A Chosen Path in Self-Published Only Club

Aug 17, 2022 Helen rated it it was amazing

Shelves: soviet-union, espionage, russia, thriller, favourite, suspense, crime

I finished this days ago and as with part-one (The Roads Chosen); and it just that, the first part of this saga. I turned immediately to page-one and re-read part-two. Since, I have made notes with the idea, I should write something profound in my review. This deserves someone more able than me.

Part-one starts at a slow-ebb, the tension and suspense increasing as you go. With this I was caught in a rip-tide from the get-go: gripped by what was happening to the young boy. I then found myself, sti I finished this days ago and as with part-one (The Roads Chosen); and it just that, the first part of this saga. I turned immediately to page-one and re-read part-two. Since, I have made notes with the idea, I should write something profound in my review. This deserves someone more able than me.

Part-one starts at a slow-ebb, the tension and suspense increasing as you go. With this I was caught in a rip-tide from the get-go: gripped by what was happening to the young boy. I then found myself, still gasping for breath, taking stock, while treading water in a rock pool. Whilst there, the cook says:

“Ma'am? We can’t have the radio in the kitchen.”

Rebecca, the once timid, replies: “We can’t have a lot of things, Mary. But we can have a radio in the kitchen.”

I've never before been so captivated by a 'spy-thriller'. This is about people from all walks coming together to work a solution. I've not a foggy of how real-life is in the spy world, but I do want to believe this is how it is.

There is, and it is well overdue, full recognition of the important roles women play in the intelligence world. With it you can forget the cartoon characters: the hot-seductress, flashing her stocking tops and sticking a knife under the chin of her next victim. Try a case-hardened, field operative with her back against the wall and a deadline to meet, juggling countless issues and building a team from a bunch of guys with differing skill-sets. If you do want to witness life-in-the-shadows, whilst in a room full of smoke-and-mirrors, I reckon, this comes pretty close.

The debates (heated at times), the second-guessing, the analysis, happening in London, is constantly referenced against real-life 'spies' (double agents, defectors) and their motivations, their history (real-life history). Which bodes the question, how much research went into this?

I'm determined not to spoil this for others so:

The modern day writer strives to develop a few characters that you might just grow to like and then wring every once of believability from them in the sequels that will, undoubtedly, follow. Part-one of this, what I see as a saga, offers you more than a few rounded, wholesome characters, to love or hate. But unlike other novelists, following that well-worn format, part-two does not ask those in part-one to cook a seven-course gourmet meal for fifty, having never seen a stove in their entire lives. Part-two is as believable as part-one: a raft of characters are brought on stage, again they become rounded and wholesome. But, yes, you guessed it, they are asked to do what they've being doing for years and years. A chance for the reader to learn about many more, not just a few, and love them or hate them.

You may wish to leave your local garage with your recently serviced automobile, thinking the mechanic is such a likeable guy and how nice to would be to see him again; then drive to the ferry-port and find the mechanic has a second-job as a steward on your boat. Life ain't like that. I chose the ferry analogy whilst considering the points I would raise in this review: there's a ferry in part-two.

You can read, elsewhere, true-life accounts of intelligence officers able to think in spirals (think of what might lie in wait around the corner) - I point you to Operation Mincemeat. In part-one I met Harry (I quite liked him). In part-two I got to see his real colours: doing the same-old-same-old. I now like him a whole lot more.

It's difficult to take this any further without hinting at how the plot unfolds: so I won't. In closing, this knocks the socks of any other 'spy-thriller' I've read. ...more

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Mar 15, 2022 Rob rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites, espionage, crime, thriller, history

Mitchell escapes Russia, but during that a tragedy befalls his parents. This plot plays on the emotions of those who believe they are somewhat responsible for those deaths: revenge is just one part of this story.
Here, in the sequel, we find the answer to why Carlyle involves British Intelligence (MI-5 and MI-6) in the 'The Roads Chosen'.
Without the intelligence community having a stake in the death of Mitchell's parents their demise would have been little more than a news item. Canny: Carlyle mu Mitchell escapes Russia, but during that a tragedy befalls his parents. This plot plays on the emotions of those who believe they are somewhat responsible for those deaths: revenge is just one part of this story.
Here, in the sequel, we find the answer to why Carlyle involves British Intelligence (MI-5 and MI-6) in the 'The Roads Chosen'.
Without the intelligence community having a stake in the death of Mitchell's parents their demise would have been little more than a news item. Canny: Carlyle must have laid the plot for this book when developing the plot for 'The Roads Chosen'.
I know a little bit (a tiny bit) about how things work within Britain's intelligence community. Many, many, many years ago, I was a pay-clerk in the British Army and was for a time stationed with Military Intelligence. I was always given the time-of-day, drinks bought for me in the mess, along with casual chatter amongst us all: I signed the travel warrants and the expenses forms without taking too close a look at the details: best to stay friends with the 'man-with-the-pen'. Which leads me to suggest that Carlyle, as with le Carré, has more than an idea of how the game is played. A chap once said, "MI-6 are snooty, they sit behind a desk for most of their time trying to figure things out. MI-5 spend their days following Russian agents around the streets of London. MI-6 call them the 'Home Guard'". Apparently there has always been a little rancour between the two.
As others have said: 'You have to read 'The Roads Chosen'(book 1) before you read this, otherwise you'll be lost as to why the plot unravels as it does. Some might see that as a negative. As with a TV mini-series, if you miss episode one, you'll not get as much enjoyment from episode two.
In book 1, the tension is slowly increased, tightened, the increase speeding up as you go.
Here, book 2, things are ratcheted up by more than a notch or two from the outset. Along with the pace and tension you find with the 'goings-on in the field', there is as much drama and excitement within the copper ziggurat at Vauxhall Bridge: Legoland, Babylon-on-Thames, The MI6 Building, HQ SIS. And, although I cannot remember the names and the details, SIS has a long history of very wealthy benefactors (some actual employees of SIS) who have shelled-out millions of pounds (in today's money) to 'get-things-done!
This is a convincing tale and it would not surprise me if this is very close to the truth of things. ...more

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May 10, 2021 Mary rated it it was amazing

Shelves: suspense, history, spy-thriller, favourite, espionage, thriller, crime

Again, I’m impressed. The story moves forward at a pace. We go from Russia to London to Baku to Russia to London; the stage is set and the players are hand-picked.
I agree with John, you need to read The Roads Chosen before you embark upon this: I think that is fair. This is too much of a story to tell in one book. I’ll not talk about what happens in the first book: I don’t want to give the game away. It keeps you guessing. It stopped me sleeping.
The last we knew Sam was on a flight from Russia v Again, I’m impressed. The story moves forward at a pace. We go from Russia to London to Baku to Russia to London; the stage is set and the players are hand-picked.
I agree with John, you need to read The Roads Chosen before you embark upon this: I think that is fair. This is too much of a story to tell in one book. I’ll not talk about what happens in the first book: I don’t want to give the game away. It keeps you guessing. It stopped me sleeping.
The last we knew Sam was on a flight from Russia via Japan to Thailand; while in London, Rebecca, wearing mountain boots and dressed for the hills, was arguing with her father; she was determined to be off and save her man.
So, when we meet Rebecca in book 2, she’s dressed in her outdoor attire, boots an’ all, and about to depart.
It is so clever: an awful lot has happened; and Rebecca’s father, Edward, who I did not like too much in the first book, is adorable.
Now, “the boys and girls with mud-on-their-boots,” - that is a great saying - it’s in the book - most are in London: arguing, debating, deciding and moving the pieces on the board - it left me breathless.
And, I would marry ALP tomorrow; he among others decide a wrong has been done and he will do what is necessary.
Martha, my hero, sets up camp in Azerbaijan and pulls off a feast of trickery behind the smoke and mirrors.
I’m sad that we see so little of Boris and his family: I took them to my heart. We do, however, meet others, new to the story, who are as easy to warm to.
This is cut from a different cloth: it breaks with what I know of thriller writing. There is not one, do-it-all, shake ‘em, break ‘em, hang ‘em, hero. This is about a group of people, dotted around the world; yes, some happen to be in the right place at the right time, others are moved on the board.
John, in his review, suggests we get a look at what intelligence officers actually get up to.
We also get a glimpse of how the underground network operates and how they go about rescuing abused military conscripts: that which gripped me in the first book. If that which the author lets us see does happen then I’m in awe of these people.
As I said in my review of The Roads Chosen: “If these deserters are dead – where are the bodies? If they are not - where can they be? They’ve not gone home, because according to the Internet that is the first place the authorities go and they go year-in-year-out.”
Many of those that are listed as deserting, did not - they were taken (I am
sure of it). They are mostly illiterate; and they ain’t in an army camp 20 mile down the road from their Mum’s place. They’re penniless. They have no civilian clothes. ‘Dedovshchina in the Post-Soviet Military’, tells all. Yes, many end up in the ghettos, yet thousands don’t.
The author set out, I’m convinced, to bring the abuse of these young soldiers to light. Academic papers are read by the academics. Okay, I read ‘Dedovshchina in the Post-Soviet Military’, but it was this story that prompted that.
This is, as was the first instalment, a complex and captivating plot. It is hung off the dirty dealings of Russia’s organised crime lords; yet, it is so much more. It’s heart-warming to think that there might be people who will do what is needed, when it is needed.
If you read this Mr Carlyle: I am a fan. When do we get the next instalment? ...more

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Mar 13, 2022 Beth rated it it was amazing

Shelves: suspense, favorites, spy-thriller, espionage, thriller

First, I now know why MI-6 and MI-5 are planted into the plot of, The Roads Chosen. He-He-He.
And, this is juicy: I read an article, a few years ago, about a woman recruited from university by the CIA. She is now one of their top analysts: she doesn't venture out into the field with a gun stuck under her armpit or race around trying to catch the baddies: she sits behind a desk and scrutinises stuff: intelligence from sources or agents in the field - documents, videos, reports, assessments. It is First, I now know why MI-6 and MI-5 are planted into the plot of, The Roads Chosen. He-He-He.
And, this is juicy: I read an article, a few years ago, about a woman recruited from university by the CIA. She is now one of their top analysts: she doesn't venture out into the field with a gun stuck under her armpit or race around trying to catch the baddies: she sits behind a desk and scrutinises stuff: intelligence from sources or agents in the field - documents, videos, reports, assessments. It is said, she is a workaholic, sleeps little, lives in CIA HQ, Langley and never leaves: sleeps there, eats there. It is thought (I am told) that the character in the film Zero Dark Thirty is based on this woman and the character in the TV series Homeland is again based on this woman. I've no idea.
In the book Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy there is a woman researcher/analyst: Connie Sachs. In this book there is a woman researcher/analyst - yes we get a bit more of a back story on Vicky Spencer (do not, if you value your life address her as Victoria). Isn't that a little coincidental? Is there, or was there, a woman working as a researcher/analyst for MI-6 with a mind that was able to suck up and store intelligence better than a Dyson?
And, Vicky is not the only woman in this plot that stands out from the crowd: fantastic, and about time. Well done Mr Carlyle. Why is it that for so long women play no real part in these plots or are written in as gun-toting assassins (with a man as their handler). There is a woman written into this by the name of Martha Denton: the CEO (Senior Intelligence Officer) of an operation that needs a shrewd, time served, brain. It is wonderful to read and so well played out. And, this is also juicy: there is, or was, a woman (I am told) who worked as a field officer for MI-6; highly effective, extremely intelligent and very well thought of within the ranks. I've no idea; but, the thought of it is ... FAB.
The plot - it is complex and there is as much tension in the scenes played out in London as the events in the field; by the time the fishing trawler returns to Baku, so many 'Red Herrings' have been laid at your feet, you won't know what is going to happen next.
I did not guess at how this plot would unravel, but once it had, I thought, "Of course, that is exactly how you would play the cards if you had the deck to choose from.
I was torn over what to write: the last thing I want to do is give the game away - it is such a gripping story. ...more

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May 05, 2021 John rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites, espionage, spy-thriller, thriller, suspense, crime

This is an exceptional plot.
The ending of the first book, dictates that another is to follow. What follows ends in much the same way: the third in the series, I’m sure, is on the way.
You’ll not get a handle on the central characters without first reading (The Roads Chosen). This book opens at the same place the ‘The Roads Chosen’ closes; and some may say that is a little unfair. All I can say is this is the most riveting fiction I have ever read. This is easily in the same league as John le Carr This is an exceptional plot.
The ending of the first book, dictates that another is to follow. What follows ends in much the same way: the third in the series, I’m sure, is on the way.
You’ll not get a handle on the central characters without first reading (The Roads Chosen). This book opens at the same place the ‘The Roads Chosen’ closes; and some may say that is a little unfair. All I can say is this is the most riveting fiction I have ever read. This is easily in the same league as John le Carré.
I doubt you’ll guess where the plot is taking you. I couldn’t. And also, I couldn’t put the book down.
I’m an avid reader of ‘intelligence community’ and ‘political intrigue’ stuff; and gave up on most of the fiction surrounding that genre some time back: most of it I see as not how that world works. This is way above that category and smacks of how - in the real world - the pieces can be moved on the board.
How the main protagonist gets hooked into the world of British Intelligence is in the first book and I’ll not spoil that.
This, the sequel, takes you into a world of real intrigue; and as the blurb for the book says, ‘It smacks of procedural authenticity.’
A character in this plot is ‘wealthy’ and owns a large estate in Sussex. British Intelligence has throughout its time attracted those (a small percentage - I will accept) who are ‘of means’.
I’ll point you to Malcolm Edward Durant Cumming, you’ll find reference to him in ‘Spy Catcher’: from a wealthy family and owned a large estate in Sussex.
There is a good-deal of well-researched history in this. I am tempted to suggest, ‘the author has some connection with the workings of the intelligence world’.
You’ll not find a ‘super-hero’ character here. You will find a multitude of characters all playing their part; the chess pieces, moved forward,
backward, to the side: feints, bluffs, snares and deceits. How, I do believe, the real-world of intelligence gathering and clandestine ops works.
You will find an incredibly clever plot and richly drawn boys and girls, with ‘mud-on-their-boots’.
I await the third instalment. ...more

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Feb 29, 2024 David rated it really liked it · review of another edition

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