Ludek Cernocky Cernocky itibaren Azagba-Ogwashi, Nigeria
This unfathomably incongruent mess of a contrived, predictable, simplistic book made me cringe so often that eventually I just gave in and laughed, reading aloud passages and scenes to people who are serious readers and who understand how State Department intelligence workers are supposed to conduct themselves. If it had been listed as a YA novel, I would have been more forgiving. But this Amazon vine selection was supposedly for "adult" readers and therefore is reviewed in that context. The tone of this book and the character of Jordan Weiss, the main protagonist, remind me of movies I have had to endure with my daughter when the Olsen twins or Hilary Duff take on spy or intelligence work. Although Jordan has a degree in international relations and has a spotless reputation working in intelligence in the State Department, going to war-torn or sensitive areas like Monrovia, Bogota, Jakarta, and Montenegro, she behaves like an emotional basket case and feels "guilt rising in her" frequently for blundering from the hip and watching people get hurt or killed. She has never heard of the Kosovo Liberation Army and is unfamiliar with the conflicts in the Balkans, so she receives a two-minute history lesson from one of her colleagues. The book TELLS us she is the best and the brightest, but doesn't show us anything but a silly and indiscreet young woman still sobbing over the reported drowning of her boyfriend from college ten years ago. This colors everything she does and--oh, of course, it turns out to work in her favor. How did an emotionally labile woman handle dangerous missions for ten years? She does not even think to google a man she is researching as a possible suspect or link to her assigned case, but her best friend, a civilian, does that. After some inner conflict, Jordan also decides to share classified information with this girl about the case she is working on "because she is now like one of us." The writing is on a middle-school level. For example, she repeats the same cliched metaphors and similes. Information and guilt and the resulting emotions always seem to be hitting her stomach like a rock. Sometimes slamming her like a stone. This is predominantly cut and paste prose. Supposedly, this author has been either developing or writing this book for 10 years. And Jenoff is obviously an intelligent woman--she is a graduate of Cambridge University (like her protagonist). I often take an author's academic credentials into consideration when choosing a novel. I was confident that the narrative style would be textured and literary. But the writing is utterly juvenile. This is equivalent to a more mature Nancy Drew book. I was expecting an intelligent, heady book blending literature with spy/intelligence work. I thought she was going to be as provocative as John Banville, John Le Carre, or Tana French. I was prepared for extended metaphors and lush imagery, as well as a healthy dose of irony. I did not expect this TV in a book. Very bad TV. And so earnest it made me wince when I was through cringing. There are no literary elements to this novel unless you want to keep hearing the same tired figures of speech. And the behavior and approach to their work of these State Department colleagues is laughable. Additionally, as people die or are seriously injured, Jordan has "guilt rising up" but then, oh well. It has an "oh, dear!" tone to it. She comes across as fatuous and silly. There is no substance to this woman beyond the tragedy she suffered 10 years ago. Nothing in the elements of the story reflects Jordan's alleged intelligence or competence. She blindly breaks protocol and rules, but never really has a plan beyond the next few hours. She is on her own rogue mission, with the help of her dead boyfriend's best friend. But there may be a tie-in with her current assignment. Yet, she has no historical, political, or economic frame of reference. But, oh, yeah, she is the State Department's golden girl. She can do whatever she wants. And she does. She is not reflective or cautious with information or action. She reminds me of something akin to: Liz McGuire goes undercover. And the author just conveniently inserts heroic deeds or histories so that the reader KNOWS what a whipper-snapper Jordan is. It is heavy-handed and ludicrous. I finished this book only because it was a vine selection for review. I would not recommend it for anyone beyond middle school. It is obvious by the novel's end that a sequel is coming. "Oh, dear!"
An engrossing story I thoroughly enjoyed and was caught up in the characters immediately. I can't wait to start the next one in the series.