A thrilling read which kept me turning the pages, characters you care for and just brilliantly written. Great novel!! Love all of Robert Goddards books.

A simple mission to encourage computer whiz kid Joe to join a gaming company turns into anything but and far more complicated than Nicole could ever have imagined when she set off for Cornwall. Other people also have their eyes on Joe and strangely enough refuse to take no for an answer! As always, a cat and mouse novel with stuff going on, on every page to ensure the reader will keep turning the pages. The pace does falter slightly when a (what seems to be) minor character suddenly starts going into great detail about what happened years ago. I didn’t feel all the ends were tied up, but still spent a happy few hours immersed in this story. A good read for anyone who enjoys adventures, being followed and being in danger all the time.

Who would believe the game of Go could lead to such a complex thriller. How do you keep out of reach of the enemy without the use of modern day electronic products- read and learn. A real fast and furious read.

Thankyou to NetGalley, the publishers and the author, Robert Goddard, for the opportunity to read a digital copy of One False Move in exchange for an honest and unbiased opinion.
One thing about this author, he never fails in his mission to entertain the readers. This book was a good read. Full of action and intrigue, I was hooked.
A well thought and and written novel with well drawn characters.
Worth a read.

There are a lot of interesting things happening in this action packed book. A guy outsmarting a supercomputer, it is no wonder there are several groups of people looking for him. It starts out pretty innocent with Nicole showing up but soon the story turns into a chase.
I enjoyed the fact that there was no romance or hint of between Joe and Nicole. No matter how much they had to depend on one another. The story is well paced, and it is clear Goddard knows what he is doing.. the story seems flawless despite the many storylines.
What I enjoyed less is the fact that at some point there seems to be no good guy left. I got tired of Nicole running around without being able to catch her breath. I had hoped too that Joe would have been more involved in the story with his wits. It would have been interesting to see him outsmart everyone.

Who knew that the ancient game of Go could provide a backdrop to this fast paced thriller from Robert Goddard? It does start off slowly, mainly to set the scene and introduce Jo, the Go genius, who can also outsmart computers and in turn becomes of interest to the British and Chinese intelligence services.

Like any good Goddard novel there are historical events that resonate on the present day. Also he has lost none of his knack for writing densely plotted and enjoyable thrillers.

I was so excited to get an ARC of One False Move by Robert Goddard as I have read a fair few of his books and never, ever been disappointed. Funny enough, I wasn’t disappointed in this one either.

I settled down to read it with great anticipation and before I knew it (well, several hours later in all honesty) I had finished the book and sacrificed some badly needed beauty sleep – so I am struggling today but it was worth it. I love his style it feels so familiar and comfortable, not simplistic but just clear and concise not much ambiguity.

Written in the first person with Nicole as the protagonist she explains that she has been despatched to Falmouth by her boss in order to persuade Joe to join her employer’s computer company specialising in games (Go in particular). This is an important assignment for Nicole as she has previously blotted her copy book and is now keen to set her career back on track. But nothing in life is simple and she becomes involved with the criminal element, the secret service agencies and politics. By the way, Joe is a genius and the Chinese, no less, are keen to secure his person to work on AI projects. All this adds up to plenty of nail biting encounters, plots and schemes and a good many twists and turns. All in all, a thoroughly good read. Loved the characters; even loved the various explanations about the board game Go. Mind you, don’t think I would even attempt to play it. Rather read a good book – especially one like this.

Highly recommended if you like a good thriller with plenty of action – oh, and plenty of baddies.

Thank you to the author, publishers and NetGalley for providing an ARC via my Kindle in return for an honest review.

Although it is quite pedestrian to begin with in order to set the scene and introduce the characters, it soon becomes a fast-paced cat and mouse tale. I love my thrillers based around technology and this has many exciting twisty surprises in store for the reader, and once you progress past the slow start the action is non-stop; it certainly keeps you on your toes. The premise is quite an original one and reminded me a lot of Criminal Minds and similar shows where they pluck hackers out of obscurity and employ them due to their huge technological capabilities.

This is a book that is complex, plot-driven and never fails to get the adrenaline pumping, and main protagonist Nicole shows herself to be a very likeable and stubbornly determined individual, but can she stay a step ahead when the going gets tough?

One False Move by Robert Goddard

Joe Roberts is an extraordinary young man. He might think that he lives a quiet, unremarkable life in Cornwall working as a financial advisor, but he has a talent that attracts attention. He has a genius for playing the strategic game of Go. He can even beat the computer at it. He can outsmart computers. Venstrom, a gaming company giant based in the Silicon Valley, wants him and so they send Nicole Nevinson to St Maws in Cornwall to sign him up. Money is no object and failure is not an option, as Nicole’s boss yells down the phone at her. But Joe’s current employer and shady businessman, Conrad Vogler, isn’t going to let Joe go in a hurry. And Vogler isn’t going to be all that Nicole has to worry about. Other people are after Joe Roberts and their intentions are dark and significant. Nicole has crossed a line. She is completely out of her depth. Her world will collapse around her. To survive, she must play their game and win.

Robert Goddard is a master plotter. He is a writer of ingenious thrillers. They are awe inspiring. And yet again, with One False Move, Robert Goddard demonstrates just how truly brilliant he is. This is a superb thriller! It’s one of those rare books that sweeps the ground from under your feet. You start the book thinking you have one kind of story and then there’s a monumental shift and you’re thrown into intricately plotted chaos and then it happens again! Nicole Nevinson goes through hell in this novel and we are made to know exactly how that feels for her. There are no constants, no certainties. It’s breathtaking. It is also extremely menacing. The menace starts early on but soon you know that there are degrees of menace which you could never expect. The world is not as you think it.

The gaming element is fascinating and such an effective metaphor for the book as a whole. Characters have to work hard to outsmart and outmanoeuvre more powerful forces. Usually they fail. Working out who to trust is a key element of One More Move. Decisions have to be made in an instant. If you make the wrong move, consequences can be deadly. You can’t undo it.

Nicole Nevinson is such a fine main character and a very effective narrator. She knows little more than the reader about the genius that Joe embodies. She has to learn those skills herself and it’s extraordinary how much happens to her over such a short period of time, how much the world shifts.

One False Move is one of the best thrillers I’ve read in quite a while. It develops in a way that is irresistible. I did not want to put this book down. Its structure and plot is incredibly intricate and rewardingly complex. It’s clever but it’s also genuinely thrilling as well as being superbly written. I’m not sure it’s possible to ask for more.

Other reviews
The Ways of the World (The Wide World 1)
The Corners of the Globe (The Wide World 2)
The Ends of the Earth (The Wide World 3)
Panic Room

An intriguing thriller, it starts off with a job offer, which unleashes a whole maelstrom of events. Nicole is sent from London down to Cornwall by her company, Venstrom, a big player in the world of computer gaming. A talented player has been unearthed there, an unwitting genius that has the ability to beat Venstrom's computer program time and time again, which nobody should even come close to. Nicole's job is to go to Cornwall, identify the talent, and offer him a job with the company. Simple right? WRONG!

Nicole's plan quickly hits a major snag, The talented player, a young man named Joe, is in the employ of a local man, to whom he offers tips on stocks and shares, apparently very lucratively. So much so that his employer is not going to let him go, and soon Nicole finds herself threatened, and nearly killed.

Nicole finds herself on the run with the most unlikely of allies, and soon learns that she is an unwitting pawn in a game of cat and mouse that goes back to the time of the cold war. The question now isn't will she manage to reel Joe in for her company, it's will she even survive the attempt?

This is another winner from Robert Goddard, an unputdownable novel full of suspense, as we race from one side of England to the other, not really knowing where we stand or what the opposition is up to. Even though I had a few quibbles with the narrative, mainly, if Joe was such a big fish, why was a minor player in the company like Nicole sent to headhunt him? Another was that in all that was going on the authorities were conspicuous in their absence. But these were minor things and didn't really detract from what is a really good, timely, thriller. Recommended.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Nicole Nevinson is sent to track down a young man, Joe Roberts, who seems able to beat the best computers in the world at the board game “Go”. That sets in motion a complex weave of events with corporate espionage and dips into the world of the secret service.

I have read a number of Robert Goddard’s books over the years preferring his earlier work over his more recent books. However, I was still keen to try this book out. I found myself way out of my comfort zone. I really am not interested in the corporate business world and nor do I much like spy books. I was on to a bit of a looser here. I did debate giving up when it became apparent that this really wasn’t my sort of book – however, I am determined to stretch my reading this year so stuck with it.

In the end I actually quite enjoyed this book. It was quite a complicated plot with a lot of characters from the corporate, smuggling & spy worlds. They did seem to change sides regularly so I needed to keep my wits about me. The book was well written and did make sense – the plot does come together at the end.

The book is written from the point of view of Nicole. She is sent to Cornwall to liaise with Joe on behalf of a computer company. That is her job & she gets heavily involved in a world that she knows nothing about. She doesn’t know who to trust and makes mistakes. She is definitely a little naive about the ruthlessness of human nature. However, she digs deep and comes out in the end – sort of!

I am pleased that this book challenged me as a reader. I shall continue to keep my eye open for his future work.

I received a free copy of this book via Netgalley.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Random House UK, Transworld Publishers for an advance copy of One False Move, a stand alone thriller set initially in Cornwall.

Nicole Nevinson is sent by her employer, computer firm Venstrom, to lure computer genius Joe Roberts from his current job to work for them. Things don’t go according to plan as Joe’s employer is loath to release him and other organisations are taking an interest. Soon Nicole is on the run in fear of her life.

I thoroughly enjoyed One False Move as it is a tense, exciting read with many twists and turns. The novel is a bit slow to start with plenty of scene setting as Nicole tries to explain her mission to the reader. I must be out of touch with modern reality or maybe I’m just not greedy enough because offering Joe anything he wants in return for his genius and the desperation to secure his services seems rather OTT to me. This, however, is the premise and what follows explores that desperation. It is non stop action after the slow start with enough twists and heart pounding moments to tempt me to skip to the end to make sure it all turns out well. I resisted but held my breath several times. The first person narrative from Nicole makes it more immediate as she is cast adrift in a dangerous situation not of her own making. It is difficult to say much more without issuing spoilers as the plot is quite complicated and introduces many unexpected elements.

I rather like Nicole. Initially she is all corporate executive determined to sign up Joe and give her career the resulting boost such a coup would merit but as events spin out of control she shows herself to be resourceful with great survival instincts. Of course she has her down moments, especially when events overtake her and she’s helpless, but it just makes her a more rounded character.

One False Move is a good read which I have no hesitation in recommending.

Interesting tale of a super intelligent young man and the various factions seeking to control or profit from his gift. A woman representing an American computer giant is sent to persuade him his future lies with them without realising that a crime syndicate is already using his gift and just to liven things up a Chinese double agent is involved ! All very complicated but hugely entertaining with its mixture of secrets going back to the fall of communism in Russia, secret tapes stored in Finland, murders in the U.K all building to a surprise ending to satisfy ones credulity! Fun read.

Robert Goddard certainly knows how to write a cracking thriller which is so skillfully plotted, and with complex, multilayered storylines that travel in gobsmacking directions. This is a truly twisted yarn that has our protagonist, Nicole Nevinson, working for computer gaming Silicon Valley corporate giant, Venstrom, heading to Cornwall to find and secure the services of an unknown game player in Cornwall. Venstrom have been tracking a gamer, Joe Roberts, who has gifts that can often ourperform the computer when it comes to a game that originates in China, called Go. This is virtually unheard of, and they want Joe working for them, they are willing to do whatever it takes, and offer him anything he wants to come work for them. Nicole finds herself in St Maws and Falmouth, determined that she shall succeed in her quest and establish her position in Venstrom. However, she is about to disappear down a rabbit hole that is to shatter her entire life as she knows it, and in a deadly struggle to survive the ruthless forces coming from multiple directions, all arraigned against her.

To Nicole's surprise, she finds Joe has employment with a shady businessman, Conrad Vogler, and Vogler has no intention of letting Joe go and he can fight real dirty. Despite being authorised to offer Vogler whatever compensation he wants, Nicole begins to find herself terrified as it dawns on her, nothing will persuade Vogler to let Joe go. Her boss, the ambitious Carl, arrives on the scene, certain that he can close the deal with Vogler and make his career by signing Joe on the payroll. He too is to find he has underestimated what he is up against as it becomes clear there are numerous shadowy figures and organisations who want Joe too. As murders occur, the story moves into the area of espionage and the intelligence services as Nicole finds help from someone who has been forced into hiding for many years, but find themselves inadvertently back on the frontline. Nicole finds herself learning of a past history that goes back to the cold war and the collapse of the Berlin Wall, facing international criminal gangs and a powerful traitor responsible for an untold number of deaths, and several steps ahead of her in the battle to ensure that she is eliminated.

This is a fantastic thriller, full of chilling menace, that is loaded with suspense and tension. It is so compelling that I resented any intrusions from real life that took me away from the book. The characterisation is great, especially that of Nicole whose life begins to unravel in ways she could hardly have expected at the beginning of her assignment. My one regret is that Joe's character is not as developed as I would have liked it to have been. This is a brilliant read for all those that love thrillers with complex plotlines, and packed with twists and the unexpected. Many thanks to Random House Transworld for an ARC.

A fast paced action thriller from a renowned British author. Nicole works for a computer company who want to recruit Joe to their team. He iis a champion at the game GO beating human contestants and a computer. The question is whether he has analytical powers and computer skills that can be harnessed. her company is not alone in wanting him onboard for their various reasons. Nicole ends up in a chase of espionage and counter espionage . Nicole's life is in danger and she must keep one step ahead to preserve her life. There are numerous twist and turns along the way, as one would expect from this author, and the story spans a considerable time frame as the background unfold.
A book to keep you on the edge of your seat, anticipating the next adventure or misadventure.

At the beginning of this book the main character says something like her colleague didn't know what he was getting them into. After reading the rest of the book, I'd say that was pretty accurate if not an understatement. We start off with a relatively simple task for Nicole. To track down a game player and persuade them to work for her games company Venstrom. Both these things initially go well but there is one small sticking point. Joe, the game player already has a job and his current employer isn't about to let him go without a fight; and he plays dirty. Things soon spiral further as it seems that Venstrom isn't the only one interested in Joe and his talents and what follows is a fast action, scary, roller coaster thrill of a ride that eventually has Nicole on the run fearing for her life.
Well... firstly I have to say that I really wasn't expecting to go where we went in this book and I am not talking geographically. Don't worry, I'm not going to spoil anything in this review but I will say that it did remind me of quite a few of the author's earlier books with the path it took. I'd love to qualify this statement and also explain exactly why I loved this book but I really want everyone to get the same shocking tingle of excitement I got when certain things came out.
As with all the books I have read by this author plotting was extremely tight and very well executed, especially important given the direction we took. Characterisation was also good. We had a veritable mix of good and bad and, also as usual from the author, those who were somewhere in between. Again I'm reluctant to go into detail but I will just say that there were some juicy secrets and lies to be found along with a dollop of duplicitous behaviour. I especially loved it when help came from a very unlikely source... Pacing was perfect and fitted with the narrative well.
All in all, a good addition to an already impressive back catalogue, most of which I have already read. Hopefully I will be able to fill in more gaps whilst I wait for the next new offering. My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.