I requested this book because I very much enjoyed Dugoni's previous book, The Eighth Sister. 3.75, rounding up because ultimately an entertaining, diverting read.

This book is a continuation of the story of former CIA agent Charles Jenkins. Dugoni devotes considerable time to setting up the premise and providing background from the previous book.

Jenkins is visited by current agent, Matt Lemore, who tells him that Paulina Ponomayova, the agent who sacrificed her life to save his, may still be alive in Moscow's notorious Lefortovo prison. He asks Jenkins to return to Russia, to ascertain if this is so. Jenkins deliberates--not wanting to leave his wife and son and get back in the game. BUT. As Jenkins has given his newborn daughter the middle name Paulina; the pull for helping is strong. And the plot is set in motion.

Espionage, blackmail, and lots of cat and mouse.

I thought the book got off to a very slow start. Even somewhat boring.

Many bad Russian characters. [Putin is mentioned many times--his KGB/FSB connections, etc.] And what of VIktor Federov, a former Russian officer and key player in the story, who Jenkins must blackmail [i.e, hold out the possibility of getting millions of dollars] into helping him.

I was not totally engaged until almost half through but by then I couldn't put it down and couldn't wait to get back to reading and seeing how it would all pan out. I loved the chase and back and forth--and especially all the shell-games set up, The last quarter of the book really ramped up the suspense for me. Would they? Could they? Did they? Well, no spoiler from me, but of course

And at the very end, wait for Charles Jenkins #3.

I am a huge Robert Dugoni fan and was very excited for this next chapter in the Charles Jenkins saga. The book kept me on edge throughout most of the story. That being said, for how suspenseful & the fast paced the plot was, the ending fell a little flat for me. Perhaps the ending is setting up a plot line for a future book. The character development was great and lends itself to continue the series. I would recommend this book to fans of Dugoni or someone interested in thriller series.

After reading Robert Dugoni’s soon-to-be-released The Last Agent, I am more thankful than ever that a book with the rather strange title The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell caught my eye almost exactly a year ago. When I picked up Sam Hell in May 2019, Robert Dugoni was a new-to-me author whose work I was completely unfamiliar with; by the time I finished the novel a few days later, he was someone I wanted to know a lot more about. Still unaware at that point that Dugoni was best known for the five-book David Sloan series and the then six-book Tracy Crosswhite series, I happened to stumble upon a new Dugoni book on display at my local library called The Eighth Sister a few weeks later.

Much to my surprise, The Eighth Sister was nothing like The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell. Instead, I held a spy thriller in my hands that rivals the classics of the genre in complexity, character development, and sheer storytelling. Charles Jenkins, as a six-foot-five black man, is not your typical CIA spy, much less one who has much of a chance of blending into a Russian crowd. But that’s who he is, and that’s what he has to do if he is going to survive long enough to get back to his ex-spy wife and children. Jenkins only makes it out of Russia in The Eighth Sister at all because a heroic Russian agent sacrifices her own life to make his escape possible – or so he believes.

But what if it turns out that she’s not dead?

Now, in The Last Agent, Jenkins learns that Paulina Ponomayova may be suffering a fate worse than death – months-long interrogation in the notorious Lefortovo Prison at the hands of one of Russia’s most ruthless interrogators. Jenkins is not even sure if the woman he’s heard about really is Paulina, but he knows one thing: if it is her, he will not leave her behind. Jenkins will do whatever it takes to rescue the woman who saved his life and allowed him to meet his new baby daughter. Without her sacrifice, that could never have happened.

So it’s back into Russia, where all Jenkins has to do this time is free Paulina from one of the most security-conscious political prisons in the whole country and get them both safely back to the U.S. Even James Bond in his prime might find this task a bit difficult, but it’s going to take a series of miracles for an unusually tall black man - a sixty-something-year-old one, at that - to pull off this one.

Bottom Line: The Last Agent picks up almost where The Eighth Sister ended. The two novels are so closely tied together, in fact, that the reader can’t help but be a little astounded that Jenkins would dare risk his life by returning to the country he so recently barely escaped with his life. That, of course, is exactly the point. Charles Jenkins is not the kind of man who could ever turn his back on someone who sacrificed her life to save his. If fate has given him the unexpected chance to even the scales, he is going to take that chance while he has it. Robert Dugoni has written another exceptional spy thriller, one that works well as a standalone, but is even better when read as the sequel it is. The Charles Jenkins series is proving to be a good one.

Mission: Impossible. I could hear the music from that late 60s-early 70s TV spy series in my head throughout my entire reading of Robert Dugoni’s new Charles Jenkins thriller, The Last Agent. Jenkins’ mission, should he choose to accept it, is to get into back into Russia, find out whether a prisoner the Russians are holding is the asset Paulina Ponomayova, and smuggle her out of Lefortovo and into the US for debriefing. Piece of cake, right?

Jenkins has reasons to refuse. He has a family, wife Alex, son CJ, and a new baby daughter Lizzie. He has just been acquitted of espionage after his government threw him under the bus. Now the Agency has the nerve to come asking for his help. If it were anyone else, Jenkins would likely decline, but Paulina Ponomayova saved his life. His baby girl is named for her: Elizabeth Paulina Jenkins. He believed Ponomayova to be dead, but now, if she is alive, he must try to get her out because he owes her. Alex understands this, but the decision weighs heavily on Charlie.

Sending Jenkins to Russia as an undercover agent is no small task. Literally not small. Jenkins is a six foot-five-inch tall African American man, which makes him stand out in Moscow. So he must rely upon his experience and his contacts, plus the resources and backing of the CIA to maintain his cover. To whom does he turn when he arrives? His old nemesis, Viktor Federov. It was fascinating to watch their rivalry transform into an uneasy partnership, with neither totally trusting the other, but rather cooperating because the other options are unacceptable.

With Federov assisting Jenkins in attempting to learn if Paulina is indeed the prisoner inside the notorious prison, a new, extremely dangerous foe, Adam Efimov. Efimov claims to have ties to Putin himself and knows if he does not get the information they need from Ponomayova, his head will roll. So he pulls no punches when it comes to pursing Charlie Jenkins. He will stop at nothing to prevent him from letting her escape from Russia, even if it means endangering lives of his men or innocent civilians.

This was a brilliantly conceived story. Once I got the hang of who was who with all the Russian names, I just sat back and enjoyed the ride. “Enjoy” has different meanings at different times. This was not like your walk in the park or a ride the merry-go-round. This was like, I don’t know, pick your favorite bumpy ride. At times, I held my breath. At times, I gripped my Kindle tightly and wanted to shut my eyes. A few times, I even chuckled, like when the pilot, Rod Studebaker broke out into song, “Come on baby, light my fire” as he was flying his nervous passengers through a particularly rough patch in a snowstorm. “Hot Rod” was quite a memorable character.

Federov turns out to be memorable, if not rather sad at times. He’s basically a lonely man, and he seems to respect Jenkins. I liked Matt Lemore, and I hope to see him again in future books. The good news is that it seems quite likely that there will be at least one more book to follow this one as the mystery of the “Seven Sisters” isn’t quite wrapped up. If it’s anything like The Last Agent, I may need to stock up on vodka before I read that one!
Highly recommended. You’ll want to read The Eighth Sister before reading this one so that the characters and events make sense.

My thanks to NetGalley, Thomas & Mercer, and the author for this ARC copy. My views and comments are my own.

5 stars

I LOVED IT!! I was a little nervous going into this one... I loved the spy bits of the first book, The Eighth Sister, which comprised about the first half of the book, but the remainder was a bit more courtroom drama than I am normally interested in, so I netted out at three stars. Still, I loved the characters and the Cold War, old-school spy feel of the parts that focused on the mission and escape so much that I knew I'd give the next in the series a chance, and I was not disappointed!

This one is a classic US/Russia spy story from start to finish. And it's BRILLIANT. Think Nelson DeMille or John Le Carre in their heyday. Seriously. It's that good. The characters, the pacing, the drama, the settings and details - it's all spot-on marvelous. Dugoni is a very strong writer - I've said that before and I'll say it again. He crafts complex tales with complex characters, throws them into unbelievable situations, and then forces them to navigate their way out. It should, at least occasionally, mean suspensions of disbelief - after all, some of the things Charles Jenkins pulls off seem near-impossible - but somehow it never does. That I chalk up to his facility with language and ability to pain vivid pictures that suck the reader entirely in. It doesn't leave any room for disbelief - largely because the action is so non-stop you don't have time to entertain it. They HAVE to escape, so they do. Cogito, ergo sum.

It makes for an incredible heart-pounding read, all the more emotionally charged because of its references to contemporary geopolitical realities and emotionally charged responses to them. This one also ended with a lot of things left open - which I'm hoping means we'll get to see more from the marvelous Mr. Jenkins and his improbable team of Russian compatriots. And I say bravo!

A strong follow up to The Eighth Sister, Dugoni's series featuring retired agent Charles Jenkins, the newest thriller takes our hero back to the last place he pulled off a coup and barely made it out alive-Russia. Attempting to rescue the only survivor of that mission, he must do the impossible : get into Russia without being caught himself, get her out of her heavily guarded cell in an impregnable prison, and get her safely back to the United States. Several narrow escapes later he succeeds, but until then there's enough tension and drama in the narrative to keep you turning the pages.

Robert Dugoni always gives us more story in exchange for our reading loyalty. If you read THE EIGHTH SISTER, you know he often tells a character's story in distinctive parts. THE LAST AGENT is again centered on Charles Jenkins, a man of principle who just wants to be left alone so he can raise his children in peace. He does not trust people easily and reacts quickly to threats against those he feels indebted to. When he learns that a Russian woman who helped him escape needs rescuing herself, Charles takes us on a wild journey and survives many near misses to find her. Mr. Dugoni's book are full of action and tension from the first chapter to the last. You will feel a definite sense of winning...a YES moment....at the end of this book!

The tension never sags. Electrifying narrative never lets the tension sag. Exciting, biting, gripping. Engaging protagonist and support characters. Pulse-pounding storyline winter time in Moscow. Coming out this September. This is a not to be missed novel.

Thriller spy fiction with a twist - the spy saves the spy who saved the spy. At first it appears to be escape from the bad guys at all costs. But the escape was very well described. I do not think I would like to fly with Mr. Studebaker. Highly recommend!

Let me start by saying I love Robert Dugoni. That said, I did not care for this book. It was extremely well written, but the subject matter was not for me. Too confusing...espionage, blackmail, Russian spies. It's just not my type of book. Do not let that discourage you from reading it. It has great reviews and if you like those types of books, you will love it.

Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy of the book for an unbiased review.

A great second book in this series. A spy novel for those who love adventure and close calls. An agent and pilot who can accomplish the impossible team up to best the Russians.

The Last Agent by author Robert Dugoni is the second book in the Charles Jenkins Series

A Thriller espionage series

Charles Jenkins is an American operative who spent time in Russia the first time we were introduced to him.

The pace starts off fast pretty early on in this book, and continues the adrenaline driven race until the end

He is back in Russia to see if Paulina Ponomayova is still alive. She is the agent who sacrificed her life to save him in the first book of the series -The Eighth Sister

A very enjoyable style of writing, with another great storyline

Looking forward to more from this author in the future

Thank you to GoodReads, Author Robert Dugoni, and Thomas & Mercer for my advanced copy to review, in exchange for my opinions!

#TheLastAgent #NetGalley

A High Octane Novel

Men rush into a woman’s hospital room and hustle off her to cell to be interrogated quite painfully. The novel then switches to the main character, Charles Jenkins, who six months after being found not guilty for espionage. He is finally free of the vestiges of these events by signing his last check to pay the last contractor hired by his former company. He was now debt free and living with his wife and children on his Washington State Camano Island farm. He is visited by a well dress man looking for Jenkins. Jenkins asked what it is about. The man responds, “Russia.” He is from the CIA and explains that the woman that helped Jenkins escape from Russia, Paulina Ponomayova, is believed to be alive in Lefortovo prison. She is being interrogated for the identity of the last four sisters, U.S. spies. The CIA wants to get her out, and who is better candidate for this job than Jenkins. How could Jenkins refuse to save the woman who he thought had died saving him and named his then unborn daughter after her? From this seed, the main storyline grows.

Once Jenkins makes the decision to proceed, the action is fast-paced. I was captivated immediately. Many of the characters from the first novel make an appearance starting with Demir Kaplan who helped Jenkins escape from Russia the first time. New and equally entertaining characters are introduced that enrichen my reading enjoyment. Jenkins also needs his former nemesis during his escape from Russia, the disgraced former FSB Colonel Victor Federov. The plan develops and morphs as the situation changes. The main storyline stays fresh as it continually shifts and proceeds in a new direction. The voices of the chapters changes and belongs to the main character of that chapter. The reader receives multi-perspective view into the main storyline.

The storyline is very rich. At the start, the decision to proceed is a family discussion. There is much interaction with his wife that provides a very poignant insight into the Jenkins’s character. Additional insight is provided in Jenkins interaction with Victor and Paulina. Jenkins’s nemeses in this novel also are well developed as are some new and returning FSB characters. These B-storylines were well woven into the main storyline threads.

The level of sex and language is very low. There is violence and described as it happens, but the descriptions are not graphic. These aspects should not hinder most readers. This is the second novel in the series. Many characters reappear with the baggage from the first novel. I have read the first novel, but adequate background and context were provided, so I believe reading this novel first is quite feasible. A reader will just miss a great story.

I observed only one drawback. The ending was a plug for the next novel. I call these ending after the seasonal ending to the TV show, Dynasty, “Who shot JR?” ending. The ending of the first novel didn’t have this type of ending. It was saved for beginning of this novel. This is a nitnoid of mine.

Based upon the enjoyment I received in reading this novel and how it held my interest right up to the end, I rate it with five stars. If you liked The Eighth Sister, do not miss this one. If you like exciting chases, do not skip either. I am looking forward to reading the next novel in the series.

I have received a free e-book version of this novel through NetGalley from Thomas & Mercer with an expectation for an honest, unbiased review. I wish to thank Thomas & Mercer for the opportunity to read and review this novel early.

Thank you to Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this book. A classic spy novel with near impossible situations dealt with handily by a black former CIA operative. Taken as a whole the action is interesting and exciting. There is, however, much more dialogue and narrative than necessary. Give the reader the story and the connundrums without adding needless verbiage.

Robert Dugoni takes step 2 in what promises to be a great series. Ex-spy Charles Jenkins shows his loyalty, spycraft, and intelligence as he travels the globe, especially Russia, in search of the truth as he tries to locate and save a lost colleague.

Charles Jenkins, retired and living with his much younger wife, son, and baby daughter gets the information that Paulina Ponomayova, the woman who he thought had sacrificed her life so that he could return to his family, may be alive, and if scuttlebutt is to be believed in heinous Lefortovo prison. Beyond hell on earth, if she's there it's to extract the remaining four names of the Seven Sisters. He barely escaped home after that mission and was then brought up on charges of treason. Later exonerated. But, Paulina--the thought of her at the mercy of those vicious Russian interrogators tears at his heart.

Upon returning to Russia, Charles will contact Viktor Federov, the agent treated as badly as Charles, his fault for letting Jenkins escape. Viktor is driven by two motives and one is money. He'll enlist Viktor's help in penetrating the prison. Each holds a grudging respect for the other as well as a modicum of mistrust.

Paulina, a magnetic, empathetic operative from Book 1 as well as Viktor are both formidably strong support characters. The antagonist in Book 2 is wickedly intuitive and whether a step ahead or behind, raises the apprehension, missing his targets by inches. You don't get to relax or take a breath. The chase is on in frigid winter Moscow and the stakes are high. Can they escape with FSB ranking Efimov desperate to capture not only Paulina but Charles and Viktor as well?

The well-plotted suspense thriller brings each heart-stopping scene to within a hair's breadth and then the author throws another curve, another red herring or spine-tingling twist. Unique espionage storyline, electrifying narrative, immersive, engaging, and never lets the tension sag.

You could very well enjoy this book as a standalone as there are references back to Book 1 interactions, relationships, and motives. I received this digital uncorrected proof by the publisher and NetGalley and SOOO appreciate the opportunity for the read and review. This novel releases in September. Get your pre-order in now. Totally recommended!

I really enjoyed this book. Character development was good. The plot was very interesting. Not a lot of typos.

Slow start, somewhat repetitive from previous book, Improves in second third, still trying to finish

Thank you to Net Galley,the publishers and the author for an ARC copy for review, and apologies for the delay.

Firstly I have read some of the Tracy Crosswhite books, but I personally loved this character and book more, here we have Charles Jenkins.

Net Galley, the publishers gave me the second book in the series, I had not read the first, but the author explains so much and so well in this second book I understood this book fully and the history of the first.

An American operative in Russia is on the run for his life in a thriller of heart-stopping betrayal and international intrigue by the New York Times bestselling author of The Eighth Sister.

Betrayed by his own country and tried for treason, former spy Charles Jenkins survived an undercover Russian operation gone wrong. Exonerated, bitter, and safe, the retired family man is through with duplicitous spy games. Then he learns of a woman isolated in Moscow’s notorious Lefortovo Prison.

If it’s Paulina Ponomayova, the agent who sacrificed her life to save his, Jenkins can’t leave her behind. But there’s no guarantee it’s her. Or proof Paulina is still alive. To find out, Jenkins must return to Russia. Next move: blackmail Viktor Federov, a former Russian officer with his own ax to grind, into helping him infiltrate Lefortovo. The enemy who once pursued Jenkins across three continents is now the only man Jenkins can trust.

Every step of the way—from Moscow to Scandinavia to the open ocean—they’re hunted by a brutal Russian agent on a killer quest of his own. Out of loyalty to Paulina—dead or alive—Jenkins is putting everyone’s life on the line for a new mission that could be his last.

This was an action packed thriller, action, crime, espionage the tension builds as each chapter flies by and there were moments I wanted to close my eyes! Panicked at what was about to happen, I felt all the time this would make a great film.

Great characters,all the way through you could not be sure who Charles could trust, who was helping, who wasn't and throughout he was literally steps ahead.

The pace, the strength of the story, the characters, the tension, also how tired I am do justice to how good this book was, late nights yes... Tired.. yes!

Five stars.

In this second installment to his Charles Jenkins spy series, Robert Dugoni delivers another riveting, edge-of-your-seat story that left me clamoring for more!

While “The Last Agent” can easily be read as a standalone, the main premise is a follow-up to the first book in this series, “The Eighth Sister,” bringing Charles Jenkins back to Moscow on another heart-pounding mission that’s tied to his past.

Though this s not typically my preferred genre, Robert Dugoni has made me a convert. Clearly, he has the Midas touch—because whatever he writes is absolutely golden. And “The Last Agent” is no exception. Pick it up and give it a try. If you love a good spy novel, you won’t be disappointed!!