The Book of Spies [Hardcover]

 

 

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Gayle Lynds is an author I'd definitely heard of, but I'd never read any of her nine novels until I picked up The Book of Spies.

I'm glad I finally did! And how could I not - there was a library at the centre of things - the legendary Library of Gold - Ivan the Terrible's collection of lost works. And the opening line of the book? " A library could be a dangerous place." Hooked! One of those books - The Book of Spies has been stolen and has come to light. The secret cabal that controls the library desperately wants it back and is willing to do anything. The CIA is brought in when a connection between the owners of the fabled library and terrorism is uncovered. Book curator Eva Blake and CIA operative Judd Ryder scramble to find the book and stay ahead of those that want them dead.

Generally the world of espionage/spy thrillers seems to be dominated by men. Lynds is referred to as the Queen of Espioage and rightly so. The Book of Spies is action packed, the plotting is tight, the historical detail is fascinating, the characters are engaging.... shall I go on? There are a few coincidences near the end that seemed a bit too neat, but did not detract from my overall enjoyement of the book. The name of the game here is action.

And I loved this library quote near the end of the book....

"Don't give me the cold tomb of a museum, but the fire-breathing world of words and ideas. Give me a library."

Lynds has included author's notes at the end regarding the history used in her book - quite fascinating.

If you enjoy Dan Brown and Robert Ludlum, then you would really enjoy Gayle Lynds. I would definitely read her again.

Chilling, breathtaking, moving, twisting, eye-opening, stimulating, nerve-wracking, entertaining, challenging, educating, action-packed . . . when it comes to a Gayle Lynds' spy thriller, whatever you can dream up in a literary ride of extreme fascination is what this author delivers. Her "what if" began with an article she read in the "Los Angeles Times " in 1989. Through the next 20 years plus, the mystery of Ivan the Terrible's lost library percolated in the back of her mind to become an obsession she called The Library of Gold. The more she researched it the more it absorbed her. Like Robert Ludlum's conspiratorial elite who lurked through many of his novels, the idea of such a rich and fabled library lent itself to another tale of hidden wealthy powerbrokers manipulating world events to their advantage.

The CIA becomes involved in vengeance sniper attack on the father of one of its contract agents. In following up the victim's ties to an elite secret book club of the world's most powerful men, they discover a connection between the group's Library of Gold and a terrorist's bank account. To help, they engage Eva Blake, a rare books curator who has been wrongfully imprisoned for her husband's death. They release her. In London, while inspecting one of the "lost" books, she spots her husband alive. He turns on her and tries to kill her. Judd Ryder, assigned by the CIA to protect her, learns his recently assassinated father was a member of the secret book club, and in rescuing Eva joins forces with her in a hunt that takes them from London to Rome, Istanbul to Athens, and even into Afghanistan.

Unlike "The Da Vinci Code," Gayle does not sacrifice pace to burden readers with heavy-handed history--that she contains in her Author's Notes at the end. Instead, she balances character development, plot, action and international settings with fine-tuned precision. In many current suspense and mystery novels, authors have abandoned the omniscient point of view, so it is a treat to return to the thriller master's technique of setting up each chapter from the long view of the camera to pan into the characters so we instantly see them and then of zooming into the close-up of the scene from the character's POV.

In "Book of Spies," Gayle builds characters with idiosyncrasies that evolve from their legends. In this case, her heroine Eva Blake is a museum curator who specializes in ancient manuscripts. To do such work, she must have a retentive memory and an analytic gift. For her to communicate with her husband in Latin phrases is an intellectual game such vibrant minds relish, if only to serve their own egos. That this becomes her instantaneous style of response is not outside the realm of possibility but rather her norm. She has trained her mind in competition with her husband to see Latin one-liners to express what she observes. That she comes from a poor background where she has learned to survive as a pickpocket only proves how clever people with street smarts actually are when inspired to educate themselves by traditional standards. Once, learning karate was unusual for a young woman but even my twin granddaughters take it today. Young people with a goal are environmentally responsible and health conscious. Eva comfortably fits into our modern concept of an ambitious heroine. For Judd Blake, a former military intelligence officer, her quirks are what attract his respect and enhance his curiosity. She is a challenge that unbolts his guarded control. Spies have intellectual powers and skills few of us develop. Gayle engages us to participate in that world between the pages of the "Book of Spies." This novel ties history to greed, power, terrorism and spy chases. I love it! And to top it all off, Gayle has brought back the Carnivore from "The Coil."

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