Need To Know is the first book by Karen Cleveland so I wasn't sure what to expect. What I found was a well written suspense/thriller. It is a standalone. There is violence.

The book blurb adequately describes the storyline so I'm not going to repeat all of that info here. The storyline is a different take on sleeper cells and the people investigating them. This was well written for a debut novel and the author impressed me with her ability to create the moral dilemma the main characters faced. The characters are multidimensional and I couldn't help but relate to them. As usual, everything and everyone is not as it seems. This book has plenty of twists, turns, and surprises...right up to the very end. It is rare that a book surprises me all the way up to the last line. She left me wanting to know more.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley and Random House/Ballentine. I chose to write a review for other readers. I look forward to reading more from this author.

This is an interesting novel. I can see where Charlize will make a credible star of the story. Thanks, NetGalley for the ARC.

I received an advance ebook copy from Netgalley.

Other reviewers have provided detailed synopses (as well as a few spoilers) so I won't repeat their efforts here. Suffice it to say that the protagonist, a CIA analyst, is confronted with an impossible dilemma. Does she compromise everything she believes in to save what she loves most, or does she throw away her integrity with no guarantee that by doing so, her troubles will be over?

I do not recommend starting to read this book late at night....

Lee Child was right and thanks to a rainy Sunday afternoon, I read the whole thing in one sitting this afternoon as I kept "needing to know" what was going to happen next.

This is quite a unique spy story in that there is *almost* no blood and guts or violence in the book and all the suspense is in the characters interactions as they struggle with loyalty to family and to country.

The style of writing consists of a lot of short sentences and a lot of descriptive language going into quite a lot of detail about the scenes which was initially distracting as I started the book but I was able to get past this and just settle down into the storyline.

The ending was a little bit of a surprise but I suspected something similar might be the case and so I am looking forward to the next book in the series.

Need to Know is a gripping novel about the dangers of world espionage. It is also about ethics and the consequences of decisions. The main character, Vivian, works for the government hunting terrorist/spy cells. She is married and lives a normal life raising four children. One day she learns of her husband’s ties to a Russian cell and her whole life is threatened. Should she follow government mandates or save her family? The story has may twists and shows how illusive truth can be.
It is a great read and one that had me unable to put it down toward the midpoint of the book. I highly recommend it for its look into the dangers of the world of counter-intelligence.

Finally a book that kept me wanting to know what comes next. The guilty/not guilty, did he/didn't he by the wife. Can she trust him? Of course... or maybe not. Loved it!

Wife: CIA, Husband: is he a Russian spy? What should she do? Turn him in and ruin their family? Break her oath to her country? Most of the book is spent trying to explore the different options and some of the options are of the type that "it seemed like a good idea at the time" but maybe not so later on.

There were a few things that didn't quite meet reality, but the rest was so good that I could overlook the little things. Definitely a great read and I read it long into the night.

Thank you NetGalley for an advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review. I will be looking for more from this author. Well done.

A real page turner, exciting and full of suspense. I like the way the author put me right inside of Vivian's heart and mind as she struggles with her personal choices of career or family, and her grasping at the truth about her marriage. I hope the story doesn't end here, would love to continue on with Vivian, her family and career choices.

I really enjoyed reading Need to Know, by Karen Cleveland. It pulled me in and kept me glued to the pages from the very beginning right to the end. Excellent Russian spy/sleeper/novel with unexpected family twists. Just goes to show that a "sleeper" could be almost anyone you know, and maybe someone you love. Highly recommend!

Generally I read several books a week, but I had been dogging it for awhile. Then I realized why. I was trying to push my way through this book and finding all kinds of excuses not to read it. I realize books have to show character development , often with the main character evolving and displaying growth. In cases such as that, the protagonist has flaws that she eventually overcomes, to the reader's satisfaction. Unfortunately in Need to Know, CIA operative, loving wife and harried mother Vivian Miller is just too annoying to win my vote. The basic plot has a fabulous hook. Vivian has been working for years to uncover Russian sleeper cells in the US. She has made a breakthrough, but her discovery comes at a terrible price. What choices will she make? The tension in this story is palpable, but I like the stress to be plot-driven with strong heroes who I feel confident can handle the decision-making. Vivien, on the other hand, has a history of making wrong decisions and there is a general sense of uneasiness as this story unfolds. The kicker at the end of the story sends us off in another direction and does nothing to create the feeling of completion that i look for in a book of this type. This title might appeal to The Girl on the Train and Gone Girl types, but it was not for me.

Ms. Cleveland has done a pretty admirable job with her debut novel, Need to Know. She has crafted a spellbinding psychological-political espionage plot that gains momentum as the protagonist Vivian Miller gets ever deeper in do-do.
Vivian (Viv) seems to have it all. She has a good husband to her four beautiful kids, the last two twin boys, one of which has cardiac problems. She has a nice house that wasn't cheap and an incredibly sensitive position with the CIA in counterintelligence where she is currently assigned to searching for Russian sleeper cells in the US.
And she is very, very good at what she does. In fact, she created an algorithm that is meant to ferret out the so-called Russian "sleeper cells." As she proceeds to dig around within a secret dossier, however, she stumbles upon pictures of deep-cover agents, one of which is her husband Matt.
Ms. Cleveland describes the couple as they settle into a successful home routine. Matt is also well employed, but with the home mortgage and the unexpected medical bills, the budget is a tight one.
With her discovery in the dossier, she wonders if it was all based on a lie. The tension mounts as she confronts her husband. He doesn't deny his involvement. But does she know him or not? Ms. Cleveland gives us glimpses into Viv's psyche from time to time, as she relives pivotal moments in her life. Of course, her allegiance is to America, but she loves her husband and her family. Unfortunately, Matt's "handler" will not give her a lot of time to consider her options and forces the issue.
I had a little problem with the simplistic first person approach to dialogue and descriptions. "...I look away, out to the street. I hear an engine, a vehicle approaching. I watch the street..." While I normally enjoy first person stories, this was almost cryptic. The plot moves with mind-numbing conundrums. My problem was that it felt obviously intuitive who the hidden mole (antagonist) might be. And really, it may very well be a case of successful analyzation and knowing their target very, very well.
Okay, the ending in one word. Chilling. Flat worth-the-read ending and while I just knew it might be the case, still took my breath away. Whoa! This ebook download was offered by Ballatine Books through NetGalley and I am most grateful for the opportunity to read and review. This novel is recommended to all who enjoy a good mystery, suspense, spy or espionage, political thriller.

This was a well written novel about modern day espionage that could be a true life story of a CIA agent with the tangled story line with the intricacies of marriage, family, life and secrets. It leaves you questioning are people really the people you thought they are and to what lengths will they go to protect what is near and dear to them? The story line was believable and well spun, and the author left me wanting more. The story ends with yet more questions and betrayment and hopefully leads to a followup novel.

An exciting book that pits a loyal CIA agent against what her discoveries force her confront. Vivian is happily married to a great husband, and they have 4 children. But in the course of her work to locate secret Russian spies in the US, up pops a photo of her husband. Did she ever truly know him? Is he truly a spy? What is his story, and how are the two of them going to deal with this huge bombshell. The rest of the book describes the twists and turns in the lives of these two main characters, and their handlers, as Vivian tries to balance her loyalty to her country with her loyalty to, and love for, her family. Painful decisions need to be made by everyone involved. The plot is unfortunately all too believable; I haven't seen any films or TV shows that other reviewers have commented on, so the concept was brand new to me. Very interesting, well written. I hope she continues to write more such books.

Great read. I was glad to be reading something from a new author. Story seemed very realistic. Characters were very well developed. I could not put it down! Now I am looking for more from this author.

Karen Cleveland’s debut book, Need to Know, is a cinematic, heart-pounding, relevant story of betrayal, Russian spies, and incredibly hard choices. Vivian Miller, mother of four, CIA analyst on the Russia bureau, faces several difficult decisions: should she trust her husband, should she break her vows of loyalty to the CIA and United States, and should she trust herself. Throughout the story, the reader is constantly thinking: What would I do to save my children? How could I keep my promises? This page-turner of a book leaves you guessing until the very end. As a potential movie, it can be as powerful as Gone Girl.

I LOVED this book. I am always interested in books about the CIA and such. When I saw that the author was an analyst in the CIA, I knew I would like the book. And boy did I! Once you start reading, you can't quit. I read a lot at lunch and I know my jaw dropped on more than one occasion. The reader can tell that the author knew of what she wrote. I kept changing my mind about the relationship between the husband and wife. It twists and turns til the very last word!!!

The spy genre is new to me, so I had to look up “counterintelligence” and “sleeper cell” definitions before I began. Fascinating. What makes this book so enjoyable is the way that the author is able to engage the reader by making the reader *feel* like they are experiencing the situation rather than reading about it. I was able to strongly identify with Vivian Miller, a married working mother of 4 children. I felt her pressures of being a working mom trying to balance family with the pressures of her job. I felt her surprise, denial, and hurt in discovering her husband's true identity, and the quandary that she found herself in at every turn. I felt the fear, guilt, and maternal instinct that motivated her to protect her family. This is what made this story so different from other books. The story is like a roller coaster ride, constructed with sharp curves and steep inclines and then after the peak, a fast drop with maximum speed until the very end of the book. The ending is AMAZING! I can see why this book has a lot of buzz, and I can’t wait for the movie. I hope that the movie stays close to the book.

I received an ARC of this book in return for a fair and honest review. Thanks, NetGalley!

It is very difficult to write a review of this book with many details - there are numerous twists and turns, and a detailed review would be a spoiler. I don't want to spoil anyone's fun - the unexpected twists are part of the pleasure of reading this book.

What I can say is that I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I thought it was well written and I liked the characters, and was interested in what would happen to them. I had a hard time putting the book down, and it never lost my interest. I will definitely look for further books by Ms. Cleveland.

Cleveland entices readers with her latest thriller, a no-holds barred novel of suspense and espionage. Viv Miller has a busy life as a wife to husband Matt and working mother of four young children. Her busy yet staid existence changes completely when her work as a CIA analyst leads her to find JPEGs of Russian operatives working in sleeper cells in the U.S., and one of those operatives pictured is her husband. But Viv is totally unprepared for her husband’s answer when she asks him how long he has been working for the Russians, and he doesn’t laugh and tell her that there must be some mistake.

Viv, an intelligent woman and loving mother, must walk a fine line when deciding how much she is willing to risk for the safety of her family and marriage to Matt while considering her duty to her job and the U.S. government.

As Viv must decide who she can trust, she discovers a side of herself she never knew-the fierce protective nature she has for her children. And she soon realizes that she is capable of almost anything to keep them from harm.

Page-turning and intense, Cleveland’s latest is a magnetic read that does not disappoint. The lines between good and evil are carefully blurred, and readers will be mesmerized by the engaging plot-line and highly dimensional characters. https://sherimelnick.wordpress.com/

I am so glad that I was given the opportunity to read an advance copy of Need to Know. I blasted through the book in 24 hours; I couldn’t put it down. It was the most compelling book I’ve read recently. What differentiates this spy novel from others is that there were fascinating and scary ethical issues, and it was hard to imagine a good solution for the scenario. I enjoyed the way the story unfolded and all the twists and turns. I look forward to reading future books by Karen Cleveland and highly recommend this one.
(I will post on Librarything, Goodreads, Bookreporter, etc.)

Enjoyed the story, characters, pacing, surprises and decision making insights. Was engaged throughout. For the most part, this was a believable and realistic story. There were however a couple of instances that I considered totally unrealistic and caused me to rate this 4 stars instead of what should have been 5.