This book has one of those marvellous opening chapters that mean once started you cannot put it down.
This book has one of those marvellous opening chapters that mean once started you cannot put it down.
Following a meeting in Nicosia, the book switches to London and MI5 intelligence officer Liz Carlyle who has been summoned to a meeting with her boss Charles Wetherby, head of the Service’s Counter-Espionage Branch. Word has been picked up that there are movements from certain quarters to disrupt a Middle East peace conference planned to take place at Gleneagles in Scotland. But no one knows who they are and what they are planning to do and from what direction the threat is coming. Liz Carlyle draws the short straw to protect the conference. A tall order.
I used to love what I termed spy stories but then with the supposedly end of the ‘cold war’ they seemed to go out of fashion. However this has all the elements of a good mystery. There are a number of good characters and I tried to discern who was on the side of the angels and who was not, but Stella keep me guessing to the end - I love that. There are many different strands to the story, all of which do make sense eventually, and are cleverly pulled together, but not before one’s heart has been in one’s mouth.
Like all good stories there was a love interest, I just wish I could have pinned it down. From the outset we know that Liz has quite strong feelings for her boss Charles Wetherby, but he is the honourable man with a sick wife. A couple of other suitors presented themselves, but I am still guessing - maybe I’ll find out the next book; I can’t wait. Highly recommended.
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Lizzie Hayes