Robert Dugoni is an expert on telling stories that are exactly what thriller readers are looking for. He is the author of three of my favorite series and multiple stand alones that have their place on my library shelves. The Silent Sisters is a continuance of the Charles Jenkins series that started with The Eighth Sister. Jenkins is a former CIA agent who has made several trips into Russia to rescue sleeper agents who are in danger of discovery. THE SILENT SISTERS find him risking his life again to bring the last of this sleeper cell to safety.

Dugoni displays some serious thriller skills as he takes Jenkins from the safety of his Washington State home to areas of Russia that are looking for him. Jenkins has made two successful trips into Russian territory and the authories are determined he will not succeed this time. He will have to make decisions quickly and employ every skill he knows to stay alive. These books keep you deeply involved in Jenkins' journey. If you have not read the first two, now is the time. A binge weekend is not out of the question.

I love Dugoni's writing but am not a fan of espionage stories. That continually meant I'd picked this one up and then find something else to read instead. I need to remember that even in a genre I'm not a fan of, Dugoni still gives such a solid story and I'll end up enjoying the read. The main character, Jenkins, along with all the various people he interacts with all make for a very human and complex story, add in the politics of both within Russia and between Russia and the US and the plot is multi-layered. As indicated, this is the third in a series, a trilogy. And yes, you must read these in order. They definitely build on each other to create the spy world that Jenkins must survive in order to return to his family. I'm sorry I took so long to read it!

The Silent Sisters continues Dugoni's series of thrillers. This one is as good as any of the others, featuring Charles Jenkins once again heading to Russia to rescue the sisters.

The book weaves seamlessly the characters and the plot to ensure a cohesive read.

As the third in the series, the character of Charles Jenkins is familiar. I would recommend reading the earlier titles first.

In this third book in the spy thriller series featuring Charles Jenkins, Charlie returns to Russia one more time to exfiltrate the last two 'silent sisters,' top-level spies who have been place for years but are now in grave jeopardy. This CIA mission is also particularly dangerous for Charlie because the Russian government has a 'kill order' in place if he is spotted and the likelihood of that is high since he's a 6'5" black man.

Charlie is an interesting character. He is in his 60s and is a family man but has a driving need to still feel useful and complete this mission, even though he knows he could die doing it. He is brave, smart and has a complex moral sense which gets him in a tight spot in this story. The action of this thriller is non-stop with brilliant plotting. Charlie gets some help from 'friends' in unexpected places. It seems no one is utterly good or evil--there's some bit of humanity in all of us.

One quibble: The use of a 'prologue' to the story disappointed me. It depicts a scene three weeks in the future and even gives the exact location where it will take place. I felt that gave too much away, leaving the reader waiting for that 'scene' to happen eventually. These books are exciting enough without the teaser.

I received an arc of this thriller from the author and publisher via NetGalley for which I am grateful. My review is voluntary, though I must apologize for the delay in getting it read and reviewed. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

This is the third book in the Charles Jenkins series by Robert Dugoni (and I’m hoping it is a series and not just a trilogy). The first two books are “The Eighth Sister” and “The Last Agent”. It is not strictly necessary to read the first two books before reading this one, but I recommend doing so.

Charles Jenkins worked for the CIA in the 1970s when he was a young man. Now, in his 60s, he finds himself working as a spy again and back undercover in Russia for this final(?) assignment. (Books 1 and 2 explain how he came to be reactivated and tell of his first two visits to Russia.)

He has a family he cares about and a home that he loves. He barely made it out of Russia alive the first two times. He wouldn’t return for just a financial incentive. But he will go back to do the right thing and to save two people from torture and death.

These three books are all about The Seven Sisters in one way or another. In this series, The Seven Sisters are seven women living in Russia who are spies for the USA. Raised by dissident parents and trained from childhood for their mission, these women, now in their 60s, have achieved positions within the Russian government and its agencies which allow them unprecedented access to state secrets.

Unfortunately, three of The Sisters have been betrayed and then executed by Russia. Realizing that the remaining Sisters are at risk, the US has safely extradited two. That leaves two Sisters still in Russia, and now they have gone silent - refused communication from and meetings with their handlers. They are in extreme danger. Unless they have been turned and are now double agents spying for Russia, that is…

So America turns again to Charles Jenkins, who infiltrates Russia to observe, evaluate and assist the last two women. But, on his very first evening in that country, Jenkins makes a huge misstep, with the result that he finds himself being pursued by the Russian mafiya and the Moscow police as well as the FSB (successor to the KGB).

Who you gonna call? How about an old nemesis, a wily former FSB officer? A couple of Russians named Peanut and Fly? And a fearless and ageless highly-skilled pilot called Hot Rod?

This is a fast paced, compelling story that manages to display moments of humor amidst the near-constant anxiety and tension. It is interesting throughout and plausible, or at least not “beyond the realm of fiction”, as the author has stated. There are violent scenes - some of which are startlingly imaginative. I will never eat sausage again, enough said.

The characters, even some of Jenkins’ adversaries, are likeable. The determined Moscow police detective, Arkhip Mishkin, is a wonderful addition to the cast of characters, and is someone I would enjoy seeing again in future books (as well as Viktor Federov and Rod Studebaker, of course). And The Trans-Siberian Railway is a new venue and a strong character in its own right.

I look forward to reading future books by this author, including those in this series, in his Tracy Crosswhite series, and in his David Sloane series.

Thanks to Robert Dugoni, to Thomas & Mercer, and to NetGalley for providing me a copy of this book in return for an honest review.

#robertdugoni #thesilentsisters #netgalley #thomas&mercer #thesevensisters

Wow this fast paced book just sucks the reader into the story from the get go and then it is off and running flipping pages to just further engross yourself in to the plot. This is the 3rd in the Charles Jenkins series although it can be a stand alone book but warning once you read it the reader will seek out the rest of the series. The silent sisters are Russian women who have dedicated their lives to passing on secrets to the U.S. After two of them have not been heard from for an unrealistic length of time, Charles Jenkins is dispatched to Russia to find out what happened to the women and, if possible, bring them to America in order for them to begin a safe new life. Charles is on a death list in Russia and will be in grave danger while there. And then the action heats up. This is a well-paced cat-and-mouse thriller. What I found especially fascinating are the varied Russian settings. The characters are convincingly well-drawn and the plot moves at a break-neck pace. It keeps the reader on the edge of their seat until the conclusion.

Thank you to the author, Thomas and Mercer, and Netgalley for providing me with a digital ARC.

In the third book of Robert Dugoni's Charles Jenkins series, Russia is on a witch hunt for the remaining "sisters" who were raised from birth to spy on Russia. It's up to Charles Jenkins to make contact and coordinate the extraction of the two remaining sisters. However, there is a kill order for Jenkins in Russia. He has narrowly escaped during his last two trips to Russia. Can he rescue the two women and safely return home himself?

I listened to the first book in the series when it was offered through Amazon Prime Reading. I enjoyed it but didn't love it. It was a so-so book for me and I didn't even notice when book 2 came out in 2020. Book 3 caught my attention before I realized it was part of the series. I'm so glad I picked it up.

My complaint about book 1 was that there wasn't much tension, even in scenes that should have been tension-filled. Perhaps that was just an issue of an author finding the right tone for a new book as The Silent Sisters has plenty of tension. As it is the third book and I wasn't sure if this series was meant to be a trilogy or not, the prologue has you wondering if this is the end for Charles Jenkins. I don't always care for prologues, but this one really set the tone for the whole novel.

This book can be read on its own. It has been a few years since I read book 1 and I remembered very little about it. Pretty much the only thing I did remember was that it was about women spying on Russia - kind of a reverse of the television show The Americans. I totally enjoyed this book and now I want to read book 2 to find out what he was doing in Russian then.

If you love spy novels, then you definitely need to check out this book.

My review will be published at Girl Who Reads on Wednesday - https://www.girl-who-reads.com/2022/09/the-silent-sisters-by-robert-dugoni.html

In this third book in the series, Charles Jenkins returns illegally to Russia to free the final two sisters who are have been deep undercover for decades. While this is a series, the book could be read alone without reading the other two. If you have read the prior ones, it will only make this read more interesting as Dugoni’s characterization of Russia and the characters in the book make you wanting more. The plot is filled with action and espionage and will hook you in so you don’t put the book down until you finish reading it. I highly recommend this book and the author.

I enjoyed this book! I enjoyed reading about the characters and the subject matter. I definitely plan to read more books by this author!

The following review appears in multiple newspapers including The Cullman Times, The News Aegis and The News Courier in Alabama; and the Mountain Times news group centered on Boone, N.C. URL for Cullman attached: https://www.cullmantimes.com/opinion/columns/books-in-review-15-picks-to-pack-your-beach-bag/article_31c49918-092e-11ed-a76b-6b9ca34d423b.html

International Standard Book Numbers, or ISBNs — those ubiquitous barcodes responsible for making books one of the earliest online commodities (and gifting Amazon an auspicious beginning) — are also useful in quantifying how many books a particular country the publishing world releases each year.

Recent statistics indicate that that number was nearly 3.5 million in the United States alone, and about 3.3 million more than its nearest competitor, the United Kingdom, which issued less than 200,000 ISBNs during a comparable time frame.

However you page through that data, that’s a lot of books — and enough that you might have missed some of the best from the past few months.

From Alabamian nonfiction to North Carolinian poetry; from thrillers, sci-fi, fantasy and old-fashioned storytelling, the following is a curated and publication-dated list of 15 books — including a notable work of poetry from the High Country — that might have missed your literary calendar. Now, as we move into high summer, it’s worth noting that any of these would be a welcome addition to your beach bag — ISBN, sand and all, which is timely, since a few have a next installment blooming this season, or as soon as fireplace weather begins to kick in.

‘When Light Waits For Us’ (Main Street Rag Publishing Company) by Hilda Downer, $14, softcover, 69 pages, May 6, 2021

Hilda Downer, a member of the Southern Appalachian Writers Cooperative, completed her master’s work at Appalachian State University in Boone, N.C., and earned a MFA in poetry from Vermont College — all factors she weaves into deeply interior vignettes in “When Light Waits For Us.”

Like the best poetry, those scraps of life speak to each of us as individuals. “I know what it is / about the rain’s hard knuckles on the roof / before leaking down the chalky wall / that chills me more / than the risk of hypothermia: / It is the poverty of childhood,” she writes in “The Scamp.”

Accessible and touching, “When Light Waits For Us” began as a collaborative effort with a photographer — a relationship that fell into free verse. The aftermath, this solitary release, is better for that experience.

‘Miss Molly’s Final Mission,’ by Rick DeStefanis, $23.95, hardcover, 234 pages, Aug. 24, 2021

The subtitle of Rick DeStefanis’ most recent novel might read, “A Vietnam War veteran flies into Central American Revolution and finds love in the jungle” — and that puts it squarely in the writer's wheelhouse.

The author of three series — The Rawlins Trilogy, Southern Fiction Series and The Vietnam War Series — DeStefanis is a gifted storyteller who offers here a standalone military adventure, even as long-time readers will be rewarded with some familiar characters, such as Buddy Rider from the “Valley of the Purple Hearts.”

As always, the story is heavy on adventure and light on romance, as in this book, with echoes of DeStefanis’ “The Birdhouse Man.” As in that novel, Buddy is a lone Vietnam veteran and pilot who is pulled into a mercy mission to help save several Maryknoll Sister missionaries embroiled in revolution-torn El Salvador in the 1980s.

Meticulous research and credibility are hallmarks of "Miss Molly," and the author’s Vietnam series overall. A satisfying novel based on a war that reverberates through America today.

'Gated Prey (Eve Ronin Book 3)' (Thomas & Mercer) by Lee Goldberg, $9.99, paperback, 267 pages, Oct. 26, 2021

Lee Goldberg’s third Eve Ronin book almost didn’t make this list — but only because the fourth installment in the series, “Movie Land,” was recently released. Goldberg is a gifted television writer who knows how to keep the pages turning in his novels, and turn out bestsellers, which he does to myriad acclaims in his Eve Ronin series.

Ronin is a Los Angeles County sheriff’s detective who, in this third edition, is embroiled in high-dollar thefts and murder in gated communities with a $10 million wrongful death lawsuit hanging over her.

True to form, Goldberg neatly ties up multitudinous loose ends before setting up the next in the series. “Gated Prey” works as a series starter, but if you begin here, the recommendation is that you consume one and two before four. Continuity really isn’t the concern — Goldberg is fluent enough to drop enough details to make each a standalone — but series readers are rewarded with subtle Easter eggs as one novel builds into the next. "Movieland (Eve Ronin Book 4)," continues the suspense with a series of sniper attacks in California that echo real-life events from the past.

‘The Dangers of an Ordinary Night,’ (Crooked Lane Books) by Lynne Reeves, $17.49, hardcover, 288 pages, Nov. 9, 2021

Dark secrets propel the mystery of two 17-year-olds kidnapped and left to die. When one of the teens is found, dazed and disoriented, the story moves into a web of truth, half-truths and buried pasts that threaten family members and a detective scouring for clues in an affluent community. Personal redemption by that detective is possible, and needed on personally visceral levels, but only if all is revealed before the denouement.

Cinematic in scope, Reeves notes that “The Dangers of an Ordinary Night” is my love letter to the theater … (with a) setting central to both the way the story is conceived and in the dramatic themes the novel explores.” Those dramatic themes? Mental illness and addiction top the list — two dangers found in an “ordinary night.”

A self-assured novel, Reeves, a veteran school and family counselor, builds relationship upon relationship with a deft touch in constructing characters and story that will linger after the last page.

The author's next novel, “Dark Rivers to Cross” (Crooked Lane), is an origin story involving a mother and her two sheltered sons — and the past family connections she has sought to erase. “Dark Rivers” is scheduled to release Nov. 8, in plenty of time to first safeguard a bit of reading time for “Dangers.”

‘The Dark Hours: (A Renee Ballard and Harry Bosch novel, 4),’ (Little, Brown and Company) by Michael Connelly, $29, hardcover, 400 pages, Nov. 9, 2021

Another in a series on this list with a next installment in the works (“Desert Star,” Nov. 8), Connelly’s Ballard series are books that could be consumed alone, but most savored when read in order for the nuances of character development the author so ably constructs. Unlike his Bosch series, which runs now to more than two dozen books, now is a good time to get on the four-book and counting Ballard-Bosch bandwagon.

In “The Dark Hours,’ Connelly neatly twines a single bullet from a New Year’s Eve shooting-death case of LAPD Detective Ballard’s with an ancient case of Detective Harry Bosch’s. Tying in a pair of serial rapists, the Midnight Men, the story moves quickly toward plot connections only a master such as Connelly could devise. Set in near-real time, the global pandemic has altered the makeup and resources of the department, leaving Ballard and Bosch to recognize that the only way to solve both crimes is by again joining forces.

‘The Becoming: The Dragon Heart Legacy (Book 2)’ (St. Martins Press) by Nora Roberts, $28.99, hardcover, 448 pages, Nov. 23, 2021

After eons, the worlds of man and magic have been split and divided, but some, including Breen Siobhan Kelly, can move between both. Reading the second offering in Nora Roberts’ fantasy series, “The Becoming: The Dragon Heart Legacy,” gives you just enough time to get caught up on the series (“The Choice: The Dragon Heart Legacy,” book three is due Nov. 22), and if you do, you’ll find why November’s cliff-hanger resolution (the publisher isn’t quiet about labeling the series both fantasy and suspense) is so highly anticipated.

Perhaps more known for her romance novels — Roberts has published more than 220 of those — the author’s talents for fantasy are well-recognized and deservedly earned with the Dragon Heart series, a world-building series destined for the big screen.

‘Struggles of the Soul: Where to Now, Lord?’ (Legaia Books) by Hollis Arban, $7.95, paperback, 181 pages, Jan. 11, 2022

This touching, coming-of-age story, ‘Struggles of the Soul,’ by Hollis Arban, formerly of Athens in North Alabama, will appeal to teens — especially as the author adds a note of realism by inserting himself both into the story as the middle-aged Hal, and into the lives of a young family he befriends during a friendly game in the park.

As Hal’s life is revealed through stories, meals and outings, bonds deepen, boys learn to become men and a special young girl learns the value of friendship. Written from personal experiences, this short novel takes us to simpler times when learned life lessons lasted a lifetime.

And also on the subject of those simpler times, look also for Arban’s most recent book, “Short Stories for my Students” ($9.95, paperback, 175 pages, July 15, 2022). Written with middle- and high schoolers in mind, the 10 stories in this volume similarly come from the experience and imagination of earlier times — such as the story told to the author by his father, narrating the tale of a panther roaming the family’s Alabama farm in the early 1900s.

‘The Department of Rare Books and Special Collections’ (Poisoned Pen Press) by Eva Jurczyk, $26.99, hardcover, 336 pages, Jan. 25, 2022

An accomplished debut, “The Department of Rare Books and Special Collections” by Eva Jurczyk takes us with an expert’s pen into the world of rare books in a large university. Part mystery — and, as the title promises, one which centers on an irreplaceable ancient tome — and part relationship storytelling, the tale of a priceless book and the curator who’s told to keep the theft quiet is much more than it appears on the surface.

Look beyond the cover, Jurczyk tells us, and we’ll find the substance of a woman struggling to move past the shadows of the powerful men who loom over her. A heartbreaking twist infiltrates this story in a novel that teaches us about the transformational power of books in our lives.

‘The Silent Sisters’ (Charles Jenkins Book 3)' (Thomas & Mercer) by Robert Dugoni, $24.95, hardcover, 400 pages, Feb. 22, 2022

Those who have read Robert Dugoni’s past books would purchase anything, sight unseen, with the author’s name on it. Were he to publish his grocery list we’d still press “buy” because readers know even that would be laced with suspense and story.

And so we come to the third book in Dugoni’s Charles Jenkins series — a story we desperately need today.

Set in Russia, Jenkins is a master spy who thinks he’s done with his craft until the final two of seven sleeping American assets, women under decades of deep cover and dubbed “the sisters,” drop all communications from their contacts.

By this point in the series (preceded by “The Eighth Sister” and “The Last Agent"), Jenkins is on a Russian kill list, leaving him what he believes no moral option other than infiltrating the country in disguise — made harder since Jenkins is a Black man in a sea of white — to either save the Russian counter spies or determine if they’ve been turned against America as double agents.

Layering Russian organized crime into the story, Dugoni weaves a Russian spy story where, beyond all odds, the underdogs might just have a chance to win. Begin with the first two books in the series to capture shades of story, or dive into No. 3 for a solid summer read.

‘Girl In Ice’ (Gallery/Scout) by Erica Ferencik, $27.99, hardcover, 304 pages, March 1, 2022

A most strange novel, the setting of Erica Ferencik’s “Girl In Ice,” the Arctic Circle, is beautifully drawn and rendered, painting with words what is perhaps the most rural and inhospitable place in the world — making it, of course, the idea setting for a thriller that is at once both physical and psychological.

Linguist Valerie Chesterfield is trained in dead languages, which is fortunate as she travels to a remote science station off the barren coast of Greenland in search for answers to what appeared to be her scientist twin brother’s suicide. At the station, the discovery of a young girl frozen in both ice and time — the reason why the small team there wanted Valerie to join them — is a seemingly medical impossibility: the girl has been unfrozen, thawed out alive and speaks a language no one understands. Strange indeed, but as Valerie gets closer to comprehending the language of the girl, in addition to unraveling the circumstances behind her brother’s death, the ending comes with answers that are just as unexpected.

Ferencik works hard to put a lot of moving pieces together in this novel, but too hard in places. There’s an awful lot going on in terms of text and subtext and those, mixed with the austere climate, at times trip over one another. Still, the author earns high points for crafting a credible world inside an incredible story. You won’t soon read another book such as this.

‘The New Neighbor’ (Poisoned Pen Press) by Carter Wilson, $16.99, paperback, 400 pages, April 12, 2022

Carter Wilson writes tough, muscular novels and his particular brand of psychological thrillers grab you by the throat from page 1. To wit, the opening of his latest, “The New Neighbor”:

“I thought I couldn’t handle another minute in the funeral home, but this church is worse.

“My wife doesn’t belong here.

“Thirty-four years old and and the count stops there. Her biological clock runs backward now, ticking decomposition. ...

“‘Daddy, your tie,’ … Maggie points at my neck, her fierce, blue eyes gift-wrapped with streaks of red. Easy to tell when she’s been crying.”

Tough indeed. And it gets worse, much worse, way before the story even hints at getting better.

On the day of his wife’s funeral, Aidan Marlowe learns he’s holding the winning Powerball numbers — he’s superstitious to a fault and his same weekly numbers are on autoplay — manufacturing phenomenal wealth and unbearable loss at the same time.

But while the loss is inconsolable, the wealth can buy Marlowe and his two children a fresh start, which they do by purchasing a mansion in Bury, N.H. (a crossover town from Wilson’s “The Dead Husband” in this standalone story).

Because he’s won in one of the few states that allows lottery winners to remain anonymous, Marlowe is hoping for a complete, fresh start. And this he has — until mysterious notes appear, letting him know that someone is watching his family, very, very carefully.

Building toward a denouement that is both solid and satisfying, “The New Neighbor” constructs collective consciousness fears made fresh under Wilson’s pen. The author has eight standalone thrillers in his canon to date, with each one a worthy successor.

’Strangers We Know’ (Thomas & Mercer) by Elle Marr, $15.95, paperback, 283 pages, May 1, 2022

Suspense and thrills in one package, Elle Marr’s “Strangers We Know” offers a fresh approach to the “FBI needs my help in tracking down a serial killer” motif.

Ivy Hon was adopted as an infant and so knows little of her family history. When a mysterious illness necessitates a genetic test, the results are unexpected. According the her DNA, she’s related to the Full Moon Killer, a serial murderer who has been stalking the Pacific Northwest for decades.

A fast, engaging read with well-drawn characters and credible story, Marr is showing herself to be a true working author, offering here a strong complement to her previous offerings, “Lies We Bury” (April 2021) and “The Missing Sister” (April 2020).

‘Our Little World’ (Dutton) by Karen Winn, $26, hardcover, 352 pages, May 3, 2022

Karen Winn’s “Our Little World” is poised to be the sleeper hit novel of 2022. To date, the attention it’s earned — despite strong critical reviews — pales with the depth of emotion and gravitas of the story.

Bee Kocsis has come of age. Encapsulating the story that is to unfold, she says as much in the first pages of this masterfully precise debut — a remembrance tale of two sisters growing up in Hammond, N.J., on the cusp of first love, loss and depths of turmoil that belie their young ages.

The remembrance year is 1985 and Bee’s sister, Audrina, is alive. It’s no secret that Audrina is dead when the novel opens — “My sister isn’t the only dead girl I’ve known, and not the first either,” Bee tells us — but it is a poignant set-up for secrets to come and the soul-crushing actions that will define not only the sisters, their friends and their families, but a community.

Bee and Audrina live in the type of upper middle-class block where moms take turns on summer days carpooling and chaperoning the neighborhood children from one activity to another. At Deer Chase Lake on one such outing, Sally, the preschool sister of a young, teen friend, Max, goes missing. Max unfairly takes responsibility after a community search proves futile, and so sets up one of the prominent parallels throughout the novel. Max’s misguided ownership of his sister’s disappearance will echo the responsibility Bee will ultimately feel for Audrina — although the sisters’ narrative is much more complicated.

Winn chronicles well the growing distance between the siblings even as Bee longs for a deeper relationship with the younger, but more socially adept Audrina: “Our fights were Cold War epic. When she hugged me, it was a Supreme Court ruling. We were hot and cold, and both at once. Sin and virtue, virtue and sin. An entire world occurred within our small, confined existence. Sisters were we.”

What comes of this wonderfully drawn period piece is this: the most self-assured kids can be the most self-tortured, teenage angst is not the sole privilege of teens and secrets will eventually out.

“Our Little World” is an encompassing look at small town American, circa mid-1980s, when the world felt different because it was. With a technological revolution still on the horizon — the first commercial mobile phone had launched two years earlier, but the iPhone and social media were a brief generation away — the pure unconnectedness of society parallels the impending unconnectedness of family relationships. Winn captures this beautifully.

‘The Local: A legal thriller’ (Doubleday) by Joey Hartstone, $28, hardcover, 320 pages, June 14, 2022

Joey Hartstone is a gifted screen- and television writer (“LBJ,” “Shock and Awe,” “The Good Fight,” “Your Honor”) and offers in “The Local” a fast-paced, well-executed legal thriller on par with anyone writing such fare today (looking at you, John Grisham).

James Euchre is a patent lawyer living in patent lawyer Mecca, the town of Marshall, Texas, when a beloved mentor and judge is murdered. The person accused of the crime turns out to be the man Euchre is already representing in a patent lawsuit. That the client is wealthy and arrogant adds to building a deep internal conflict over Euchre’s defense of a man who could be the killer of a man he considered a father. Second chances factor deeply into this narrative, but Hartstone tangles those well with grief and addiction before unraveling the final mystery.

‘The Force of Such Beauty’ (Dutton) by Barbara Borland, $27, hardcover, 383 pages, July 19, 2022

Barbara Borland has been more than once in serious contention for major writing awards — an Edgar best novel finalist, a peer contest, among those — and her most recent novel, “The Force of Such Beauty,” is a case in point. Her third novel, a “phantasmagorical fable of love and marriage,” tells the story of Caroline, a princess who longs to break the confines of royal isolation — and attempts to do so, more than once.

Turning upside down the typical girl-prince dichotomy, Caroline is certainly no passive princess in this thriller masquerading none-to-subtly as a deep introspective on our notions of privilege, station, womanhood and marriage. The messages are not lost, but enhanced in this haunting, smart satire.

Tom Mayer can be reached at tmayer@cullmantimes.com.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review "The Silent Sisters", the third book in the "Seven Sisters" trilogy to feature Charles Jenkins, a most unlikely agent for the CIA to send into Russia - being over six feet tall and a Black man! But send him, they do, as it's time to get the final 'Sisters' out after some of the others had been betrayed and executed.
This book takes place not long after the events in "The Last Agent", and Jenkins is sent back to bring out the two remaining "Sisters", but his first night in Moscow finds him in trouble as he is the witness to a Mafyia murder, and inadvertently gives away his identity.
Thus begins the ultimate cat-and-mouse game as Jenkins must a) rescue one of the "Sisters", b) avoid one of the most ruthless men in the ruling party and c) not get himself killed by a vengeful "Catherine The Great", whose son was the man Charlie witnessed the murder of.
This one has all the necessary elements that make up a good spy-versus-spy thriller: the hero who must rescue the damsel in distress; the beautiful woman who has spent decades spying on her government; the ruthless FSB assassin, etc.
This is a fitting end to the trilogy, and highly recommended - after you've read the other two.

The Silent Sisters continues Robert Dugoni's tradition of rock solid thrillers. Charles Jenkins is back, and tasked once again with saving the sisters who have worked so tirelessly to help the United States. He flies to Russia with one goal in mind, and as usual, things don't quite go as planned.

There are many parts to this book, and it moves seamlessly between the different characters and situations, tying them together in a way that makes great sense at the end. Familiar characters return, along with some new faces.

I love Robert Dugoni's novels, and this is one of his best yet. I can't wait to read the next Charles Jenkins installment!

All opinions are my own. Thank you to #NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Great international spy thriller. As usual, Robert Dugoni delivers a face-paced, easy to read adventure.

This book was so good! I want to see more from this author in the future!! I couldn't put this book down. What a page turner!!!

An intriguing, plot driven work. With the background of the characters, the plot does not seem implausible, which is frequently a weakness of many suspense books. Looking forward to more books in this series as well as by this author

Loved this book. Robert Dugoni has become one of my favorite writers. The Silent Sisters is a solid spy novel reminiscent of the Cold War. Charles Jenkins is an engaging protagonist. Love his back story and spy craft. This is particularly relevant in today’s world in which Putin engages in actual and psychological warfare. Now, I must read the first two books of the trilogy.

I have enjoyed this series from the beginning and this third book was as nail-bitingly good as the rest. Being in that age range myself, I liked seeing a sexy, strong, and smart female main character. The good guys won, the bad guys got their just desserts and the author left the ending open for further adventures.

To say that I love this character-centered series by Robert Dugoni would probably be an understatement. I was obsessed with finding out about Charles Jenkins and how he is going to get in and out of Russia not once, but three times! This was a well-thought-out series that paints a story of brave and tenacious women, the strong bond of friendship, and the knight that is Charles Jenkins. My only complaint would have to be the inaccurate translations of some of the Russian phrases written in the book. If Robert ever writes about sneaking in and out of Russia again, I would be happy to help him with translation (I know... I know... Only in my dreams).

I received this book from the publisher through Netgalley for review and all thoughts and opinions are my own.
Absolute rocket ride of a thriller. I had not read the previous two books in the series. I would suggest that the reader do so for background but it didn't detract from the gripping plot development and story telling! This was my first of what I hope to be many from this writer.

Published by Thomas & Mercer on February 22, 2022

The Silent Sisters is the third novel to feature Charles Jenkins, a retired CIA agent who returned to the agency to carry out a mission in Russia. The novels are all premised on a traitor’s betrayal of seven women in Russia who have served as spies for America. The traitor made Russia aware of their existence but not of each woman’s identity. When Russia discovers their identities, the women die. Jenkins has been tasked with rescuing the survivors before Russia can identify them.

As a tall black man, Jenkins is far from inconspicuous when he enters Russia. Since he was exposed as a CIA agent in the first novel, his ability to pull off a rescue in the second novel strained credibility. In The Silent Sisters, the CIA has given Jenkins a disguise kit that lets him pass as a shorter white man, among other costume changes. That all seems a bit Mission: Impossible, but I willingly suspended by disbelief as the story moved forward. The Silent Sisters is easily the best of the three novels.

Jenkins’ mission is to rescue Maria Kulivoka, the last of the Seven Sisters who is still living in Russia. Maria works for a director of the FSB, Dmitry Sokalov, her unwitting source of classified information. Maria does sexual favors for Sokalov to stay in his good graces, including favors that disgust her. The favors combine with alcohol to make Sokalov forget that he’s revealing classified information. Maria is in a dangerous position not only because she is spying for America, but because Sokalov might be tempted to kill her to keep their affair from being known to his powerful father-in-law.

Early in the story, Jenkins goes into a Russian bar for a beer and a meal. He intervenes when a thug beats a prostitute. Events lead to the thug getting shot, although not by Jenkins. The thug turns out to be the son of a crime boss, making Jenkins marked for death by Putin (thanks to his successful missions in earlier novels) and by a criminal organization.

The shooting is investigated by Arkhip Mishkin, an honest and sympathetic character who is approaching retirement. Mishkin doesn’t want to leave a case unsolved before he retires. To that end, he also wants to find Jenkins, if only to ask him for his version of the thug’s killing.

Strong women had played a significant role in this series. Their strength is fueled by their will to survive. Spies who betray their countries risk daily exposure, so it isn’t surprising that Maria is tough. She achieves that toughness by bottling up the rage she feels toward Sokalov and her disgust with herself. As a crime boss who ascended to the throne when her father was murdered, Yekaterina Velikaya must also play a role to survive. Neither woman can allow her true personality to emerge, if one even exists at this point. Maria nevertheless softens a bit during a long train ride toward potential freedom, when she has long platonic chats with a man that show her a side of life she has been missing.

As always, the plot moves quickly and generates reasonable suspense. Jenkins is your basic aging spy who would rather be bonding with his kids than doing his patriotic duty in Russia. Maria and Mishkin and even Yakaterina are more complex characters. They give the story its heart, elevating The Silent Sisters above a standard action novel.

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