First of all I would like to thank Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group -Ballantine for the free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

What can I say. I never thought that I would actually enjoy a book about the CIA and Russian sleeper cells.
I feared it would be complex and really difficult to grasp but the prediction that this book would be “The Thriller of the Year” won me over.


Now I’m just so thankfull for the opportunity I got to read this book because this story surely got me on the edge of my seat!
It is told from the perspective of Vivian, wife and mother of four and CIA analyst.
We just learn about her struggle to balance her busy family life with her high end job at the intelligence agency when an unexpected and shocking discovery of a familiar face in a list of Russian sleepers makes her doubt everthing she holds dear.
One of the things I liked best about this book is all the sudden twists and turns that take place. The storyline itself is very original and full of suspense. I particularly liked the many flashbacks that allow the reader to put situations into context. I really sympathised with the main character Vivian and the impossible choices she has to make. I must admit that I have some mixed feelings about the ending but all in all this was one of the best thrillers I read this year. Be sure you get your hands on this one!

This is a tremendously well written book with the ring of truth. A CIA worker learns that her husband of 10 years is harboring a secret . Spoiler alert- I’m not telling. Fast paced thriller. I want more from this author, although this one will be hard to beat.

This is one hell of a roller coaster ride. I simply love this book and have enjoyed reading it tremendously. I was actually a little reticent in the beginning, - another CIA case. But the book just grips you and you just want to keep on reading to try to outsmart the author in guessing who’s the bad guy. You get rather attached to the main characters, Matt and Vivian. Although I didn’t really like the flash backs, to the beginning of their relationship, in between the present narration, I guess it adds spice to urge you to read quickly to get to the end of the book. I find the ending mind blowing! Bravo to the author as I didn’t see that coming at all. It’s really quite scary when you think that there might be a Russian spy in the top notch government level!! It’s scarier still to wonder how much you actually know someone, and in this case a CIA counter intelligence analyst, despite her training, could be manipulated. A book absolutely to read! You would not regret it.

Need to Know is Carpenter's debut novel and, prior to publication, movie rights have already been sold to Universal and Charlize Theron will be producing and starring in it. Not altogether surprising as it feels like it was written with a movie in mind. Need to Know is a spy thriller for the modern age without laser guns, secret passageways, secret laboratories, or wild gunfights in cities across the spinning globe. In this modern age, it's computer information that is king and the star of this book is a counterintelligence agent, a computer geek who slides her way into encrypted channels from the safety of her computer desk and is happily married and living in a Virginia suburb with a passel of kids.

All hell breaks loose for Vivian when she ferrets out photos of a Russian sleeper cell and finds one of the faces staring back at her is someone too close for comfort, someone who has lied to her for years. When she confronts the spy, her kids and her marriage are threatened and Vivian faces a horrible choice of whether to betray her country or her family. Of course, one step in the dirt soon turns into a maelstrom of quicksand that you can drown in and there appears to be no way out, no way to protect her family and stay out of jail with blackmail and threats growing every day. It's a story exploring the bonds of trust, loyalty, betrayal, and more and what an increasingly isolated and desperate individual might do.

Overall, it was an engrossing read, feeling at times like scenes from a movie were being played out. It suffered, however, at times from a dose of unreality as the Russian agent immediately admits complicity when confronted and Vivian is twisted far too easily and is far too naive for someone in that position. I would have liked to see that initial confrontation play out over a period of time to be more believable. It could also have used more action and less focus on charming scenes of domesticity.

I received this book in exchange for an honest review. This was a twisting and turning roller coaster ride. Imagine working for the CIA and find out you are married to a Russian spy. Vivian's world is turned upside down when she discovers her husband's picture in a list of sleeper agents. Just when I thought I had things figured out, a twist came out of nowhere. I enjoyed every minute of this book and the ending was mind blowing. Unputdownable!

See my review on GoodReads https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2175298019

Amazing, Suspense Filled Drama

Vivian works as a counterintelligence analyst for the CIA, her job is to hack into the computer network of spies. Especially Russian handlers who direct the sleeper cells in the United States. When she is finally successful in gaining access to the records of one handler she learns the identity of the sleeper agents he controls. Now she has to figure out how to make that information disappear before it turns her life inside out.

In this beautifully crafted and written suspense drama, you find yourself in Vivian’s head as she tries to sort the lies from the truth and, more importantly, who she can trust. And, at the same time, she has to protect her children from whatever the future holds. Like other readers I found myself wanting to read just one more chapter before it was necessary to put the book down and take care of the everyday tasks awaiting my action.

Fantastic premesis. Spy-hunter finds out her husband is a sleeper. Confronted, he just says: Yes, you're right. What now?
Not too many surprises after that, but that's okay. Anything else would maybe have been too much.
The characters are a bit wooden, it's more a thriller than literature.
I absolutely hated the ending, though. I would recommend to skip the epilogue. Absolutely "deus ex machina". In my opinion the book would have been a 5-star-read without that last "twist".
I'll just try to forget about it and remember the good times! :)

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2174839899

Enjoyable read that moves along. Likable characters.. Didn't see the end comimg. looking forward to nxt book.

CIA analyst Vivian finds a Russian sleeper where she least expected it. Now she needs to decide who she can trust and how to protect her family in a world where everyone can be compromised. I didn't want to put it down!

Tense spy thriller. Twists and turns abound.

Who can CIA analyst Vivian Miller trust as she works to identify the Russian sleeper cell members and the mole in her department? Actually, if the reader trusts their instincts, they may just realize they have had the answers all along.

Do not do what I did. I started this book at bedtime and then found myself unable to put it down and go to sleep.

More of a review closer to publication date.

She's a CIA agent working in counter-intelligence trying to find out about the Russian sleeper cells. He is her husband, and unbeknownst to her, a sleeper agent of the Russians. She was his target. Now they have four kids and she learns the man she loved is -- inconceivably -- part of an activated sleeper cell. Their twins are so young, and one of them has to see a cardiologist. Losing her job would mean losing health care for them all Their money is tight, but without her husband, how would she care for four kids? And so, she finds the incriminating evidence but once she confronts him, she has to turn him in. She finds herself unable to do it. She stares at the evidence and hides it. The next moment, she realizes she has already compromised herself, her actions equivalent to treason. Now what can she do? Is there a way out of the inevitable course of things?
A heart-pounding thriller!

5 extremely suspenseful on the edge of your seat stars!
This one was so good, so very, very good!

"I've always wanted to be a spy because it is the ultimate acting exercise. You are never what you seem."

Vivian is a trusted, loyal CIA analyst. She has a harried life with four children, one of who is ill with a heart ailment. She has a loving but also harried husband, Matt. Vivian is looking for a promotion since the money is desperately needed for her family. It seems to be a guarantee for her as she has developed a way in which to find Russian sleeper agents. All looks well until she stumbles upon a secret, one that threatens to uproot her and her family and puts her at odds with the country she has sworn to protect and defend against all enemies both foreign and domestic.

This was a tense novel that keeps the reader totally engaged in the intrigue and cunning that goes on in the spy business. Ms Cleveland keeps the action, suspense, and intrigue going all the way up to the end with lots of twists and turns. This was one of those novels that kept me up to 2am reading just one more chapter to see where Ms Cleveland would take us next. The author also presented us with the ultimate dilemma that perhaps many of those working to ferret out spies go through. The spy system of our country and others is extremely sophisticated and theses agencies know our deepest secrets and use them to their advantage. Who can Vivian trust? Does she have a chance to overcome the constant obstacles put in her path? Can she save herself, her children, her husband? And that ending will blow your mind! I highly recommend this book if you are a lover of spy, suspense, and the biting of nails type reader.

Special thanks to NetGalley and Random House for the opportunity to read this thriller for an unbiased review.

I was hooked from the very beginning; but this book just kept getting better and better!! Vivian is a CIA agent, who has just hacked into the computer of a Russian enemy. On the screen are the pictures of 5 people who are under this Russian; but one of those faces can't be right! Or can it? Is Vivian husband, the wonderful, loving father of their four children, the man she has always thought? Or has he been lying to her since the first day they met?
So begins this wonderful ride!

Wow, I could not turn the pages fast enough. Vivian, a CIA agent, is tasked with the Russian files, and must find a sleeper agent. Little did she know, he was right in her own home. This book runs the gamut of truth and lies, all on the same page. How to extricate herself from a sticky situation was her ultimate goal, as long as her family was taken care of. This book keeps you guessing until the very last page, and then hits you over the head with the REAL truth. I truly hope there is a sequel, as this book begs for one. Just read it already!

I really enjoyed this book from start to finish. I would definitely read another book by this author.

This is a great story that will keep you turning the pages. Once I started reading this conspiracy book about a CIA agent I couldn't put it down.. It takes a good book for me to stay up in one sitting and get through the book which this one did and I had no problem in making excuses to keep reading. I would recommend this to all lovers of thriller and readers who just like a good book.

Need to Know is the debut novel by Karen Cleveland. Need to Know immediately grabs the reader and won't let go. I found myself waking during the night with the plot on my mind each time. Some edge of your seat moments and a lot of "Don't do that!" moments to the heroine. Can't wait for Ms Cleveland's next story....and hoping maybe a sequel. I was given an early copy to review.

Wife is CIA agent working on uncovering Russian sleeper cells and within the first chapter she discovers one is her husband and father of her four children. This goes back and forth from the present to their courtship, different moments in their 10 year marriage and yes - it gets tense. So much so that I confess I skipped ahead just so I wouldn't have to go thru all the stress. BUT even with skipping ahead I found I had to go back and read every single page - this was truly a book you can't put down. Even after all that tension and stress - I honestly wanted more.

This is one of those books that will keep you up all night -- one you will not be able to put down. Need to Know, by Karen Cleveland, is one of the best books I’ve read this year. It definitely deserves a sequel. The character development is excellent, and the story flows quickly and smoothly.

In this compelling tale of geo-political espionage, and Russian spies on American soil, the reader is taken on a roller coaster ride as CIA analyst, Vivian Miller’s emotions run the gamut of betrayal, anger, ice cold fear, distrust, love, hate, and self-doubt. Viv, a brilliant analyst has written an algorithm that allows her to hack into the computer of a known Russian spy handler. Her life changes forever when she opens one of his computer files labeled “Friends”, and finds a photo of her husband, Matt.

Cleveland cleverly wove into the narrative a social commentary on the state of health insurance in the United States:  Viv wanted to stay home with her baby who was born with a congenital heart defect. She had to continue her work in order to keep her medical insurance. Instead, Matt, who could work from home became a stay-at-home dad.

Follow along as Viv, her beloved husband, their children, and even Viv's parents are swept into the drama. Matt has been nothing but a loving, supportive husband, or has he? Will she protect Matt, or will she turn him in?

Need to Know will be published January 23, 2018, and the the film rights have already been sold to Universal Pictures. Charlize Theron will produce the film, and will star as Vivian. This is a book you will definitely want to read. I hope the movie does the book justice.

What Makes This Book Reviewer Grumpy?
The usual things:
Frequently using "bring" and "brought" when the appropriate words are "take" and "took";
Improper placement of the word "only" within sentences -- it changes the true meaning of the entire sentence;
Mistakenly using the word "further" when the intended meaning was "farther". They are not the same;
Frequent split infinitives;
Saying "me and him" instead of "him and me".

Look for me online as The Grumpy Book Reviewer.