The Helsinki Affair - Anna Pitoniak

 The Helsinki Affair - Anna Pitoniak

Publication Date: November 14, 2023

She read

Forty year old Amanda Cole, CIA agent, has just stumbled onto some information that eventually leads to her being made station chief in Rome.  One of her first assignments implicates her father, a career CIA employee, as a possible Soviet spy.  This sets up an ethical and moral dilemma for her.  Will she pursue the lead or bury it?

Taking place in Rome, London, Russia, Finland, all the intrigue of the cold war is here.  With Finland physically so close to Russia, Helsinki has seen a lot of KGB and CIA action.  I liked the female characters, especially Kath, an older, savvy, top notch spy.  In addition to the Cold War espionage, there is also a very contemporary plot line involving stock manipulation.  

There are two timelines, Amanda’s present day investigation and her father’s past involving an affair in Helsinki.  As the excitement peaks, the action quickly alternates between the two.  The writing is fast paced, engrossing. I did think some of the characters were pretty loose lipped with confidential information.  But, after all, this is a work of fiction.

Spy fiction is not my go to genre and I don’t like the James Bond, hard to believe action stories.  This one had a decent plot, not too much incredulity, and not a lot of violence; what there was was not overly graphic.  It was refreshing to have a female centered spy thriller

The end of the book introduced some continuing story lines, perhaps hinting at a sequel or possible series?  I certainly would read another book by Pitoniak featuring these characters.   

Thanks to #netgalley and @simonbooks for the ARC

****

The Favorites - Rosemary Hennigan

 The Favorites - Rosemary Hennigan

Publication Date:  November 14, 2023

She read

Jessie Mooney travels from Ireland to Philadelphia to enroll in a graduate law program at Franklin University.  She is thrilled to have been accepted into a very competitive Law and Literature class there not because of its cachet but because of its professor, Jay Crane. She wants to become one of his infamous “favorites” because she blames him for her sister’s death and has a plan.

Set during the 2016 election and the very beginning of the #MeToo movement, there are  important issues here: questions of the nature of justice, retribution, right vs legal, male power, consent, sexual predators, injustice, victimization, the inadequacies of the legal system, and is stalking ever justified?.  This is a very slow burn…and maybe more a fizzle than a burn.  For fans of dark academia, there is much grist for a book group discussion, including the ending.

Thanks to #netgalley and @htpbooks @graydonhousebooks for the ARC.

***

Day - Michael Cunningham

 Day - Michael Cunningham

Publication Date:  Nov. 14, 2023

She read

There are three parts to this novel, all taking place during one day, April 5, three years apart.  The first being 2019, the second 2020 during Covid (which is never mentioned by name) lockdown, the final one year later.  As the novel opens, Isabel works at a magazine but is not on solid ground emotionally or with her marriage. Dan, her husband, is a never has been rock singer and house husband to their children, Violet and Nathan.  Robbie, her brother,  rounds out the household and provides some cohesion to the family.  Other characters are Garth, Dan’s brother and sperm donor to Chess, and baby Odin.

This is a novel of love and loss, claustrophobia, finding one’s self. The prose is beautiful.  Cunningham’s insight into the world of children is uncommonly astute. I think he provides the best description of the world of a 17 month old that I have ever read. I liked that Cunningham is cognizant that despite all the negatives that came from a year of being sequestered, there were some positives such as Isabel having the opportunity to really get to know and appreciate her daughter.  

So many of our lives were affected and continue to be by the pandemic.  I tend to wonder how one can write a contemporary novel without acknowledging it.  Cunningham keenly recognizes the impact during those lockdown months and the aftereffects that changed many of our lives.  This is a welcome  read for aficionados of literary fiction. 

Thanks to #netgalley and #randomhouse for the ARC.

****

So Late in the Day - Claire Keegan

 So Late in the Day - Claire Keegan

Publication Date:  Nov. 14, 2023

She read

I am not usually a fan of short stories, but when they are from an author whose writing I enjoy, I can’t resist. I have read two novellas by Keegan that I really liked; when I saw this offering, I jumped at the chance to read it. 

So Late in the Day is a book that consists of three provocative short stories.  What they all have in common is that they touch on the tensions involved in male/female relationships. 

There is misogyny, danger, sadness, and, in one story, triumph.  Keegan’s vivid descriptions pull the reader right into the unfolding scenes.  Especially evocative was the drive the main character in the second story embarked on as she traveled to a writing retreat, as well as the description of the property and its locale  

Keegan proves once again that one doesn’t have to be wordy to be profound and affecting. 

Thanks to #netgalley and #groveatlantic for the ARC

****

Past Lying - Val McDermid

 Past Lying - Val McDermid

Publication Date: Nov.14, 2023

She read

In this, the seventh in the DCI Karen Pirie police procedurals, it is 2020 and Pirie’s Historic Cases 3 person team joins other Scots in Covid lockdown.  They are called back into action when a librarian contacts one of them because a manuscript in the archive of a recently deceased crime novelist seems provide an answer as to what happened to a young woman who went missing a year ago.  Struggling to comply with lockdown rules and also avoid Pirie’s dreaded superior, “Dog Biscuit”, the team unravels a story of jealousy, deceit, retribution.

This is a clever plot that utilizes the intriguing technique of a book within a book combined with Covid lockdown and the pain many people faced with separation and loss. McDermid paints a vivid picture of Edinburgh and I enjoy her ongoing story of the plight of Syrian refugees in the city.  Kudos to her for continuing to shed light on them. 

I really like the main character. Pirie is strong, intelligent, empathetic, vulnerable. In her quest for truth and justice for victims’ families, Karen often makes no friends. Constable Jason is endearing.  Sargent Daisy can be both earnest and flippant, and I wouldn’t turn my back around her.  

This reads well as a stand alone, but reading the prior Pirie books may  provide more context.  Plus, they are a joy to read. They are among my favorites and are a “must read” for me. Incidentally, Karen Pirie is also a Britbox series. 

*****

Blood Betrayal - Ausma Zehanat Kahn

 Blood Betrayal - Ausma Zehanat Kahn

Pub Date:  Nov. 7, 2023

She read

The Community Response Unit (CRU) is investigating two officer involved shootings. A young Latine man is killed during a Drug Task Force raid in Denver while a young Black graffiti artist is shot by a reliable, veteran officer in Blackwater Falls. 

This is the second in the Blackwater Falls series.  I liked the main characters and most of the supporting ones, a diverse group of individuals whose culture and background experiences interact with and enhance their professional responsibilities.  This is a very good story, well paced, with important, timely social and political issues. 

The story does seem to be a bit uneven as it covers various relationships and diverse concerns. I did not read the first book in the series and because there is so much emphasis on the interpersonal connections, I would have liked to have had more background on the characters.  I also would have liked to have known  more about the CRU and just how it fit (jurisdiction?) with both the Denver and Blackwater Falls police departments.  Still, this is a worthwhile read.

Thanks to #netgalley and #stmartinspress @minotaurbooks for the ARC. 

***

Search History - Amy Taylor

 Search History - Amy Taylor

Publication Date: Nov. 7, 2023

She read

After a breakup, Ana moves from Perth to Melbourne to start afresh working at a startup in an uninspiring job. She meets Evan and begins a relationship with him.  At first, she resists doing an internet search to find out more about him.  When she succumbs, she discovers his last partner, Emily, died in a bike accident almost a year ago, but Evan never mentions her and is resistant to any discussion about her. Soon Ana finds herself obsessed with all things Emily.

I enjoyed this debut novel.  Quite contemporary, there is humor and poignancy.  Taylor captures well the angst so many women go through in life, walking on eggshells, calculating how their significant other might or might not react to what they say or do.  Women have always had to deal with so much in dating  relationships; Search History illustrates how our tech obsessed world compounds these issues.

Thanks to #netgalley and @randomhouse #dialbooks for the ARC

****