Don’t want to give too much away...fast paced thriller. Main characters aren’t what they seem. Loved the different timelines and narrators.

LOVED this book. Different from other mystery and suspense novels I've read. Extremely well written, with an ending that will leave you breathless. Highly recommend. Do NOT miss this one. Utterly fabulous.

An absolutely wonderful, entirely unexpected piece of work.

In a superficial sense, it's entirely unlike anything Berenson has published before, but I think on a more fundamental level you see the same forces at work that have made his other novels such a pleasure to read. My one small quibble is that I thought some of the passages of backstory were more extended than really necessary and slowed the momentum somewhat. I admit I did find myself skimming at times looking for the next thread of the narrative that had grabbed me.

That aside, it was a fine book, and it will be my pleasure to recommend it to my readers when it is published.

Thank you for allowing me to receive an ARC.

[Thank you to @netgalley and @simonandschuster for an advanced reading copy of this February 2021 release]

After managing to keep their marriage afloat for two decades, Rebecca and Brian Unsworth decide to celebrate with a vacation to Paris and Barcelona. Despite splurging for the best accommodations and etc., their teenage daughter manages to get herself kidnapped, throwing a wrench in their blissful plans. Personally, I wouldn’t have taken two teenagers on what was supposed to be a romantic trip so maybe they deserved to have their vacation foiled? ANYWAY. She gets kidnapped and the parents are oh no, is she going to be sold into human trafficking, where did we go wrong, is it because one parent is an FBI agent or because one parent is a Russian spy?? The Russians have foiled us yet again! This book is scheduled for release on February 9th, 2021, so don’t sleep on it, haha get it.

This was a fast-paced book and a fast read! The story keeps you on the edge of your seat and makes it a hard book to put down!

I am new to Alex Berenson’s writing. This thriller was not a straight timeline plot. There’s current time, which seems initially, to be the point, and then there’s the background timelines from two perspectives. That’s all I’ll say without giving anything away. Solid story. Thanks to NetGalley for a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for my honest review.

What a great story and very well written. Plenty of twist and turns keeping you glued to every page. An unexpected ending, but so right. A must read book.

In a time when I am frustrated at the inability to travel, this novel did an excellent job of transporting me all around the globe. Every setting was perfect! I had just recently read The Red Lotus by Chris Bohjalian and got a lot of the same vibes, too.

Domestic thrillers are a particular favorite of mine, and The Power Couple did not disappoint. I flew through this book in just a few days. The espionage aspect and the insights into Brian and Rebecca’s jobs made it all the more interesting.

I thought Alex Berenson did an amazing job at developing these characters, especially the women. Neither let the men in the story make them a victim. Kira was surprisingly cool-headed and clever in her situation (other than the blunder of going off in a foreign country with a stranger), and I enjoyed reading her thought process as she plots her escape. Rebecca took charge of the case of her missing daughter and didn’t let anyone put her in a corner.

Kind of a personal aside, but I love reading books that are set in places that I am familiar with and can picture. I lived in Boston until a year ago and have since moved to Las Vegas–both of these locations are featured in this book.

Overall, I found The Power Couple to be a very enjoyable, fast-paced, and intriguing espionage novel.

Another page turner by Alex Berenson. Fun following this familty through a series of travails.
Hard to put down.

I haven't read a Berenson book in a few years, but when this title popped in my feed, I knew I had to request it. The cover and synopsis were interesting, and I was thrilled to be approved.

On the surface, Brian and Becks have a lovely relationship. Married for twenty years, two beautiful children, and careers they love. A twentieth anniversary trip abroad, however, highlights the cracks in their love, as Kira, their daughter, is abducted one night in Barcelona. Desperate to find her, they must figure out if her kidnapping was a random act or was she targeted for a specific reason. Becks works for the FBI counterintelligence; Brian works for the NSA. Both have secrets. One has the answer.

I loved this book.

After a string of books that covered serious, heavy topics, it was nice to dive into a high-octane thriller with an entertaining, yet high-stakes plot. This gave me definite Mr. and Mrs. Smith meets Taken vibes, and at first, I was a little worried this would fall into a predictable trope. However, where on paper this might sound familiar, the execution proved to be a breath of fresh air. Becks' level-headed and rational approach to the kidnapping was a welcome change in a genre dominated by female characters who worry on the couch while the men go out to Liam Neeson their way to the hero ending. Brian, too, while I didn't like his voice as much as Becks' chapters, I enjoyed his POV and the way Berenson tied their history together. The flashbacks worked well here to highlight their differences and raise the tension of the kidnapping.

The plot is cinematic, and I could see this being a perfect fit as a 24-esque mini-series. It has all the ingredients of a watchable action thriller while tackling some serious issues, including mental health, eating disorders, and gender roles.

Overall, The Power Couple is an engrossing, fast-paced page turner that will leave you guessing until the very last page. Out in February, this is one you'll want to add to your TBRs now.

Thank you to Simon and Schuster for providing an eARC in exchange for honest review consideration.

After reading a few chapters I thought this story was going to be about a back and forth struggle within a marriage. She is the bread winner, he is the stay at home dad; she has to work grueling hours to get ahead in her cut throat FBI job, his career writing code is second best by comparison even though it’s his job that keeps them afloat. The couple is not happy but somehow they raise two wonderful children in spite of all their many ups and downs.  A family “dream trip” to Barcelona is when all the deception and lies start to unravel. My only criticism was with the character of the 19 year old daughter. She was just too levelheaded and in control during her hostage situation, as if her whole life her mother, the FBI agent, had been readying her for this moment. The plot was suspenseful and I wasn’t expecting the espionage aspect.  An exciting chain of events leads up to the big bombshell of an ending.  Definitely a fun read.

I received an ARC of The Power Couple by Alex Berenson in exchange for my review. I read no other reviews before I wrote my review.

I am a fan of Alex Berenson. I have read all of his John Wells novels and I enjoyed them very much. I was really excited to get to read an ARC of his new book. I think The Power Couple is a good book.

The story relates to a couple who work for part of their careers at the FBI and the NSA. Intelligence is part of their professional lives. They are not, however, trained spies or operatives. The tale begins with the couple traveling to Europe with their children to celebrate their twentieth anniversary. Their daughter is around 18 and seems like a pretty good kid. She goes out one night and doesn't come back. Turns out she has been kidnapped. The tale reads in part like a police procedural as people try to determine what happened, why, where the woman is, etc.

The story then pivots to address the wife's life, upbringing and meeting of her husband and career path. Then it swivels back to the present and then to the husband's life and career path. There are several side stories and I won't give you any spoilers. The daughter is ultimately found and the family returns to "normal." The novel is really more focused on the key individuals lives and their relationship and raises questions about how well one knows themselves and their significant other and how one manages to justify decisions which others would find incomprehensible. Those subjects are certainly worthy of exploration, but aren't of primary interest to me.

I have been a fan of Alex Berenson's John Wells series and when I saw that there was a new book available on NetGalley by this author, I immediately out in a request for an ARC. It wasn't until I received my approval that I realized that this book was a stand alone novel, and had nothing to do with the Wells series. Did it bother me? Absolutely not. I couldn't wait to see what Mr. Berenson had in store for his readers.

This book is told in various time frames (we get the past perspective, and then a current point of view - a Then and Now ) and we hear from different POV's. We get to see the history of a married couple from each partner's perspective while at the same time, we hear from their daughter in real time as she experiences the trauma of a drugging and kidnapping from a family vacation in Europe.

Without going into any spoilers, which I have to admit is hard to do and still give my opinion of the book ...... but here it goes. The book starts off by showing us a family of 4 - a Mom and a Dad and their two almost adult children (One is 17 and one is 19...I think) deciding to take the family on a vacation in Europe to celebrate the couples 20th wedding anniversary. Something goes wrong and the daughter - she is the 19 year old - makes a tragic error of judgement and ends up missing. The book then deals with the history of the marriage from each partners POV. A kind of...how did we get to this point? The reader is left to try to figure out if this was a preplanned event, was it random? Was the daughter taken as revenge for one of the parents? There are many questions floating around while at the same time the parents are trying to move mountains to find their daughter. AB does a great job of building the suspense and we (the reader) can feel the tension build up as we get to the climax of the story. For me, it became apparent during one of the POV's that there is more than meets the eye with a certain POV (again, no spoilers - so this is going to be vague).

This story is about a kidnapping, yes. But it is also about the life of a marriage, and how what begins as one type of relationship can change over time. Or maybe, not necessarily change, but maybe magnify the crevices that were always there. There are chilling revelations and honestly, part of me wondered how they got from point A to point B? The story is nicely written and the issues seem to have a basis of realism to not knock the reader out of the story. Since I have been married for almost 29 years myself, some things seemed completely realistic, while others made me thankful for the husband that I have...seriously.

The ending is something that, while shocking, seemed as if it was set in motion and like a car speeding down a mountain without brakes, the end was inevitable. But was it? That answer is going to be different for each reader I think. It definitely caused me to pause and think, but by the time we got there, the story development gave us the playbook.

So, this wasn't a John Wells book, but I did enjoy it. I also ended the book a bit disturbed and had to take some time to just process. But, a writer that can create an emotional response from the reader has done something right, isn't that true?

A solid 5 star read! What a wonderful thriller. A power couple (she at the FBI, he at NSA) take a family vacation/anniversary trip to Europe with their two children. The daughter simply fails to return to the hotel after a night out. The action is fast-paced, and believable, and with the deep dive into the couple's dysfunctional marriage is an added bonus. I loved this book! Full of surprises, twists, and a perfect ending made for a truly great read.


Thank you to Simon and Schuster, and NetGalley for allowing me an ARC of this book.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
All opinions are my own.

4.5 stars
The teenage daughter of an FBI agent is kidnapped while on a family vacation in Barcelona. Sounds simple, right?
Wrong.
This book sucked me in from the first chapter and did not let go. There is so much more going on than a kidnapping. A power struggle between parents (hence the title). International espionage. An unanswered question that is not resolved by the end of the book (set up perfectly for a sequel, which I would devour). Add in multiple POVs and unreliable narrators, and you have sold me. (I love love LOVE an unreliable narrator!)
This has everything I love about a thriller and then some. While it was the first book I have ever read by this author, it will most certainly not be my last.
If I had one criticism, it's that Rebecca's complete lack of common sense throughout the book seemed out of character for a high-level FBI agent. Besides that, it was a little annoying.
I would recommend this book and its author to others.

The book starts out as a fairly typical family vacation in Barcelona with one daughter getting kidnapped. The mother, who is quite successful is in the FBI while the father is a slack off computer/ systems operator for NSA with a low level job who it turns outs is turning over secrets to the Russians in exchange for money. The plot drags quite a bit at times when background stories are used to fill in.

I was unable to put this book down! It was amazing how a 20 year marriage can have so many secrets and how easy it is to have different hidden lives.

According to Tolstoy (and who are we to argue) all happy families are alike and each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way. This is a story of a family that doesn’t fit precisely into either of those categorizations, it’s superficially happy to all appearances, two adults, two kids, financially comfortable, with both parents in high powered jobs, she in counterintelligence offices of the FBI) and he as a coder for NSA. Two decades together and the couple still physically fit and mentally and sexually engaged with each other. All the accoutrements of the happy life. Right?...Wrong.
Because there’s only so much you can know about a person from the appearances. Apparently, even after two decades together these two can still surprise each other. And not in a good way.
I’ve read another reviewer describe this book as Mr. and Mrs. Smith meets Taken. That’s actually pretty good, though it doesn’t quite cover it. Because this is no mere popcorn thriller, this book deliberately goes further and darker, to create multidimensional characters in a profoundly flawed relationship and take it all the way to its logistical finish.
So the plot…Mr. and Mrs. Smith Unsworth are in Europe, with their kids, celebrating their 20th wedding anniversary. Their nineteen year old daughter, usually a fairly responsible child, suddenly forgets mother instilled caution, remembers she is a stupid teen after all and gets herself charmed by some eurotrash and subsequently abducted. And since the local police is jurisdiction tangled and not all that interested in helping, it’s down to the FBI superpowered mother and NSA connected father to save their baby from the evil clutches of the suspicious men. So far pretty Taken, right?
But wait…then the author spins it around and takes you back in time, for both of the parents characters, so that you can discover for yourself how they came to be together and their very singular way of power imbalance. You find a potently driven young woman who wanted it all and on her own time, determined to have both career and a family, though knowing that the former would always overshadow the later. You’ll find an aimless young man with detached, almost sociopathic like emotional constitution, who found someone who interested and excited him and hitched a ride, settling for years into the role of a supporting player.
By the time you’re brought to the present, where they are working together to save their baby girl, who is actively working to save herself all along, they won’t seem like the same couple, not the couple you met initially. It’s one of those things where the more you get to know someone, the less you knew them, but then again that only works for real life, in fiction, it’s a great thing, it creates much more fascinating conflicts and dynamics.
So where do you think two spouses who finally, after all these years together, really got to know each other go after all? Why, to celebrate their 21st wedding anniversary, of course. In a dramatic, inevitable final chapter.
So there you go, that’s the book. I’ve never read the author before, thought of him as someone who does the sort of thriller series I normally stay away from, but this was a standalone and it was very good, an excellent introduction, really. It has all the slick finishes of a bestseller along with all the dark psychological thrilling elements I love in this sort of fiction. Normally, I don’t care for spy stories, but here it worked well, actually. In fact, the book somewhat reminded me of the tv show Americans, which I only have a passing knowledge of, but it seemed similar in some way.
All in all, this was a very fun ride, long, but didn’t read like it and plenty entertaining. Recommended. Thanks Netgalley.

This is a fascinating look at a marriage full of secrets that threatens to tear the couple apart. When Rebecca and Brian take their two kids on vacation to Spain, 19-year-old Kira goes missing after meeting a handsome stranger at a nightclub. Fortunately, Rebecca works for the FBI so she has contacts that can help them. But nothing is as it seems. The chapters alternate between Kira and her abductors and the couple trying to locate her. But there are deceptions buried deep within the fabric of their marriage that make it difficult for them to work together without ruining their relationship. They really are a "power" couple; the question is ultimately who has the most power and how will that impact the marriage? Lots of great twists and surprises!

This book reminded me of Mr and Mrs Smith (but a worse marriage) and the movie Taken. I feel like 400+ pages was a bit excessive for this book and a lot of it rambled on and on about Rebecca and her job. I wasn’t a fan of either of them Brian or Rebecca and can’t imagine having a crappy marriage like them, I didn’t get any sort of thrill and shock about this book. I appreciate NetGalley providing me a copy of this book!