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oisin175's review
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Thrillers aren't usually my thing and spy novels can tend towards the formulaic. This was enjoyable though it felt fairly cliched. The various shocks weren't all that shocking and the characters felt pretty flat. It was enjoyable in a way that allowed for a quick read without a lot of depth. There were some deeper and very subtle themes that come through on reflection though.
eajklose's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
eyebeam's review
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Suicide
jbzar's review against another edition
5.0
Typically Ignatius. Compelling characters. Tightly written. Detailed but not dense.
My first thought is to describe this book as being thoroughly researched. But my opinion on that is tempered by the fact that the subject matter is top secret intelligence that know little about,. So I’ll say that the premise seems plausible. Moreover, the narrative is chock full of interesting details without being mind-numbingly dense. The characters, story-line and flow kept my attention.
In short, I enjoyed this book and have no problem recommending it. Enjoy!
My first thought is to describe this book as being thoroughly researched. But my opinion on that is tempered by the fact that the subject matter is top secret intelligence that know little about,. So I’ll say that the premise seems plausible. Moreover, the narrative is chock full of interesting details without being mind-numbingly dense. The characters, story-line and flow kept my attention.
In short, I enjoyed this book and have no problem recommending it. Enjoy!
dgross144's review against another edition
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
direton1's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.75
oekler's review
Not for me. Couldn’t get into it and really not worth forcing myself to.
clivemeister's review
2.0
So very disappointed in this novel, I'm sorry to say. It's set in the present day, with China as the baddie for our intrepid CIA spies, and it has a bit of a techie theme, with the plot loosely set around the search for real life quantum computing. I had high hopes - quantum stuff, spies, high-tech thriller potential, what's not to love?
Well, what's not to love is cardboard characters straight from central casting (the hard-as-nails CIA deputy director, the geeky CEO of a tech company, the conflicted American-Chinese), the wildly telegraphed plot line, the simple straight-line narrative thread, written so you didn't have to worry about losing the thread when you got up from the sunbed where you were reading this to buy an icecream (or a margarita, as you choose).
Some bits weren't bad - there were some nice snippets of "tradecraft", and the tech stuff about quantum computers was actually very well done, from a techie POV. And the scenes were set in some interesting places, generally very credibly described. But still not enough to get past the disappointment.
Well, what's not to love is cardboard characters straight from central casting (the hard-as-nails CIA deputy director, the geeky CEO of a tech company, the conflicted American-Chinese), the wildly telegraphed plot line, the simple straight-line narrative thread, written so you didn't have to worry about losing the thread when you got up from the sunbed where you were reading this to buy an icecream (or a margarita, as you choose).
Some bits weren't bad - there were some nice snippets of "tradecraft", and the tech stuff about quantum computers was actually very well done, from a techie POV. And the scenes were set in some interesting places, generally very credibly described. But still not enough to get past the disappointment.
gingrins's review
2.0
Boring and poorly written. I’ll be avoiding books by this author moving forward.