This was the first book I read in this series, and the premise sounded fun, so I selected it to read. I'm not sure I'll read any more of the series though. So much felt contrived and just 'off' in this book. I really can't put my finger on why. Too much explaining maybe? It just didn't flow as well as I thought it would with 2 FBI agents solving a mystery involving their uncle. Like the earlier book from today, lies and secrets are surfacing and causing problems in the modern period, but unlike that book, you may find yourself putting this one back down and picking it up later, rather than racing through it. It's not bad, but it feels like a first draft, of what could have been a more interesting one.

We've learned a lot about Oliver York in the previous 6 books in this series. In this book, he comes into even more focus when one of the man who kidnapped him as a boy, returns. And then dies in Oliver's arms. Oliver is the easy person to pick as prime suspect. But there is, of course, more to the story.
Emma Sharpe and Colin Donovan are on the last day of their honeymoon when the call comes in that Oliver is once again embroiled in a mystery. Also on the scene, Oliver's gardener, Henrietta, (a former British secret service agent) and a man who has been with him since childhood, Martin.
Weaving together the characters that Ms. Neggers has created in the Sharpe and Donovan universe, the dead man visited Father Finian the day before he died. I like that there is a concrete reason for previous characters to be woven in, they're not just plugged in willy-nilly to remind you that this is a series.
Books can always be read out of order in a series but I definitely wouldn't recommend it for this one. I think regular Neggers readers are going to be pleased with this addition to the series.

Three stars
This book comes out August 29

I love this series. Please keep them coming!!! Love the descriptions of Ireland and Scotland.

Thief's Mark is an great continuation of the Sharpe's & Donovan's. I love following the trails of who-dun-it's all over the world. From Ireland, to London, to the Cotswolds, to Boston and more. We encounter an art thief, the FBI and a private art detective. From family history, to secrets long kept, the author takes us on a adventure full of twists and turns we never see coming.

I'm a huge fan of this series and reading it is like catching up with old friends.

Awkward dialogue, irrelevant details, convoluted plot.

I am reviewing this for publication in the September issue of RT Book Reviews magazine

an ok read

*makes a serious of noncommittal grunts in regards to this book*

Ok, let's get started. I'm ready.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from NetGalley.

To be quite frank, the writing in this book did absolutely nothing for me, start to finish. The random, unnecessary details, the things people say to each other, the way characters attempted to sound clever and just weren't... it's not great. Needed a heavy edit.

Let's start with a few choice quotes from the very first scene.

When Colin, an FBI agent who married another FBI agent (the FBI has pretty stringent no-fraternization policies, but we'll get to that), says this to his new wife: "And the tension I see in this green eyes of yours?"

Me: vomits across the room.

Literally no one says that.

As well, Emma, the wife, is described as "sipping her champagne" a grand total of 5 times within the first 5 pages. Seriously. Every time she goes to talk, or is described, she sips her champagne.

Emma is me. She's taking a shot for every time she's annoyed, clearly.

Anyway, let's talk about that FBI marriage thing. The FBI has a pretty stringent no-fraternization policy; that doesn't mean two agents CAN'T be married or get married. But they can't be on the same team, in the same unit, etc. Either Colin or Emma would be reassigned the MINUTE they started dating and possibly disciplined. And getting married? One of them would be moved out of their unit immediately.

So suspend disbelief and buckle your seatbelts.

The plot of this book doesn't make any sense whatsoever. I really struggled to understand why Emma and Colin were even brought in to investigate the main story.

Basically, an art thief named Oliver has been returning the art he stole and working with M15 on blood antiquities. This thief also taunted Emma's granddad for years with handmade sculptures. Oliver, as a child, saw his parents get murdered and was kidnapped. One of his kidnappers turns up on his doorstep with a massive wound and dies; Oliver pulls a runner and goes to Ireland. His gardener, Henrietta, is a former M15 agent too, weirdly, so she also gets involved because no one is a professional.

The plot is promising. I wish it had been handled with better writing because it is good. The characters are insufferable and all have the same personality: they think they're smarter, snarkier, and more clever than they really sound. The constant monologues and "quips" that aren't actually quips, the attempts to sound evasive when they are spilling their guts, the willingness of FBI AND M15 agents to just tell random civilians information about the case... I can only suspend disbelief so much.

Oliver is meant to seem tortured and deep, but mostly he comes off as immature and bored. If I had to guess his age, I'd say 23, but in the book, he's at least 38. 38! Same with Henrietta; I'd guess her at around 25-26, but she's 35 or so. Emma and Colin might as well be bricks they are so boring. The only character that is in anyway interesting is the priest, Finian. The rest could be cardboard cutouts.

The most difficult part of the book is that characters often make snap judgements and assumptions without any context or background. An example of this is that Emma doesn't think it's a coincidence that her and Colin happen to be in Ireland when her grandfather's apartment is broken into. Why? Why does she think that? Do they have enemies? It's never explained. And, funny enough, the break in had NOTHING to do with Emma and Colin being there. Truly insufferable.

Another annoyance is why Henrietta keeps her status as an ex M15 agent secret. What's the point? Why can't people know? Henrietta's character gets close to being interesting, but she spends too much time thinking about Oliver. This book does not pass the Bechdel test, for sure. I want Henrietta to have motivations beyond her employer's dick.

There are so many other annoyances and problems with this book, but I don't need to get into all of them. It's certainly not the worst read, but I found myself confused, quite often, by the jump in perspective and location. It came suddenly, often, with barely even a paragraph break! It was good enough to keep me reading to the end, but I also made about 400 notes throughout that consisted entirely of "this sentence is bad" and "what does this even mean." Nonsensical, bad writing, but a decent plot.

Emma Sharpe and Colin Donovan are at the tail end of their honeymoon in Ireland when Emma’s grandfather’s home is broken i to. All evidence points to Oliver York, a man who was kidnapped by his the men who killed his parents thirty years earlier. The boy escaped, but the killers were never seen again…until recently. Oliver is no stranger to Emma and Colin and their relationship is fraught with tension and mistrust, but also a genuine liking for the man. Oliver, meanwhile, has disappeared, leaving a dead body in his wake. What do the break-in and the dead man have to do with the ordeal Oliver faced three decades before? And who can Emma and Colin trust? This long running series from Neggers is still exciting and fans of British crime thrillers will find much to like here

If you have been waiting for the reveal of more Oliver York this is your book. I enjoyed the presence of Oliver as the primary focus and the dilemma faced by Father Finn was a great story addition. Sharpe and Donovan novels never fail to entertain and this may be the best yet.