Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience.

Great thriller that kept me engaged from start to finish. Fabulous plot and characters, and author I will definitely read more of!

The sanction by Mark Sennen.
A bullet in the right place can change the world…
Rebecca da Silva, former crack sniper in the British Special Forces stationed in Afghanistan, is languishing in a dead-end job.
Stephen Holm, an intelligence analyst, gambles his position upon the capture of the ruthless Taher, a terrorist so elusive that MI5 are not convinced he exists.
I really enjoyed this book. Great story. Some Good characters. I liked Rebecca. She was my favourite character. 4*.

Who doesn’t like Mark Sennen’s writing?
Well those who haven’t read him I guess.
I have read all his DI Charlotte Savage crime novels and so The Sanction was not such a leap of faith.
Still faithful to the South West with Rebecca on a houseboat in Plymouth this is a grown up and tense modern thriller around spies and dodgy government agencies. It was great making such a military link with this large navel base as the book explores the good and ill done in the name of the Crown and among those at arms.
I also liked the reasoned thinking of the terrorists, depicted as free-thinking people, rather than just a group of uncontrollable extremists. Indeed, sides and motives are blurred in this intelligent, espionage and quiet government but possibly shady arms deals.
The premise is, that a disgraced British spy is forced to go off-radar to hunt down his nemesis, an international terrorist begins an investigation that separately crosses the path of an ex-infantry sniper who is after similar ends but for different reasons. Although they never work together and are oblivious of each other’s motivation. The book alternates between both their journeys to achieve their ends.
The plot crosses Europe; centres on people trafficking and smuggling across the Mediterranean and through the large ports of Rotterdam and Felixstowe. Finally coming to a dramatic conclusion in North Africa.
I was hooked from the start. I loved the characters of Holm’s posse; kind on bungling spies like “Spies like us” Rebecca and her mixed up childhood and horrific time in Afghanistan also is a well drawn character who is manipulated almost as terrorists are controlled and motivated.
The interesting thing is the author exposes this for the readers to note and consider. There is a moment when a cold blooded killing would impact upon our empathy for the character but time and subsequent events seemingly justify the actions.
The Hunter become the hunted and this switches back and forwards at various times as sides and motives are brought into and out of focus. However, the final question this novel raises is what price is a life. Can collateral damage be set aside for the greater good?
So pleased to recommend a book that reads as a great thriller but also has a depth beyond just pulp fiction or a summer read.

A well crafted book with exciting twists and turns, The parallel storyline of Holm and Rebecca da Silva added a different dimension. However, I found it difficult to empathise with the main characters and that is why I have given 4* instead of 5. Despite this I would recommend the book and will certainly look out for other books by Mark .Sennen.
Thank you Mark Sennen, Netgalley and Canelo Action for giving me the opportunity to give my unbiased opinion.

It started out slow for me which I understood since needed character builds and story background. Once the story began for me, I just really could not get into it. I usually like a book like theses but for some reason, this one did not appeal to me. Though I thought I would get more involved because of the two main characters. Maybe it is just me but that is my take.

When I started to read this book, it took me some time to immerse myself in the story, as the beginning was slow-paced and it took a third of the book until some action started. However, as I kept reading, there was just something about the story what made me read until I finished the book in less than 24 hours. I enjoyed the fact it was written from two different perspectives of two different characters, who did not have much in common. They were chasing different people, had different stories, and did not know each other. It kept me wondering how is it all going to come together at the end.
I also enjoyed the plot, or the conspiracy, as it kept me wondering and thinking what is in the background of this all, who is pulling the strings, and when is the next twist coming. Relationships between different characters were interesting too, but Rebecca's romantic relationship did not fell in the place for me.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and author for this ARC.

I firstly thought this book had a quiet, slow start and it took a while to pick up its pace. Having read the author’s DI Charlotte Savage series I was eager to read this book. Once the pace had picked up ..... wow ..... it kept moving and had me on the edge of my seat a few times. I really liked the main characters, their histories and enjoyed reading of the working rapport between Holm and Javed, da Silva and Itchy. The book had two threads, each told individually from Holm and da Silva’s perspective. I wondered how this would come together and the last 30% of the book was a thrilling read where everything started to fall into place. I thought this book was well thought out and well written by the author with a great plot. Lots of twists in it, to add to the suspense and the subject matter is very current. And the epilogue ..... I hope this sets up the introduction of book 2 which I will definitely want to read, and to see how these characters develop. I would recommend this if you like conspiracies, spy thrillers.

Sorry I’m a bit late with this one, I seemed to got the dates mixed up!!! This is a completely different book to Mark’s other books

The story has the two characters running side by side and merging at the end. It is a tense political thriller, quite different to ones I normally read. However, it was enjoyable.

My thanks to Mark, the publishers and netgalley for the ARC.

My thanks to Canelo Action for an invitation to receive an eARC via NetGalley of ‘The Sanction’ by Mark Sennen in exchange for an honest review.

This is to be the first in a series of thrillers featuring Rebecca da Silva and Stephen Holm. It basically serves as an introduction to the two main characters and the forces that drive them.

Rebecca had been a crack sniper in the British Special Forces. Her career came to an abrupt end in Afghanistan and she is now working in a dead-end job. Stephen Holm is an intelligence analyst obsessed with an elusive terrorist, Taher. Yet his bosses at MI5 are not convinced that Taher actually exists.

A deadly terror attack in Tunisia changes everything for both da Silva and Holm. They embark upon interconnected paths, one born of revenge, the other of obsession.

The structure of this novel had the characters involved in their separate storylines and only coming together in the closing pages. This was a bit unusual though both are focused on the same set of international baddies.

‘The Sanction’ proved to be a highly entertaining well plotted political/spy thriller with plenty of action and surprises. I certainly will be interested in reading further works in this series.

3.5 stars rounded up to 4.

An enjoyable mix of spy fiction and thriller, I found it engrossing and entertaining.
The plot is not yet believable but it was well crafted and it kept me hooked, the cast of characters is well thought.
It's the first book I read by this author and won't be the last.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

I looked up women snipers in military and learned the first one entered the military last year, so I was willing to suspend that bit of disbelief for the book.

All together, the book kept my interest, although there are sections that really take a lot of perseverance to get through. I like lots of action, and would have liked more. To be fair, there is quite a bit of well-crafted action. I just need more.

The Sanction is an action thriller from Mark Sennen which has two main characters and two main storyline threads.

One is an ex crack army sniper the other a washed up MI5 operative.

Unfortunately the two storylines whilst good in their own right didn’t quite gel. I would have preferred for more interaction between the two or even two separate books.

Overall the book was a good read and the door is nicely left open for future books in the series

Rebecca is a sniper who made a big mistake, was imprisoned, discharged dishonorably, and now is living a lesser life than she wants. Her mother, a journalist, was killed in an attack on a cafe in Tunis. Stephen is an MI-5 analyst who has also made big mistakes and now finds himself sidelined. He wants Taher though, wants him badly. These two threads come together and if the story feels a tad predictable, read it for the characters. Yes yes yes, Rebecca's story is totally unlikely but go with it. Thanks to Netgalley for the ArC. It's a quick read and a nice debut for a new series.

This is the first book by Mark Sennen that I have read, but his writing is sufficiently interesting to look out for others to add to my reading pile. This is an interesting thriller with a few novel twists and turns; in the first place one of the lead characters is a female sniper - rare enough, you might think. But this female sniper has also been dishonourably discharged from the army following a botched operation in Afghanistan. So far, so unusual, but another unusual feature of this novel is the unravelling of two parallel tales, seemingly unconnected but - as the plot unfolds - their converging tracks gradually become clear as the pace builds towards a denouement that includes plenty of action and the odd unexpected plot device thrown in to add a little spice.

The writing is well-paced and the main characters are developed to a satisfying level of detail. There are, perhaps, a few too many peripheral characters who suffer from a somewhat tired cliche approach to their development, but these don’t detract too much from the enjoyment. It’s a book that doesn’t demand too much from the reader, strains her/his credulity only to an acceptable degree and is likely to keep her/him turning the pages.

Recommended.

What a read - I couldn't put this one down. Interesting story although a few times I thought to myself what if this was a double cross, thats how involved you get. A great story!

An ARC from Net Galley allowed me to review

Crack special forces female sniper. . . .since where, since when, since who?

Pure fantasy

My thanks to NetGalley and publisher Canelo for the ARC.
I rather enjoyed this book. It has a complex plot which cleverly weaves the activities of two sets of people, unwittingly following different paths to the one conclusion.

Stephen Holm, a Senior Intelligence Analyst at MI5, is a few years from retirement. He's "old-school", he likes fieldcraft and investigating and has been left behind in the technological world. Having been deemed to have made a mistake concerning a terrorist attack that took place in Tunis on his "watch", he is moved out of current operations to pursue his own lines of enquiry. Stephen is convinced that a terrorist named Taher is behind Islamic extremist attacks and is equally convinced that the only way Taher stays one step ahead is because there is a leak in the security services. His boss, "Spider" Fiona Huxtable, has banned him from pursuing anything connected with Taher. Stephen is joined in his tiny new office by Farakh Javed, a junior Analyst who is clever with technology and views Stephen as his mentor.

Rebecca Da Silva is a talented sniper; after 8 years in the Army she and her spotter "Itchy" Richard Smith were imprisoned and then discharged following an accidental shooting in Afghanistan. Her mother was a journalist working, so she thought, on writing about the refugee crisis and people trafficking; she was caught-up in the attack on a café in Tunis and killed.
Now working as a postwoman and living on a small yacht in Portsmouth harbour, she's summoned by her estranged father and meets with Matthew Fairchild - a friend of her father, who presents her with evidence of who was responsible for her mother's death. The solution would be to employ Rebecca's sniping skills on a target in Italy.

Farakh receives a coded message on his phone and he and Stephen embark on their own investigation, deliberately obscuring their real intentions of chasing Taher under the guise of discovering a people-trafficking route. From Felixstowe in Suffolk, to Rotterdam, across Europe and into Italy their investigation takes them.

But, who is actually pulling the strings and for what reason? We touch the world of politics, armaments deals, refugee rescue boats and the covert operations of the security services - with several major twists and revelations. All is not what it seems for either Rebecca or Stephen in their separate quests.

An intriguing read. Perhaps there will be more of Silva and "Itchy" in the future?

Complex thriller which took rather a long time to get going. Interesting ,damaged main character and a plot which was resolved in part. More to come.

The action sequences in this book were great and the plot/conspiracy was well done. I liked that the end was approached from multiple perspectives and the two main duos are interesting. I liked the relationship between each duo and, since it seems this may be the beginning of a new series, I look forward to more interaction between the duos. The only thing that didn’t work for me was the “love story” and romantic conflict for Rebecca. It feels like it’s only there to because the author feels he has to have a love story and it’s clunky and doesn’t fit with the rest of the storyline.

I received an advance copy from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.