A lighter historical fiction in some ways, this book is based in wartime but tends to focus on other parallel events in the life of our lead protagonist.
We have a slick American who is part of the British Army and is a wonder at everything he puts his mind to. It is described in such a way that it is very easy to accept this statement as fact. He has been posted in a particular team because a man with power wants him to stick close to his estranged son. There is also the fact that our captain Jake is an art forger with friends in very high places and deep pockets. In the midst of all this, there is a strange death (followed by a few more, eventually).
Jake is tasked with bringing the killer to justice, transporting spies and flying planes while escaping German soldiers. All of this is told in a snappy manner, making it a quick read. What put me off were the repetitive, long ways to identifying the characters to indicate their actions, like calling Jake 'the dark-haired American' or the multiple references to his eye colour instead of sometimes saying, "Jake looked/said/did..." throughout the book.
The plot of the core mystery unravelled slowly, was intriguing while some points were being revealed, but I was not as invested in the outcome as I should have been.
It is still a series I would read another book of because I think it laid a good foundation on which to build a satisfyingly different set of mysteries, given that Jake is shown as a morally grey character who is ultimately honest and faithful in his own way.
I received an ARC thanks to NetGalley and the publishers, but the review is entirely based on my own reading experience.