Thanks to the publisher for lending me a digital ARC via Netgalley.

I started reading Olen Steinhauer’s books 15 years ago, with his Cold War-era novel, The Bridge of Sighs. I followed him through that series, then his Milo Weaver series and in recent years, his standalone books.

I’ve always been surprised that Steinhauer hasn’t achieved a lot more recognition. He’s one of the most talented espionage writers we have today, with a real genius for blending spycraft and espionage situations with fully-developed characters. In All the Old Knives, his tour de force from 2015, his entire story plays out over a single dinner in a placid, upscale California restaurant, and it’s one of the tensest espionage tales I’ve ever read.

After taking us all over the world in his previous novels, in The Middleman Steinhauer grounds us at home in the US. Set in an almost recognizable present, the novel seems like a slightly alternative history—or maybe prophecy. An FBI undercover agent, Kevin Moore, and Special Agent Rachel Proulx are separately tasked to investigate Massive Brigade, a mysterious group led by Martin Bishop. Bishop is said to have belonged to a terrorist group in Germany that bombed a building, but nothing was proved. And now he is back in the US, and the fear is that he is building a far-left anti-corporate domestic terrorist army. When multiple violent attacks take place one July 4, the plot takes off.

This political thriller explores issues about the manipulation of the media and public opinion by politicians and the corporate interests they too often serve—but not in a pedantic or strident way. Steinhauer lays out his plot so well that we go along for the ride and only at the end does it all come together. When I read the last page, I thought back and realized just how well he executed his intricate plot. I was always one step behind as I read, but at the end it all fell into place and the whodunnit element of the plot seemed so clear and obvious. I was impressed.

If you like political thrillers, this is a standout. It looks like this is the start of another series, and I’m looking forward to the next book.

Don't Waste Your Time On The Middleman!

Given that I received a free ebook of The Middleman from NetGalley and the publisher in return for an honest review, I feel a bit bothered by my rating it only one star and advising you to save your time and money. I'm also surprised about my reaction to this book since I've read all of Olen Steinhauer's previous books and enjoyed each of them, and considered two of his books, The Tourist and The Nearest Exit, to be excellent.

Nonetheless, my primary purpose for this review is to provide feedback that could be helpful to potential readers in deciding if The Middleman is a book for them; and so, the following describes my rationale for reacting so negatively to it.

I wont describe the plot summary for this book other than to say that my interest in reading it was piqued by its being positioned as the perfect thriller for our tumultuous, uneasy times, and its delivering a compelling portrait of the USA on the edge of revolution. Further, the reader is led to believe that what its main character, FBI Special Agent Rachel Prioux, uncovers about the movement behind the revolution (i.e., The Massive Brigade) will shock the entire nation. Based on this "buildup," I was expecting it to be another sure-fire winner by Olen Steinhauer.


Unfortunately, my expectation of a highly entertaining thriller by an author I consider to be a writer of intelligent espionage thrillers was about as far from being met as I could imagine. My reasons for feeling this way are as follows:

...The pace of the book is extremely slow, causing me to put the book down without picking it up again for fairly long periods of time;
...Instead of it being a thriller, I found it to be virtually devoid of any thrills and certainly not shocking;
...Whereas I liked many of Steinhauer's previous books for the complexity of their plots, I found The Middleman's plot to be very convoluted and disjointed;
... The book's large cast of characters is too thinly developed; and those characters that are more fully developed I never came to care about;
...and if the above negative reasons aren't enough, my dissatisfaction became greater at the end of the book upon realizing that there's likely to be a sequel to The Middleman, which I presume will tie up some of the book's loose ends.

Should it turn out there is going to be a follow-up to The Middleman, I, as you can imagine from my review, won't be reading it.

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The Middleman by Olen Steinhauer is a novel set in current time, part thriller and part police procedural. Mr. Steinhauer is a best-selling author of many novels.

It’s 2017 and four hundred people simply disappeared leaving behind their old lives and technology, they simply disappear off the grid. Turns out that they are part of a movement, the Massive Brigade, who want to change America – and fast.

The FBI is not taking any chances with the Movement Brigade, which they believe is a terrorist group. Special Agent Rachel Proulx is in charge of finding what’s going on and taking on Martin Bishop, the group’s charismatic leader.

As a political junky (who isn’t these days), I thought it might be fun to read a novel which takes place in contemporary American with loose ties to reality – an alternate version of what could have happened. The Middleman by Olen Steinhauer seemed like an interesting story, which could easily take place in a similar, but alternate America.

The first thing I noticed, right off when starting to read this novel, is that it is absolutely believable and well written. The first few chapters were a bit slow to unfold, but I’m glad I kept reading since the story picked up quickly.

At first it was difficult for me to follow the structure of the novel, as it has two themes – one of political conspiracy chronicling the rise and fall of a politically active cult-like group, and a mystery / police procedural as the FBI is trying to unravel the complex enigma of the group. Mr. Steinhauer injected some espionage into the latter part of the novel, which I appreciated since I enjoy the genre, but I thought that the story felt disjointed.

This is a sophisticated, nuanced and intelligent novel which, as I mentioned, certainly seems to be realistic. I really enjoyed the complex plot, even though I had to re-read some parts to make sure I didn’t miss anything.

I first heard of Olin Steinhauer after I watched the TV series Berlin Station which is exceptional and addictive.

This is the first book of his that I have read. This book is apropos given today's political climate. It focuses on politics and the difference between what really happened and what the public is told. The book is detailed, but not too fast-paced. and has plot twists to keep you hooked.

"A civilization without empathy isn't worth holding on to."

The heroine in Olen Steinhauer's "The Middleman," FBI Special Agent Rachel Proulx, is determined to learn the truth about an underground organization, the Massive Brigade, whose leader, Martin Bishop, convinces hundreds of men and women who are fed up with America's government to join his cause. The new members are instructed to throw away their cell phones, IDs, and credit cards, leave their families and jobs behind, and live communally in safe houses. What form their rebellion will ultimately take is unclear. Bishop's partner, Ben Mittag, is fiercer in his denunciation of the establishment, and advocates the use of force to change the status quo.

Rachel and a second FBI Agent, Kevin Moore, travel across the United States, and in Kevin's case, to Germany and England, searching for answers. Also caught up in the mayhem is a pregnant woman named Ingrid who, indignant about the shooting of unarmed black men by police officers, joins the Brigade. She does so in spite of the fact that she is an expectant mother with her baby's welfare to consider. After several acts of violence take the lives of innocent victims, Rachel and Kevin suspect that something more is going on behind the scenes. They join forces to conduct their own investigation.

Alas, this is not one of Steinhauer's best efforts. The plot is muddled, the outcome is blatantly foreshadowed, and the characters are, for the most part, one-dimensional—either altruistic and selfless or unscrupulous and conniving. In addition, the author incorporates themes that, although timely, are insufficiently developed to pack much of a wallop. "The Middleman" might have been a more satisfying work of fiction had the author toned down the rhetoric and crafted his narrative with more subtlety, realism, and coherence.

A well written look at how political ideologies can split a nation. I was a bit disappointed in the right wing conservative slant of the "heroes" . I was expecting more of a rounded political narrative but the book ended up being more of a who on the left done it.

This is a realistic type spy novel, and comes in a bit sideways. There are several different narrators and it was a little bit tough to figure them all out.

The topic is immediate and relevant and a bit scary. This is a strong and good author, the narrative moves along pretty quickly. The different perspectives give the story interesting dimension. The parallels with other similar groups are clear, something we all confront today.

Conspiracy theory at it's best!

Without giving any details away, this book explores the pulse of America today. The story weaves our classes, racism, capitalism, politics, education, and gullibility together resulting in an atmosphere of unrest. It only takes one incident to transform anger to action. You are given a group of people and discover their action(s) and how quickly these actions can escalate. What is the American Dream today? What does it take to start a revolution? What does it take to label a group of people as terrorists? The author writes clearly, giving you enough detail to consider if this could happen today. The action builds quickly, and, as the story progressed, I could hear the soundtrack in my head. This book was an awesome read!

I've read a few books by this author, and was excited to get my hands on The Middleman. The premise immediately intrigued me, and though it was a little slow at times, it was an engaging, clever read. Recommended!

I really tried to get into this one - I usually LOVE Olen Steinhauer, his espionage/thrillers are some of my favorites. The characters are always strongly developed and full of quirks and foibles, the plots are intricate and intriguing, and the issues contemporary yet with a timeless old-school feel that I enjoy. I could simply not get into this one though... Perhaps because it's too timely - seriously - and felt like reading some of the scarier news stories I've seen of late. Perhaps because the opening was so drawn-out feeling, that it took forever to get into the *real* story about the investigation. Perhaps because all of the characters you spend the beginning reading about are so unsympathetic (to me at least). I don't know why, but it just never grabbed me and I kept putting it down until finally I had to admit defeat and say that this one is not for me...

Where can I start? First, I am big Olen Steinhauer fan. He has influenced my writing and what genre I want to write. Second, he didn't disappoint with this new thriller. It seemed to go in a different direction, but he gave his readers a nice surprise. I found all the characters engaging--even the creeps and the story believable. Definitely enjoyed this and have recommended it to friends.

This was a new author to me and I thoroughly enjoyed his writing style. I was intrigued from page one. The plot is very complex and it kept me turning the pages. Thanks to Minotaur Press and to NetGalley for providing me a with a galley I. Exchange for my honest opinion.

This story is complex and some is open to interpretation, so difficult to summarize the plot. Essentially it follows the evolution of a domestic terror group in the U.S. as viewed from the inside as well as by Federal investigators. Are they terrorists? Are some of them and not others? Is the investigation legitimate or biased? And are events being manipulated by outside forces, and if so, by whom? Who is the good guy, and who the bad, or are there either really? This would be an easy story to turn cynical, but it does not. Very interesting, very plausible scenarios and characters. Twisty plot, strong suspense, very intriguing ideas. Highly recommended.

Good book. Ending left me hanging. Like I said good book, but not a can't put down, read all night book.

I received this from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. And in the interest of transparency, Olen Steinhauer is one of my favorite authors.

As I said in my review of [book:Vandals|40122078], I had never really considered how the FBI or CIA would be working to cover the Antifa movement, although it makes perfect sense that this anarchist organization has been infiltrated by agents.

This book was surprisingly accurate in its portrayal of our modern political environment. Millennials demanding change while the old guard and politicians are fighting to maintain the status quo. In fact, the realism had a huge impact on me, and I almost expected to see events from the book on the news. Scary in that respect, because this could conceivably happen.

As with all of Olen Steinhauer's books, there is an incredible amount of detail and plot twists, agents and double agents, betrayal and hidden allies, all over the world.

I also appreciated the almost-hidden ties with his previous books. It doesn't impact the story at all if you haven't read any of his books, but the Easter eggs are there and add a layer of "oh, wow" when they are revealed.

Good stuff!

Although the story starts a little slow, it quickly heats up and proceeds at a rapid pace. Rachel, the FBI agent and the reader have to spend time discovering that everyone is not who they seem to be, and all the enemies are very difficult to determine. The characters are developed in depth and very realistic. The plot is quite imaginative and is right up to date with life in America. The title doesn't begin to suggest the excitement and suspense continuing throughout the story.

I enjoyed this book even though the plot wasn't very believable and the twists weren't as surprising as I'd have wished. Good character development and well paced.

Although the description of this book emphasizes its political undertone, it evolved into a standard mystery/FBI procedural. Well written, it held my attention and was a compelling read.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book in return for an honest review.

The Middleman is billed as a political thriller, but it just seemed to fizzle out on so many levels. It started off well, but then seemed to drag on until the halfway mark. By that time, my attention was starting to wane. When a book doesn’t hold my attention, I can’t seem to concentrate on the characters or the story. So, I find excuses put it back down and not pick it back up again, which is why it seemed like it took forever to get through this book. It just wasn’t thrilling enough to make me want to finish, but I did.

The story begins with the sudden disappearance of 400 young people, who are tied to a revolutionary group, Massive Brigade. Special Agent Rachel Proulx has been following the group for years, and the hunt is on for the group as well as heading off whatever they may be planning. I will say that was an interesting story line, even if it took half the book to get there.

The second half of the book deals with the aftermath and, again, it’s an interesting storyline. I don’t want to give it away, however, this part of the story is big, and I never felt like it was given just due. Instead, the book starts meandering into all the social ills of today, from race relations, police brutality, immigration, Boko Haram and missing girls, lead in Michigan’s water and all points in between. It became disjointed and I felt like I was being lectured.

And don’t you know, the ending was totally unsatisfying. That would be my fault, as I should know better than to pick up something that is planned to be a a series.

"Espionage fiction" puts a reader in mind of intercontinental spies carrying out their cliffhanging tradecraft. This book is a little different, featuring a group designated as domestic terrorists by the FBI. Very little of the action takes places beyond U.S. borders, but a great deal of the vast American territory is utilized: Florida, Louisiana, California, Idaho, Illinois, Nebraska, New York, D.C.

Olen Steinhauer knows his international politics, though, and can write compellingly. Some things I liked: the influence of European radicals on American populists; the portrayal of a so-called terrorist leader as a gentle, religious man; the all-too-human infighting for power and control among both groups, feds and fugitives.

It didn't seem the author was making a partisan statement about U.S. current affairs, but rather posing a question: How easy would it be to grow powerful movement using just the six degrees of separation?

My only quibble is quite trivial, but I just can't see an enlightened, upper-middle-class, socially-conscious mother in 2018 riding in a car with her infant held unprotected in her lap.