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Security Breach
"High-stakes, high-octane thriller...my kind of book."
- Lee Child
When you move, they watch. When you speak, they listen. They track you by what you touch and how you walk.
Welcome to the not-so-distant future, where terrorism is so feared that near-total surveillance is a way of life. In Washington, a young American agent, Kat Polinski, is on a routine assignment: break into the embassy of the energy-rich government of Kazakhstan. What she finds is a massacre. But the worst is yet to come: the murder of her sister - and the discovery of a plot as dangerous as anything coming out of the Middle East. From the first explosive chapter, you're hooked. Nothing and no-one will stop Kat from hunting down her sister's killer. But the closer she gets the more she peels away layers of her own society where fear is used to control and governments act above the law.
- Lee Child
When you move, they watch. When you speak, they listen. They track you by what you touch and how you walk.
Welcome to the not-so-distant future, where terrorism is so feared that near-total surveillance is a way of life. In Washington, a young American agent, Kat Polinski, is on a routine assignment: break into the embassy of the energy-rich government of Kazakhstan. What she finds is a massacre. But the worst is yet to come: the murder of her sister - and the discovery of a plot as dangerous as anything coming out of the Middle East. From the first explosive chapter, you're hooked. Nothing and no-one will stop Kat from hunting down her sister's killer. But the closer she gets the more she peels away layers of her own society where fear is used to control and governments act above the law.
464 pages, Mass Market Paperback
Published August 1, 2008
5 people are currently reading
38 people want to read
About the author
Humphrey Hawksley
29 books74 followersHumphrey is an award-winning author, podcaster and journalist whose assignments with the BBC have taken him to crises all over the world. The three books in his future history series -- Dragonstrike, Dragonfire and The Third World War -- have been praised as authentic, catastrophic scenarios which begin with a Chinese strike in the South China Sea. His Rake Ozenna espionage thriller series is set in the Arctic and High North, beginning with Man on Ice and a Russian invasion of the Alaskan island of Little Diomede. Rake is an island native and a special forces veteran with the Alaska National Guard. The late, great Nelson de Mille applauded Rake as being smart and tough, 'and we’re glad to have him on our side.' Humphrey's non-fiction work includes Democracy Kills: What’s So Good About Having The Vote, published during the Iraq civil war and Asian Waters: The Struggle over the Indo-Pacific and the Challenge to American Power which examines the impact of Chinese expansion in Asia. Humphrey hosts the bi-monthly Democracy Forum Debates. His work has appeared in most mainstream media outlets and he has been guest lecturer at universities and think tanks such as the RAND Corporation, The Center for Strategic and International Studies and MENSA Cambridge. He moderates the Democracy Forum Debates on international issues and is a host of the Goldster Magazine Show and podcast.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
May 24, 2016
Fast-paced, intelligent, intriguing, and suspenseful!
This a political thrill ride of murder, surveillance, power, and corruption that reminds us that the line between good and evil can be very blurry.
The main character, Kat, is smart, tough, and tenacious. And the supporting characters are multi-faceted and complex.
The story is well written and well plotted with multiple twists and turns that will keep you enthralled to the very end.
This is a highly exciting, action-packed novel that I couldn’t put down.
It was a great read and I highly recommend it.
Thank you to NetGalley, especially Endeavour Press, for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.
This review can also be found at www.whatsbetterthanbooks.com
This a political thrill ride of murder, surveillance, power, and corruption that reminds us that the line between good and evil can be very blurry.
The main character, Kat, is smart, tough, and tenacious. And the supporting characters are multi-faceted and complex.
The story is well written and well plotted with multiple twists and turns that will keep you enthralled to the very end.
This is a highly exciting, action-packed novel that I couldn’t put down.
It was a great read and I highly recommend it.
Thank you to NetGalley, especially Endeavour Press, for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.
This review can also be found at www.whatsbetterthanbooks.com
March 4, 2018
Too long and convoluted. It is beyond belief that one person can survive that many encounters.
Too long and convoluted. It is not believable that one person can survive that many encounters. No one is that good.
Too long and convoluted. It is not believable that one person can survive that many encounters. No one is that good.
August 4, 2016
I received a free copy via Netgalley in exchange for a honest review.
This was a ok read.
My main problem was I just could not engage with the main characters and therefore it was a real struggle to keep reading.
The end of the story left a lot of loose ends but was a relief to myself.
This was a ok read.
My main problem was I just could not engage with the main characters and therefore it was a real struggle to keep reading.
The end of the story left a lot of loose ends but was a relief to myself.
August 31, 2017
Too much drama
Not believable, not captivating, not impressive. The characters and weak and the plot is made complex just for the sake of it. Nothing memorable. Not one name, not one character, not one scene.
Not believable, not captivating, not impressive. The characters and weak and the plot is made complex just for the sake of it. Nothing memorable. Not one name, not one character, not one scene.
January 18, 2016
Humphrey Hawksley brings in his expert knowledge of the British coast and his understanding of international affairs into this novel. I struggled initially with his present tense narration, but gradually got used to it. The novel is a great page-turner with the lead "heroine" Kat capable of amazing stunts and extra-ordinary hacking abilities. I liked the meticulous manner in which Hawksley has described each of the scenes. Many a time, I felt that I was in that scene-- all there more difficult with the action sequences, but he has aced them ! However, the book drags thru at the mid point with Kat getting caught again and again by one of the 3 parties interested in the history book. I began to wonder who was good and who wanst and it was becoming a bit dull at that point. Luckily, the book winds down to a cinematic Hollywood style ending soon after. Also, I wonder how Kat could get on and off the boeing 767 so easily in the british airfield and also in the kazakh region. Wonder how they can escape so many shots fly past !! Having said this much, I must say that Hawksley's portrayal of the security scene in a possibly futuristic time does present a semblance of reality-- zone checks, iris scans, voice signatures and so on. They might come a day when we might have to live thru them. Thanks Hawksley, you gave me a great 3 days of reading :)
June 9, 2012
2 stars looks bad ..but as per Goodreads "it's ok" , so was the novel . The protagonist Kat polanski is a rich young girl who is a hacker , gets trapped by Govt. and in many dangerous situations .
Some of the tech funda in the novel was very good .The villian is a women too , though all powerful she felt comical to me at later stages
The plot was good i would say - Spies + Oil, Big powerful firms + Russia + Terror Hype + Privacy but the treatment wasn't ,given the fact the author was a BBC journalist , and must have explored he characters/events more.
So basically i see the book more as a lost opportunity then as a bad book . I don't know whether it's a best-seller or not but i have no regrets picking it up and investing my time on it . Fine read i say :)
Some of the tech funda in the novel was very good .The villian is a women too , though all powerful she felt comical to me at later stages
The plot was good i would say - Spies + Oil, Big powerful firms + Russia + Terror Hype + Privacy but the treatment wasn't ,given the fact the author was a BBC journalist , and must have explored he characters/events more.
So basically i see the book more as a lost opportunity then as a bad book . I don't know whether it's a best-seller or not but i have no regrets picking it up and investing my time on it . Fine read i say :)
August 23, 2008
A real thriller with lots of action and good guys are bad guys are good guys are bad guys.
Kat Polinski, the protagonist, is one very resourceful and determined lady. Lots of interesting secondary characters.
Kat Polinski, the protagonist, is one very resourceful and determined lady. Lots of interesting secondary characters.
June 26, 2016
Hawksley writes an exciting thriller.
He is writing about what he knows through his day job.
Looking forward to reading more.
Very highly recommended.
I was given a digital copy of this book by the publisher Endeavour via Netgalley in return for an honest unbiased review.
He is writing about what he knows through his day job.
Looking forward to reading more.
Very highly recommended.
I was given a digital copy of this book by the publisher Endeavour via Netgalley in return for an honest unbiased review.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews