An excellent spy thiller for our time. Very well written and didactic in the modern aspects of the trade. Hope this the beginning of a great series. Very rewarding and strongly recommended!

3.5 Stars.

For the most part I enjoyed this. It’s well written, propulsive, and intriguingly complex.

Unfortunately it’s also very difficult to follow if you are not acutely aware of the political situation in the region.

Some of the confusion sown by this story is deliberate, meant to obfuscate for dramatic effect. All of the “whose side is this person REALLY on?” and shifting loyalties are generally welcome elements in a spy novel, adding to the mystery.

But when paired with a setting in which the geopolitical situation isn’t particularly well explained, they further the confusion for the reader.

I’ll accept some responsibility for this as a reader (my knowledge of The -Stans is largely limited to the fact that they were part of the former USSR. I fully admit that I’m not sure I could distinguish them geographically from one another). However, there seems to be a lot of assumed knowledge about regional politics that I don’t believe to be commonly held by American or British readers. Harris could have given us some basics to make the narrative more easily digestible.

And while Kane is certainly likable enough and an intriguing fellow, he lacks the kind of character development that makes us want to really rally behind him as a hero.

Fortunately, despite the confusing politics and bland protagonist, the pacing and atmosphere ensure that A Shadow Intelligence is still worthy of a read. I’d happily read a follow up, but would hope that Harris gives us a little more backstory on Kane and a lot more clarity on the politics of the plot.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC. As avid a fan as I am of spy novels, A Shadow Intelligence escaped me. I tried several times to finish it, but I was simply bored. There is something about British spy novels that lends themselves to the dull side of spying, especially the closer things are to headquarters, where bland, competitive bureaucrats tend to ruin everything. This novel does not escape those problems.

Well written intrigue. It took me awhile to sort out this story. Lots of characters with their own agenda and a complex relationship among the various countries’ factions, Misinformation about a huge new oil discover in one of the “Stans,” evolves into a race as to what country will control it. Thanks to Net Galley for an advance copy of this exciting spy thriller.

Fast paced, action packed spy story. The plot was not boring and was carefully written to not spoil the “adventure”.
3.5/5 🌟
Thank you Netgalley, publisher and Oliver Harris for the ARC.

Thanks to Houghton Mifflin Harcourt and Netgalley for sharing the ARC of this novel. I thought this was a great story. The topics were timely (Russian encroachment on neighboring countries, disinformation campaigns) and it was a good mystery. I didn’t predict the ending at all. It was slow to get started however, and most of the action comes late in the book, but don’t get discouraged, it’s worth it. Anyone who likes spy novels like John LeCarre or TV shows like Homeland should enjoy this title.

Lots of characters, locales, technology, contemporary background issues....I really liked this book! "A Shadow Intelligence" has everything that holds my attention to the very end and I didn't see the end coming.

First published in Great Britain in 2019; published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt on April 14, 2020

Not many novels are set in Kazakhstan. A Shadow Intelligence earned my interest just by sending characters to a country that is difficult to spell. Add a campaign to spread disinformation on social media, private militaries controlled by oil companies, and Afghan smugglers to a mix that includes British and Russian spies and you’ve got an unusually intriguing story.

A Shadow Intelligence doesn’t feature a superhero who fights and shoots his way out of every problem. Nor does he wear an exploding watch. Elliot Kane employs tradecraft, but he basically blunders into situations and hopes for the best. Elliot’s fallibility is another aspect of the novel that appealed to me.

Elliot begins the novel in a funk, having been recalled to London from an undercover assignment in Saudi Arabia that ended with the arrest of his agent. When he checks his email, he finds a coded message telling him that either he or the sender is in danger. Hidden in the message is a digital picture. He’s in the picture, talking to a person he doesn’t know in a room he’s never seen.

The message is from Joanna Lake, an MI6 field officer for whom Elliot has feelings. He asks colleagues about her status, only to learn that she’s no longer employed. She was last working with the Psychological Operations Group, a combined effort of MI6, the British military, and GCHQ, the British version of the NSA. Elliot doesn’t know what project occupied her time, but he learns that her unit was shut down, that she was escorted from the premises, and that security officials have been asking questions about both Lake and Elliot.

Elliot’s effort to find Joanna leads him to a dead body, an oil company called Saracen that is buying land in Kazakhstan, and a firm of private intelligence analysts (including many who recently jumped ship from MI6) called Vectis. Elliot travels to Kazakhstan, where his presence is noted by Sergei Cherenkov, who tries to recruit Elliot to spy for the Russians. Eliot begins to wonder whether the same pitch was made to Joanna and whether she accepted.

The web of intrigue convinces Elliot that previously unknown oil fields in Kazakhstan may lead to a Russian invasion and a war in which China will intervene. The international stakes are high, but from a personal standpoint, Eliot wants to know whether Lake is still secretly working for MI6, whether she was hired by Vectis to do sketchy work, or whether she is working for the Russians. A social media influencer in Kazakhstan named Aliya, the pro-western daughter of Kazakhstan’s president, and an Afghan smuggler who has a history with Elliot also feature in the mix.

The novel is an effective blend of mystery, suspense, and action. As an international conflict looms, the plot encourages the reader to join Elliot in speculating about Joanna’s role and why she messaged Elliot. Events have been shaped in a way that mislead Elliot (and thus the reader) before the dots connect in a way that makes sense. The story’s focus on the recruitment and deception of social media influencers to drive public opinion in directions dictated by governments or private businesses gives the story some currency.

Near the end of the novel, when Elliot has been identified as someone who should either be arrested or shot on sight, it seems unlikely that he can make it to the end of the book without being tracked and apprehended. That he does so is a mild stretch. Elliot’s fairly standard spy persona would have benefitted from a bit more character development. Those are relatively minor complaints in a plot-focused novel that delivers the kind of byzantine international jousting that makes spy novels so entertaining.

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