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a_reader_obsessed's review
3.0
Admittedly, this wasn’t the easiest spy book I’ve ever read. Beware an abundance of acronyms and code names, as all players involved must lie, evade, and redirect to cover their motives and plans.
“Willingly sharing a bed with an enemy agent… was a bad idea. A terrible idea. It was no worse than everything they’d already done.”
There isn’t much explanation as Grigory, a soviet spy and handler, is targeted by British special forces, to turn him into an asset and betray his country. Sent to get information out of him, is Karim - oh so charismatic and always at least a step ahead. Will he be able to get his man and keep him too??
Each must do their job while keeping their lust filled meetings separate. How does one go about that? It’s a cat and mouse game, but who is prey and who is predator? The roles switch on a dime, as extortion and betrayal are revealed under a heavy layer of paranoia.
I honestly don’t know what really went down except that this was harsh, rough, and quite sexy, all coated with urgent desperation and fear. Compelling enough - this ends with a HFN, and admittedly one wonders how the rest of this series will play out. Will it shed some light or will it further confuse?
“Willingly sharing a bed with an enemy agent… was a bad idea. A terrible idea. It was no worse than everything they’d already done.”
There isn’t much explanation as Grigory, a soviet spy and handler, is targeted by British special forces, to turn him into an asset and betray his country. Sent to get information out of him, is Karim - oh so charismatic and always at least a step ahead. Will he be able to get his man and keep him too??
Each must do their job while keeping their lust filled meetings separate. How does one go about that? It’s a cat and mouse game, but who is prey and who is predator? The roles switch on a dime, as extortion and betrayal are revealed under a heavy layer of paranoia.
I honestly don’t know what really went down except that this was harsh, rough, and quite sexy, all coated with urgent desperation and fear. Compelling enough - this ends with a HFN, and admittedly one wonders how the rest of this series will play out. Will it shed some light or will it further confuse?
the_novel_approach's review
4.0
Best Kept Lies is the start of the Shadow Play series by Helena Maeve. It’s a tale of heavy espionage, suspense and intrigue. At first it’s a little confusing. There are acronyms used for the different spy agencies: SVR for Russia, SIS for Great Britain, and CIA for the US. There’s also a host of supporting characters that use an alias, work as double agents, and cause a lot of suspicion and trust issues. The story is fast paced, so once you get started, it’s best not to stop or you could easily get lost.
Grigory Antipov is a Russian SVR agent. He is a handler and gives agents their “wet” assignments (contracts to kill). As situations crop up, Grigory starts to wonder who he can really trust. He’s approached by Karim Awad, who’s a British SIS agent. Karim tries to persuade Grigory to come over to the SIS side. If Grigory chooses not to, though, Karim will find a way to destroy him. Grigory has sworn he would never be a traitor, and he, too, will do what he can to destroy Karim. Grigory actually goes as far as to put a contract out on Karim.
Best Kept Lies is the story of two men, loyal to different agencies, who, when they become involved, have to make decisions based on trust. But emotions definitely get in the way. It’s also a story about making a choice, whether it’s worth being in dangerous situations, or is it better to walk away and stay alive?
One thing that would have been helpful for me is to have had introductions to each of the agencies’ roles, provided in an Author’s Note or Glossary. But, I have to admit that didn’t stop my curiosity, and I enjoyed the drama that Ms. Maeve created. I’m looking forward to the next Shadow Play book.
Reviewed by Maryann for The Novel Approach
http://www.thenovelapproachreviews.com/review-best-kept-lies-by-helena-maeve/
Grigory Antipov is a Russian SVR agent. He is a handler and gives agents their “wet” assignments (contracts to kill). As situations crop up, Grigory starts to wonder who he can really trust. He’s approached by Karim Awad, who’s a British SIS agent. Karim tries to persuade Grigory to come over to the SIS side. If Grigory chooses not to, though, Karim will find a way to destroy him. Grigory has sworn he would never be a traitor, and he, too, will do what he can to destroy Karim. Grigory actually goes as far as to put a contract out on Karim.
Best Kept Lies is the story of two men, loyal to different agencies, who, when they become involved, have to make decisions based on trust. But emotions definitely get in the way. It’s also a story about making a choice, whether it’s worth being in dangerous situations, or is it better to walk away and stay alive?
One thing that would have been helpful for me is to have had introductions to each of the agencies’ roles, provided in an Author’s Note or Glossary. But, I have to admit that didn’t stop my curiosity, and I enjoyed the drama that Ms. Maeve created. I’m looking forward to the next Shadow Play book.
Reviewed by Maryann for The Novel Approach
http://www.thenovelapproachreviews.com/review-best-kept-lies-by-helena-maeve/
mrella's review
4.0
Please, don't take my rating too seriously. I am not sure what is going on myself .. he-he.
I liked it enough to give 4 stars, which is surprising, considering the amount of sex scenes (not a big fan) and the ending (felt kind of unfinished, not a big fan either). But on the whole, I think I liked it enough for 4 stars, so I am sticking with it.
I liked it enough to give 4 stars, which is surprising, considering the amount of sex scenes (not a big fan) and the ending (felt kind of unfinished, not a big fan either). But on the whole, I think I liked it enough for 4 stars, so I am sticking with it.
kjcharles's review
I like Helena Maeve's writing and her style. She has a knack for bleak, half-empty men and a Deighton/Le Carre sort of spy world with moral bankruptcy and betrayal at every turn. This is quite a sex-heavy story of Russian agent vs British agent, lots of attraction and deception, first part of a series and definitely reads like it, with no conclusive ending and a lot more yet to play out. It felt more like the first third of a big book than a complete novella to me, honestly, but I'll be wanting more.
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