I found the background interesting but it broke up the pace of the book.
January 7, 2010
I read this without stopping on my kindle (for free no less). As everyone else said in their reviews, it was excellent. Noel Hynds is a Goodreads author and he tells an amazing and exciting story of intrigue. The protagonist Alexandra LoDuca is brilliant, both as a character and as a choice for character. I loved this book-read it, download it, enjoy it.
November 29, 2008
I've read it several times. ;-)
July 16, 2009
This is an exciting book. Don't start this book late if you have to go to work the next day it is almost impossible to put down
February 2, 2010
I enjoyed this book and I am looking forward to reading the complete trilogy. It was a fast paced page turner from the start to the end.
August 12, 2011
Pretty good story with quite a bit of action. Entertaining more than something to ponder about. I hear there are two more in the series so I want to check that out.
September 26, 2014
Loved it, stayed up way too late finishing it.
July 28, 2017
Alex LaDuca heeft een fbi opleiding gehad en werkt nadat ze haar leven er bijna bij verloor, niet meer in het veld zelf. Ze zit op fraude en belastingontduiking. In die hoedanigheid gaat ze met een presidentieel bezoek mee naar Oekraïne. Daar wacht haar de taak om aan te pappen met een topcrimineel die nergens voor terugdeinst. Wanneer een presidentieel bezoek in een bloedbad eindigt, zorgt dit bloedbad ook voor een persoonlijke tragedie waar Alex helemaal kapot van is. Ze valt terug op haar geloof en gaat op vraag van een goede vriend naar een afgelegen missiepost in Zuid-Amerika waar zich eigenaardigheden voordoen. Ook daar volgt het noodlot haar en moet ze vechten om te overleven.
Daarnaast is er ook nog een verhaallijn in Italië.
Iedere lijn op zich is wel spannend, maar het lijkt alsof de delen niet goed samenkomen. Er ontbreekt iets. Bovendien vond ik wat Alex LaDuca allemaal overkwam wat ongeloofwaardig.
Daarnaast is er ook nog een verhaallijn in Italië.
Iedere lijn op zich is wel spannend, maar het lijkt alsof de delen niet goed samenkomen. Er ontbreekt iets. Bovendien vond ik wat Alex LaDuca allemaal overkwam wat ongeloofwaardig.
May 2, 2020
Conspiracy in Kiev. Noel Hynd
Kiev, A lot of history, oppression, especially from the Russians. Most all Ukrainians speak fluent Russian. POTUS is scheduled to visit there, against everyones advice. He is not camera shy. Alex a treasury agent and now FBI agent has a boyfriend and now fiancee is part of the Secret Service detail to protect the president. Alex, as a treasury agent has also gone to Kiev to interview a Urkrainian gangster regarding income tax evasion in America. Obviously their is another reason for this gangsters interview. An assassination attempt is made on POTUS in Kiev. The death toll is high. One of the dead is Alex's fiancee. Her life was saved by the man she interviewed . Everything has becomes a spider web of mystery and deceit as Alex struggles to recover from her emotional wounds. Non stop action. A magnificent action thriller. Enjoyed immensely!!
Kiev, A lot of history, oppression, especially from the Russians. Most all Ukrainians speak fluent Russian. POTUS is scheduled to visit there, against everyones advice. He is not camera shy. Alex a treasury agent and now FBI agent has a boyfriend and now fiancee is part of the Secret Service detail to protect the president. Alex, as a treasury agent has also gone to Kiev to interview a Urkrainian gangster regarding income tax evasion in America. Obviously their is another reason for this gangsters interview. An assassination attempt is made on POTUS in Kiev. The death toll is high. One of the dead is Alex's fiancee. Her life was saved by the man she interviewed . Everything has becomes a spider web of mystery and deceit as Alex struggles to recover from her emotional wounds. Non stop action. A magnificent action thriller. Enjoyed immensely!!
June 26, 2018
I liked this book, but I had some issues with it. 1. I like series, but I hate it when the author makes me read the next book to find answers to questions in the previous book. I would rather tie about all loose ends in one book and tease the start of the next book. For example. In this book a neighbor was mentioned and Alex wondered what happened to him, but nothing was said in the book if he was o.k. or not. Also, it was hinted that Alex's apartment was bugged but it was never made clear if it was in this book. 2. There were too many characters that were brought in and talked about in a few pages and they were never mentioned again.
I am reading the rest of the series because I want to find out what is going on. If I had bought the book, I would not continue the series, but I have checked them out from my library so I will.
I am reading the rest of the series because I want to find out what is going on. If I had bought the book, I would not continue the series, but I have checked them out from my library so I will.
July 5, 2021
I enjoy Noel Hynd’s books and found this one to come up short. He is a fine historian and weaves the historical backstory into the plot so well it makes you want to do your own research.
This book is one of three that were carried by a Christian publisher. It felt like the character development fell short and the religiosity was band-aided on. I’m accustomed to intelligent, thoughtful characters and it seems like Hynd did a disservice to these folks.
My least favorite part of his books is the sex scenes (there are none here) and the sexual innuendo. His protagonist was a woman and I felt like he didn’t understand her, and perhaps any women. We’re not all that shallow.
I’ll read the next book in the series and others as I bought a bunch. I appreciate the books he rewrote for his dad and the Berlin series. Looking forward to seeing what else he can do.
This book is one of three that were carried by a Christian publisher. It felt like the character development fell short and the religiosity was band-aided on. I’m accustomed to intelligent, thoughtful characters and it seems like Hynd did a disservice to these folks.
My least favorite part of his books is the sex scenes (there are none here) and the sexual innuendo. His protagonist was a woman and I felt like he didn’t understand her, and perhaps any women. We’re not all that shallow.
I’ll read the next book in the series and others as I bought a bunch. I appreciate the books he rewrote for his dad and the Berlin series. Looking forward to seeing what else he can do.
May 3, 2018
Conspiracy among reviewers? I very seldom put a book down without finishing it but I'm making an exception for this one. Although it was described by many as an exciting thriller, I've found it to be ploddingly dull with a main character one can't like because she is so emotionless. Reviewers who describe the plot as thin and the characters as flat are right on both counts. I haven't gotten far enough to run into any of the Christian elements some reviewers have been bothered by but mixing the Christian and thriller genres is extremely difficult to pull off and the only author I've found who has succeeded is Susan May Warren. I'm glad I downloaded this book for free and won't be finishing it or reading the others in the series.
January 25, 2021
Meh. Mr. Hynd has a great descriptive style of writing, almost to a fault. This could have been a novella, but for all the background and discussions of emotions for the heroine. Additionally, his knowledge of weaponry is abysmal. Glocks do not have hammers or safeties. There are other similar inaccuracies with handguns and all of them could have been avoided with 30 minutes of research. Sad really, because it made me question everything else he described in the book. On an up note - I listened to the audio version and the narrator, Dick Hill, was outstanding - lots of great accents and inflections. And to be blunt, I would not have finished the book except I really enjoyed listening to him.
October 22, 2024
Kind of average. The writing was just okay, and the characters were flat, including the main one, even though she was likable. There was enough action to keep it somewhat engaging, and I like these kind of international thriller books, but the plot wasn't all that interesting. Not everything was completely wrapped up--I'm curious about what happens in the next books, but not sure I want to devote more time to this trilogy, when there are so many other good books out there.
October 26, 2019
Alex is unique, intrigue with languages, and then excels at learning them.
This mission will send her to the Ukulele, while the President is visiting. She is not sure her handlers are truthful with her. Why do they want her to get close to Yuri Federov . A lot of history to get thru, which some may or may not like. To me the story was an inside life of what Alex was facing, and learning about her assignment.She is tested in her faith, losing a loved one, and her life.
This mission will send her to the Ukulele, while the President is visiting. She is not sure her handlers are truthful with her. Why do they want her to get close to Yuri Federov . A lot of history to get thru, which some may or may not like. To me the story was an inside life of what Alex was facing, and learning about her assignment.She is tested in her faith, losing a loved one, and her life.
May 28, 2022
(Note: This was written well before 2022 Russian invasion) – A well written history-related novel. A brainy and athletic female U.S. agent vs. gangsters in Ukraine. There are references to actual events and characters. Putin is described as a thug.
October 3, 2022
I really started out liking this book, thought it was well written, but with a few spelling errors. However after the first visit to Kiev, I thought the plot went off the rails. At about page 300, I skipped to the end chapter, and don't believe I missed a thing
February 21, 2025
Alex is good at her job, but there's something else going on!
Analyst Alex is good at her job at the State Department identifying international fraud conspiracies but then everything goes sideways!
Analyst Alex is good at her job at the State Department identifying international fraud conspiracies but then everything goes sideways!
September 26, 2019
Superb
Great plot and well writtten. One of the best. I have eveer reasd. Looking forward to reading modelpo by. This author.
Great plot and well writtten. One of the best. I have eveer reasd. Looking forward to reading modelpo by. This author.
June 21, 2024
Triggers for suicide. This is a Christian book. 2.25 audio.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 135 reviews