Timothy Zahn is an excellent builder of worlds and storyteller. This massive story, around 700 pages, kept me reading and engaged.
I loved the world building and the tightly knitted fast paced plot
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Cloaked Deception is an excellent, thrilling book from one of my favourite authors — Timothy Zahn. I've read all of Timothy's Star Wars books, so was very excited to read the Cloaked Deception.

This book was a little longer than what I normally read, coming in at around 700 pages, but I found it thrilling and fast-paced despite the length. All characters were great, and the villains in the story were very well written and genuinely felt like a real threat — always seemingly a step (or 10!) ahead of the protagonist and their allies.

I really hope the characters return in a future book, as I found them all likeable and multifaceted.

Did not finish book. Stopped at 35%.
I received an ARC thanks to NetGalley and Aethon Books. The opinions expressed are my own.

I wanted to like this, but it just didn’t hold my interest. I know all the scattered plot lines and characters were all going to come together eventually, but I wasn’t interested in pushing through until that happened.

I saw Timothy Zahn and clicked on instinct. Imagine my surprise when I realized this is not a science fiction book, but a political thriller! I don't often read in that genre, but I wanted to see what Zahn would do with it. Overall, it was a solid thriller with some fun cat-and-mouse sequences and a few secret identities thrown in for good measure. The characters, normally Zahn's strong point, weren't as developed as I would have liked. I kept getting Delgado and Talbot mixed up, but I appreciated that the relationship between Talbot and Swensen the analyst wasn't romantic. They are two people who work really, really well together. Because not everything has to be a romance.
I'll recommend this to patrons who like political thrillers, but fans of Zahn's sci fi should probably wait for his next book.

I've liked everything I've read by Timothy Zahn. This is the first time I've not finished one of his books. There wasn't really anything wrong with this one, it just wasn't what I was expecting. For some reason I thought this was going to be another sci-fi, but it ended up being a political thriller and I just couldn't get into the right mood for it. I should have read the description. DNF for now but I may end up trying it again later when I'm in the right mood for it.

Thanks to NetGalley and Aethon Books for providing me with an ARC of this book.

Timothy Zahn is the author of more than 60 novels. Cloaked Deception was published in May of this year. It is the 45th book I completed reading in 2024.

Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own! Due to scenes of violence, I categorize this novel as R.

This is a novel with a lot of characters. The Indian government has lost one of its tactical nuclear weapons. It is small, but with a 0.2 kiloton yield, it will devastate a small area. Once news of the theft reaches the US intelligence and defense agencies, the country quietly goes on high alert.

A seemingly unrelated event occurs at Sand/Star Technologies in San Jose, California. The research lab is quietly breached, and three scientists are murdered. Once discovered and the police are called in, the product of their research efforts is missing. The theft is significant as the research team had been working on an invisibility cloak. They were on the verge of demonstrating to the US military when it was stolen.

Angie Chandler was the wife of the lead scientist. She was the last person known to have visited the facility before the murders. Adam Ross had a Private Investigator office in the same building as the bank where Angie worked. They had struck up a casual friendship. He is enjoying his morning coffee the morning after the killings. He sees Angie approaching but also notices men who appear to be preparing to attack her.

Bullets fly in the mall, but Adam manages to get Angie away from her would-be killers. Neither knows why she has been targeted. Adam and Angie must keep on the run. Those after her are unwilling to stop. At the same time, Angie has become the prime suspect in the killings at the lab. Law enforcement is now after her as well. While Adam appears to have saved her life, she barely knows him and soon comes to fear him. She finds a way to ditch him and slips away on her own.

These two events converge as US officials realize that the invisibility cloak will give those with the bomb a means of placing it anywhere. They have so many questions. Who is this Good Samaritan Adam Ross who has spirited away Angie Chandler? Who is trying to kill her? Why do they want her dead? Where is Angie? Can they put her into protective custody before it is too late? What is the target for the tactical nuke?

I enjoyed the 12+ hours I spent reading this 683-page thriller. This was an excellent action-packed thriller. The plot is full of intrigue and suspense, with unexpected twists. I have had the opportunity to read two of Zahn’s other novels, Knight and Queen. They were both good. I have also read the excellent A Call to Duty co-authored with David Weber. I like the chosen cover art. I give this novel a rating of 4.6 (rounded to 5) out of 5.

You can access more of my book reviews on my Blog ( https://johnpurvis.wordpress.com/blog/).

My book reviews are also published on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/31181778-john-purvis).

Well written, just very much not for me on any axis. I love how Timothy Zahn writes characters, I just usually end up bouncing off the genres he chooses to do it in.

I absolutely loved this novel. Zahn is perfectly capable of capturing my attention and holding it until the last word of the last page, letting me experience a continuous whirlwind of emotions. The novel is characterized by fascinating characters - some more successful because they are more easily identifiable by personality or actions - and sci-fi elements that captivate. The entire plot turns out to be a tangled web of elements that easily fall into the thriller category and help to increase the tension and suspense of the entire story.
Without a doubt, Zahn has once again proven to be a great author and knows how to cater to the tastes of his readers.

There are times when you just want to switch off and enjoy a good book. During these times, it's sometimes good to have the characters in the book more stressed than you are, just so you can say "at least it's not that bad!" If this is your thing, Cloaked Deception may be the book for you. In short, a nuclear weapon has been stolen at some point and nobody knows where it is. All branches of the American Security Services are about to have A Very Bad Day! This is a very good book. It is a masterful thriller, with some crazy twists and turns that will keep you hooked to the pages until the very end. It is full of suspense and at times, you can feel the desperation roll off the pages. It very much works in the genre of blood-pumping, thrill-seeking techno thrillers.

However, except for one piece of technology, I would not call this sci-fi in any shape or form, as it was tagged on NetGalley. The cloaks could be futuristic, although the technology does exist in some form today, albeit not as well as the ones in the book. If you were going to be generous, it would be very near future sci-fi (like "next year" near future) but I would still view that as being very generous. This didn't spoil my enjoyment of the book, once I had realised what I was reading, but it was not what I expected due to that sci-fi tag. It is misleading and could lead to some unfavourable reviews. I haven't taken it into consideration, as I did really enjoy the book, but I think that it should be noted. This is not Science Fiction, more action thriller with some future tech aspects.

Now that is out of the way, back to the actual book. As I said, this is an excellent thriller and the plot is complex but relatable. There is enough foreshadowing to make the reveal not a complete surprise but it is light enough to keep you guessing all the way through. Although the politics are very familiar, this is a fictional earth with fictional threats and persons of interest. I really enjoyed all the twists and how all the threads eventually came together. The characters are a complex cast, with some being more likeable than others. This is not a character driven book (that crazy plot is the star of this show) and it does show, as some of the characters are a bit one dimensional. However, there were enough signs of life to keep me interested, even if it was the desire to punch one of the FBI agents in the face (too smug!). The prose was exactly what it needed to be. Not too sparse or dry but not too flowery either. It was right on the button for a thriller and helped stop the plot from spilling over into unmanageable territories.

In short, this was an excellent, exciting romp of a thriller. The use of the cloak technology was intriguing and the plot was complex but fascinating. The characters are fine but this is not a character driven book and would not suit someone for who strong character portrayals is a must. Dizzying at time, this is a fast-paced thriller with some high quality action pieces. Just what you need when you want to switch off.

I thought this was going to be science fiction but while there is some high tech stuff [(invisibility cloaks ) )], it’s really a political thriller (not usually my sort of book). Initially there’s two seemingly unconnected thefts, in India a nuclear bomb goes missing and in the USA 3 scientists are murdered and the tech they were working is stolen. There are plenty of red herrings both for the reader and the CIA/FBI teams working on the cases. I found it an enjoyable read, although too long and a bit repetitive, particularly all the long winded conversations. (I guess it was to give the characters some personality but it didn’t really work.) It was good to read something that didn’t make the bad guys the usual whatever the latest propaganda mainstream news is on about and that’s why I kept reading, it was actually interesting to find out what was going on.

I distinctly remember getting a book voucher in my early teens and heading over to the bookshop, as a massive Star Wars fan I ended up picking Timothy Zahn’s ‘Hier to the Empire’ and thoroughly loving it.

It was a pivotal moment in my reading journey and opened up a huge range of books to me.

Imagine the excitement then when I was approved for an ARC of Zahn’s new book.

Now all authors have the freedom to write in whatever genre they wish. However Zahn’s name, combined with the edgy cover art, and the Sci-Fi/Fantasy description gives you certain expectations.

None of these things however gave a true representation of what I was about to read.

Initially, whilst it was nothing like I was expecting the book did grab my interest. However that slowly ebbed away the longer the story went on, and it turned into a fairly dull action/thriller with a peppering of politics.

The characters were flat and two dimensional, the story was predictable and full of cliches. You could almost smell the sweat stained shirts accompanied by loose tie, undone top button and sleeves rolled up.

I felt so privileged to be accepted for this ARC but it was such a disappointing read.

Cloaked Deception by Timothy Zahn is a highly recommended political techno-thriller that reads like an action movie. From the opening we know some group is planning a focused nuclear strike to eliminate one man in ten days. Then we learn that a tactical nuclear weapon has been stolen from an Indian research facility. This starts the countdown to the event that we know is coming but don't know who or where.

There are the two main storylines that are followed in the novel as the clock counts down the days until the planned major event will take place. Two secret agents, using the code names Ten and Eleven, are on a Pakistani container ship in the South China Sea secretly transporting the nuclear weapon. At the same time three scientists are killed and their invention, a cloaking device that can make things/people invisible, has been stolen. FBI special agent Madison Talbot and San Jose detective Natal Delgado begin investigating who took the cloaking technology. Then Angie Chandler, the wife of one of the dead scientists, has a hit squad shooting at her and she escapes with the help of private investigator Adam Ross.

Cloaked Deception is a well-written, detailed thriller that presents itself like an action movie. Honestly, it should be made into a movie. Zahn has all the details for characters, setting, and atmosphere right there, in the plot, along with plenty of new discoveries and twists. There are a whole lot of characters in this novel (but they could be pared down a bit for the movie). The cat and mouse aspect of the people moving the bomb into place versus the investigation into the deaths and stolen cloaking device create an increasing amount of tension as the days pass by and the countdown moves closer to the expected major event. Thanks to Aethon Books for providing me with an advance reader's copy via NetGalley. My review is voluntary and expresses my honest opinion.

The review will be published on Barnes & Noble and Amazon.

Timothy Zahn is one of my favorite Star Wars authors, so I was excited to get my hands on this book.

It is a good techno-espionage thriller. I enjoyed it but there were so many characters! So it takes a bit to figure out all the many players. Once I did though I really enjoyed the story. The story was well thought out and like all other Zahn works, well written.

You get to follow along with both the good guys and bad guys of the story. This adds to the suspense of the story. There are a few “convenient” moments that pulled me out of the story, but on the whole I enjoyed the read.

This was a new genre for me but I did enjoy the book overall. Lots of action with a good pace, interesting technology, and a story that worked well.

"From Timothy Zahn, Hugo Award winner and # New York Times bestselling author of Star Wars: Heir to the Empire, comes this pulse-pounding political thriller.

A tactical nuclear weapon is stolen from an Indian research facility, setting off a chain of events that spans the globe.

Those behind the heist plan to use it to take out thousands of innocent people-all to assure death of a single man who they believe is too dangerous to be left alive.

What are the lives of thousands compared to the safety of the world?

At the same time, scientists have invented the world's first cloaking device, able to render its user almost completely invisible. It's the epitome of hidden-in-plain-sight-a game changer for any military. At least until three of the lead scientists are murdered and their work is stolen the night before their first demonstration.

Authorities have no idea the two crimes are connected.

There are ten days before the bomb is set to go off.

Can they unravel the trail of red herrings in time?

The clock is ticking..."

FYI this is a reprint of Cloak. But admit it, you actually don't care. You want the pretty new copy.

I am a fan of Clive Cussler's books, and this thriller reminded me a lot of Cussler's style of story. Right away we get some sort of cutting edge technology, probably not technically sci-fi, since we probably have a research lab somewhere working on something similar even if the real science is a bit different. We also get an odd murder, and a mysterious, possibly dangerous hero. The damsel in distress is also nicely complicated, perhaps in need of a hero, but not totally helpless. There were not as many female characters in this book as in a good Cussler novel, which made this book read like something out of the 80s or 90s, but it was a fun story, and an enjoyable read. I think though that if this is part of a series, I'll probably lose interest if there are not more central female characters in future books.

Cloaked Deception is the new techno thriller from Timothy Zahn, well known author of some of the most influential stories in the Star Wars expanded universe.
This new book from the acclaimed author is a new standalone novel not set in a galaxy far far away and much closer to home. It’s even on this planet.
The story is a military/espionage thriller which involves the theft of a nuclear by a shadowy organisation and are using it to threaten the stability of the government of their country. At the same time three scientists are murdered in Silicon Valley and their piece of tech, a material that can render anything that is hidden by it invisible. A relative cloaking device.
Seemingly unrelated, it becomes apparent that the two things are linked, and the agents assigned to the case must work against time to stop the threat.
This is the second book that I have read from Aethon Books recently and is quite interesting in that they are producing books from well known authors that are outside their usual sphere. However, I must say that Cloaked Deception did not work for me.
Unfortunately, I was not taken in by the high stakes adventure/espionage thriller and instead found it quite ponderous with a high stakes level of exposition in it.
Whilst there is a twist in the sting of the tale (which I must admit that I did not see coming), the journey to the end of the book left me somewhat wanting and when I actually got to said twist, I found that my attention had waned somewhat.
Filled with the regular tropes associated with books like this, I did not feel that there was any subversion or doing anything new with the tropes and instead of hooking me into the story, I found that they just gave me constant eye rolls.
One of the major things that I felt that hampered the plot was that everyone in the soooo competent in their field and yet they were constantly and infuriatingly stupid in determining what was going to happen next. I mean, come on Mr Zahn, stop making your characters dumb in order to prove that the villains are one step ahead.
I have got to say that I really was not on board with this book and found the characters and the plot inherently not relatable and unfortunately couldn’t wait until the end.

Cloaked Deception is fine. A Sci-Fi action thriller that didn't captivate me at all. The characters felt bland, yet the action was good.

I Love Timothy Zahn SciFi so am very grateful to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC as he tries a more political/thriller/scifi story.
The story itself worked well. I loved the idea of the cloaking technology.
It was a bit long but kept the tension up and has a satisfying climax and resolution The characterization could be improved though as most characters were interchangeable. Hopefully Mr Zahn will improve on that in future thrillers he writes..
All in all, though, worth your time f you like a good techno thriller.

Cloaked Deception is a sci-fi political thriller. A group of scientists have invented an invisibility cloak, and it seems there are people ready to wreak havoc to get their hands on it. But who would want it, and why?

The book follows detectives, agents and politicians as they slowly unravel the mystery.

I did enjoy the book, but it could definitely have been shorter. I was interested in the story but at times it felt like it was too slow. There were also quite a few characters, multiple POVs and a couple characters with different aliases so there were quite a few times I was a little. I would have appreciated a little glossary or “character map” to refresh my memory.


Thank you to the author and Aethon Books for this ARC!