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3.49 AVERAGE
3.49 AVERAGE
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A lot of the marketing for this book calls it a thriller, but I honestly think that the only readers who could call it a thriller would be those that only read political/historical non-fiction.
This is really more of a literary exploration of American politics abroad during the Cold War, racial and sexual discrimination on a structural and personal level in the US government, American phobia of communism, motherhood and childhood, etc.
There are so many political details that I felt like I should have read a history book of the Cold War first to prepare myself for this and fully understand everything.
There are some hints that action is coming, but really don’t expect those to go anywhere - the structure of the book is the protagonist making journal entries for her sons, and it does read like a practical and unembellished storytelling from someone who feels more bitterness and pessimism than excitement or thrill about her past.
And ultimately, the ending everything builds up to is (realistically)a bit anticlimactic, so although it does feel incredibly real, for a thriller novel it’s not at all what you’d expect. If you’re expecting a mostly history book, it would be very exciting.
Literary devices and plot development aside, it is an extremely intellectually compelling and thought-provoking novel. It really changed my perspective on a lot of recent American history and made me question a lot of beliefs i held about governmental spy organizations.
3.5 stars
A character-driven spy novel. It's the mid 80's and Marie is a young black women who works as an intelligence officer for the FBI. She is asked to join a task force meant to undermine Thomas Sankara, the president of Burkina Faso. She ends up seducing Thomas and spends a good portion of the book questioning her role in everything.
This just didn't grip me as much as I was hoping.
A character-driven spy novel. It's the mid 80's and Marie is a young black women who works as an intelligence officer for the FBI. She is asked to join a task force meant to undermine Thomas Sankara, the president of Burkina Faso. She ends up seducing Thomas and spends a good portion of the book questioning her role in everything.
This just didn't grip me as much as I was hoping.
challenging
dark
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Very slow burn. Less of a spy book than it is a larger societal commentary.
medium-paced
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Good storyline once you get into it but I found the 'romance' to be really lacking. Part of the story veered to her connecting with Thomas and it just didn't click. It seemed terribly one-sided and short lived at best.
The intrigue and mental games was intriguing and I think the story may have been stronger if it had focused on that instead.
This book features Caribbean (Barbados & Martinique), first-gen, bi-racial and immigrant characters and spoke about racism and gender biases.
The intrigue and mental games was intriguing and I think the story may have been stronger if it had focused on that instead.
This book features Caribbean (Barbados & Martinique), first-gen, bi-racial and immigrant characters and spoke about racism and gender biases.
challenging
dark
informative
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes