Verity Kent #7: The Cold Light of Day by Anna Lee Huber
Verity and Sidney Kent are undercover in Ireland amidst the “troubles,” the civil unrest occurring in the 1920’s. The Kents have traveled to Dublin to search for Verity’s fellow spy and missing agent, Alec Xavier. Their second job is to find out how far Ardmore, the shadowy and treacherous figure of misinformation, will go to influence the Irish people through violence or chemical warfare.
Has Alec been killed, captured or changed sides in the Irish conflict? Will Verity find the elusive Michael Collins and stay out of the unrest?
I found this latest Verity Kent installment harder to stay engaged with as the political events played such a large role in the plot. The characters remain interesting and compelling, though.
If you’re interested in the roots of the Irish “troubles,” this is the book for you!
#netgalley

Former Secret Agent, Verity Kent, and her husband, Sidney, travel to the hotbed of Dublin in search of her former associate Captain Alec Xavier. Alec, who had been sent to Ireland to spy on the Irish Republican Army, seems to have disappeared. Tensions are high in Dublin as the IRA and the British authorities clash in the streets. While covertly trying to discover Alec’s location and where his allegiances lie, Verity gets caught up in investigating the suicide of a young woman who took her own life after a supposed assault by members of the IRA. The Kents find themselves facing off against various former adversaries—including the illusive Lord Ardmore—as they scour Dublin for the truth of the young woman’s assault and Alec’s whereabouts.

THE COLD LIGHT OF DAY is very heavy with historical facts. Huber thoroughly explains the issues in Ireland following the first World War. It was a very tense and treacherous time for people in Ireland, and the Kents are in the thick of it. Their fame offers them some protection, but it also places them under scrutiny. There is an undercurrent of danger throughout the novel. The Lord Ardmore plot takes a backseat in this novel—the Kents are still trying to find him, but the search for him does not dominate like it does in previous novels. I’ll admit I was relieved to get a break from Lord Ardmore. The dueling plotlines of the search for Alec and the investigation into the young woman’s death balanced well and kept the Kents busy. I really enjoyed THE COLD LIGHT OF DAY, and I look forward to Verity’s and Sidney’s next adventure.

Historical Mystery set in 1920 Ireland in which a former English Secret Service agent and her husband go undercover to search for a fellow spy feared to have switched sides.

5/5 stars: This is the seventh entry in Huber's Verity Kent Mysteries series which is a Historical Mystery set in 1920 Ireland featuring a former English Secret Service agent and high-society darling and her war hero husband as they take on a covert mission to search for her fellow spy and friend who's vanished after infiltrating the IRA at its highest levels and feared dead or worse to have switched sides. In addition, the two uncover a conspiracy involving British Intelligence and continue their search for missing biological weapons and evidence to stop the slippery deadly mastermind behind the theft and more. With plenty of twists and turns, Huber has masterfully crafted a mystery that deftly balances the suspects and weaves in plenty of clues and red herrings that will leave you pondering the whodunit until the final reveal. I really appreciate how Huber's plot unfolds and it's clever resolution and the how the over-arching plot continues to progress... I love Huber's Moriarty-esque villain, Ardmore. Additionally, Huber's writing and character work are stellar; the main characters are well-rounded and complex while remaining incredibly likable and the secondary cast members are well crafted and uniquely voiced. It's great to catch back up with Verity and Sidney, their friends, colleagues and their many adventures. Huber's historical research is top notch; I found the look into the IRA and Michael Collins very interesting. Huber touches on some sensitive subjects, so take care and the CWs. While you could read this as a stand-alone, you'll gain so much more by reading the series from the beginning; so be sure to pick up book one, This Side of Murder.

I received this eARC thanks to NetGalley and ARC provided by Kensington Publishing | Kensington in exchange for an honest review. Publishing dates are subject to change.

I thank NetGalley and Kensington Books for an advance reader copy of “The Cold Light of Day.” All opinions and comments are my own.

The issues of the “war” between British and Irish forces occurring in 1919-1921 form the backdrop for how far Verity and Sidney Kent will go to uncover the fate of a missing friend in “The Cold Light of Day,” the latest in the historical mystery series by Anna Lee Huber. Indeed, the book is as much about what was going on at the time -- you can see the research that went into the story on every page -- as it is on what the Kents are engaged in (which becomes all entangled, no great surprise). Be prepared for times and dates, and editorial. For Verity and Sidney are caught up in it as they look for Alex Xavier, keep searching for what Lord Ardmore has done with the poison gas, and find themselves tasked to investigate the suicide of a young English girl in Dublin.

It's all told in no nonsense fashion, filled with vivid word pictures and scenes that mirror the cruelty, despair and terror of the times. Ms. Huber draws her readers in on every page as she describes deceptions and deceits that the Kents fight to unmask. It’s a hard fight, not fully resolved, as these are on-going plot lines. Verity and Sidney will continue to find themselves wondering what old (and new) adversaries have in mind. “The Cold Light of Day” is just another exciting chapter.

Verity Kent and her husband Sidney are headed to Ireland in this seventh book in a series. June 1920 is a very unsettled time in Ireland. Many of the Irish are in revolt and the British government isn't sure how to deal with it but is trying to cover up just how bad things are.

Verity and Sidney have two missions. First, they are searching for Verity former colleague Alec Xavier who has stopped communicating. Second, they are looking for the canister of phosgene which Lord Ardmore has imported into Ireland - somewhere.

Once arrived, they are assigned another mission by the Lord Lieutenant: a young upper-class woman was attacked, had her hair shorn, and committed suicide. The Lord Lieutenant wants the perpetrators whom he believes to be member of the IRA found and punished.

Dodging riots and spies of various types, Verity and Sidney look into all three problems. Along the way, Verity begins to question her government's response to the Ireland problem since it reminds her all to clearly of the German actions in Belgium which she observed firsthand.

While some things are resolved others are left dangling in this episode. We do find out who murdered the young lady and Alec is discovered. But Lord Ardmore's plans and the phosgene are still unresolved issues.

This was a very dense story filled with as much confusion as I'm sure the real situation was. Verity and Sidney don't know who to trust or who is working for which cause or side in this twisty tale.

Yet another thrilling addition to the Verity Kent series. I've waited 2 years for this book and could not wait to get my hands on it. Once I did, I couldn't put it down and finished reading it in less than 48 days.

Verity and Sydney are both in Ireland following up on Alec Xavier's disappearance and the phosgene gas plot with the nefarious Lord Ardmore. Alongside this, Verity is also tasked with investigating what appears to be a suicide (at least on the surface) of a Ms Kavanagh.

The book opened off nicely with just enough intrigue to get me hooked in right away. However, one-third through, the pace slows down quite a bit and I'm wondering how everything ties in together - particularly the investigation into Ms Kavanagh's suicide.

The background of the Irish fight for independence is brought across through a mix of key historical events and the everyday lived-experience of the Irish people. Sometimes these segues were useful in setting the backdrop in an insightful manner. At other times, it's a little too obtrusive for the flow of the story.

Thankfully, two-thirds in, the pace picks up again and we finally see a glimpse of our dear Alec Xavier. By then, we've learnt enough about the nuances of the Irish fight and psyche to lend a sympathetic view of Alec's actions.

I would have loved to see more of Alec, Mick Collins, Lord Ardmore and the intrigues of espionage. Nonetheless, I came away satisfied with the ending and hungry for the next book already!

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6706035388

Here is my review link via Goodreads. I will do a review on my blog but wanted to get this to you now. Thank you so much for letting me read your book early! As soon as my blog review is posted I will link it here. Probably sometime next week :)

This book was gripping and hard to put down. It didn't feel like everything else you see out there, it felt very fresh. I really enjoyed this book!

In Book 7 of Anna Lee Huber’s post WWI era Verity Kent mystery series, we find our intrepid heroine, Verity Kent, very much disillusioned by the British government and intelligence service after the events of the previous book. She and her husband, Sidney, head to Ireland to try and find out what happened to her friend/fellow intelligence officer Alec Xavier, who has disappeared while working undercover among Michael Collins’ Irish revolutionaries. While there, Verity is also asked to look into the brutal attack (and subsequent suicide) of a young Irish woman, ostensibly by IRA forces. Over the course of both investigations, Verity becomes all too familiar with the violent conflict between the Irish seeking independence and those representing the British empire, and sees unsettling parallels to occupied Europe.

This was another stellar installment in one of my absolute favorite historical mystery series! Anna Lee Huber’s attention to detail and clear commitment to research is really second to none in the genre. Her stories do not merely take place in another time period, but really inhabit it to an amazing degree. Going into this one, I did not have much familiarity with the Irish conflict of that period and it was both eye-opening and heart-breaking (made more so as Verity reflects on the parallels to her time in German-occupied Belgium during the war). Alec, who was always something of an enigma in the earlier books of the series, becomes even more so and I am anxious for more of his backstory. While the book did not end on a cliffhanger per se, it definitely left me anxiously awaiting the next installment! The Cold Light of Day comes out September 24th.

Thanks to Netgalley and Kensington Books for the e-ARC; all thoughts and opinions are my own.

Ireland, espionage, 1920s, suspense, historic-buildings, historical-novel, historical-mystery, historical-figures, historical-places-events, historical-research, history-and-culture, agents, double-agent, double-cross, secrets, lies, political-intrigue, political-factions, details, due-diligence, Irish Republican Army, British-intelligence, intense, unpleasant-suspect, unputdownable*****

The publisher's blurb is a good hook, and this series is addictive. Not an unbiased review because I loved this one, too!
The Great War is over but in Ireland there is another kind of war wreaking havoc. Verity and Sidney Kent are a married couple who were separated by their own intelligence for a number of years. Now they are being called upon together to gather intelligence on the current crisis in Ireland.
This book reflects the author's deep dive into Irish history of that era and Britain's disreputable stance and actions as the Irish people fought for their independence. The story is well done and moving.
I requested and received a free temporary EARC from Kensington Publishing via NetGalley. Thank you
#VerityKentBk7

Action-packed on every page, and those pages turn themselves as I could not read this fast enough. But I didn't want it to end. Another excellent book by Anna Lee Huber in her Verity Kent series.

Despite the extensive and careful research Huber no doubt did before writing this, the lengthy passages detailing the Irish political turmoil in 1920 bogged me down. I love history and enjoy learning about pieces of time less familiar to me, but there was considerably more historical background than my attention span could take. The pace did pick up at the end with some twisty bits and it set itself up nicely for the next book, but I’m hoping it has a more robust plot.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review this book.

The seventh entry in the Verity Kent series kicks off with our heroine and her husband in Dublin, 1920, in search of her former partner, Xavier, who has disappeared after being sent to spy on the Irish nationalists. Living in Dublin among the repressed population makes Verity's job much more complicated, on a personal level, than she ever expected, and she and Sidney find themselves torn between their duties and social life among the British upper crust and the realities of what they see on the streets every day. It sets up what is sure to be an explosive (literally) next book in the series.

I love Verity and Sidney. Both are still working their way to absolutely trusting each other and have found themselves in Ireland at the request of the secret service in Britain. I didn't know much about that period of time when the Irish were fighting for home rule, so I was doubly interested. Verity of course finds herself in the mix while searching for friend and agent Alec. While doing espionage work, she also finds herself entangled in the assault of a young woman.

Just an absolute stellar entry into this series. Can't wait to read more on their Irish journey!

I absolutely tore through the Verity Kent mysteries earlier this spring and could not wait to get my hands on the latest book! Not only is it a worthy entry in an addicting series, but Huber has gone above and beyond in researching the atmosphere of a very particular time and place and in showing just how complex and thorny an issue the Troubles in Ireland were. It really felt like the characters were being pushed to examine what they believe and what their consciences were leading them to do, which I think is only possible when we're this far into a series and the characters have already been established so well.

As an Irish American whose relatives left Ireland during the period in which this book is set, I was a little nervous about starting this story. I should have known that Anna Lee Huber‘s meticulous research and attention to detail would result in fair treatment of this period. Despite our heroine and her husband being loyal, British subjects who served their country during WW1, the historical aspects of this story are presented with unflinching clarity (meaning: the British aren't the heroes here).

Verity and Sydney spend a summer in Dublin with a few investigations in mind. First, they want to find Verity’s former colleague, Alec, who has stopped communicating with his government handler. Second, they continue to search for poison gas that their nemesis, Lord Ardmore, stole (they've been chasing the canisters for a few books now). Third, a local government official asks them to look into the assault of another official’s daughter. As usual, the threads of the different cases become entwined at points. By the end of the story, two of the three investigations are concluded.

As usual, there’s an incredible amount of detail conveyed through Verity’s narration. I imagine that someone unfamiliar with the history of Ireland could feel a little overwhelmed by all this information. I appreciated all the detail and learned quite a bit myself!

Verity did a significant portion of the sleuthing alone, but we still got all the sweet scenes of a couple in love along the way.

I adore this series!

4.5

Finishing this book has given me confidence of my convictions that I should very mildly spoil the story by telling you that this book is largely not about Lord Ardmore and the phosgene cylinders. I impart this not to ruin your reading, but to allay the fears for many, like me, and including my own mother, who are getting fed up with that storyline and such an elusive evil man, that we entertain, at least in theory, abandoning our journey with Verity Kent.

Rather, this book was a gripping ride inside the chaos and heartache that was Ireland in 1920 and, especially, a few years prior and past.

I remember, as late as the late 90s, having to be vigilant in watching for potential nail bombs from the IRA. I can’t imagine the layers that occurred during the quest for independence, a time when there should be a reprieve between the gruesome war to end all wars and worldwide pandemic and the eventual financial collapse and rise of institutional fascism (because there’s always fascism in general).

This was a gripping book and even though it felt like I wasn’t moving quickly, I was still gripped and then it was moving too quickly. Even when things turned to the topics less in my sphere of immediate interest, I was pleasantly surprised of things that came after. This is one where, even if you know how things turn out and what horror lies ahead in real life, this story is woven in the unknown tales and people, so you still don’t know how things will end. My only real critique is that my advanced copy at least, it did not have an Author’s Note, which is what I really look forward to when it’s a book that relies on such an amazing piece of history that I know the author would have painstakingly researched (or her team did, according to the acknowledgments) and, therefore the story is likely to be based largely on facts. Some things of course, don’t make sense, but Verity and Sydney are bigger than life and her talent is unmatched for the most part, so maybe it’s all possible in Huber’s world.

Obviously, Verity’s proximity and relationships to real important figures is made up, but, if you’ve been on the ride with them thus far, even if you didn’t know if you could keep going with that whole Ardmore thing, you could see it being the case. Some things are very heartbreaking to find out, but just when you think you’ve been shown the truth and abandoned, you get another chance to make peace. Can I be any more vague than this? Of course I could, but this is long enough.

The fact is, that I was gripped and it’s been a while since I felt that. I can’t even remember what the last couple of Verity Kent books were about, other than some continued villain eluding them at every turn. Not that this is without, but at least the ride is gripping and chock full of mysteries and mayhem. Well done!

Thank you to NetGalley, Kensington Publishing, and Anna Lee Huber for providing me with a free advanced copy of this book in exchange for my unbiased review.

Verity and Sydney follow Alec to Ireland to discover what happened to him after going missing. Ireland is a powder keg with various warring factions sowing chaos on the streets and Verity struggles throughout the book to decide who she thinks should win. She must adopt disguises, deal with untrustworthy servants, design escape routes from her home, mix with both the British aristocracy and Irish workers to gain information to find Alec, and also look into the death of a young woman. Verity is never pleased with the information she discovers which leads her to distrust those she has trusted, doubt the government she has sworn allegiance to, balance her relationship with her husband, and maintain their safety. This book includes a LOT of Ireland’s history with Britain and fighting for its independence. While interesting, I sometimes got lost in the descriptions of events and people named, trying to get back to the plotline. The ending did not leave me feeling relieved in any way, only worried about what will occur to the characters in the next book.

Verity and her husband Sidney have temporarily moved to Ireland to look for her former partner from her spy days. Additionally they are looking for some dangerous weapons which may be in the hands of the rebels. Frustrated by their lack of progress as well as their observations on the British treatment of the Irish, they still continue to stay. A great story filled with history of the Irish uprising. Not to be missed!

As a reader it was hard work to find and follow the narrative. I appreciate the research and the historical background but I still want to enjoy reading a novel. Too much information.