What is known?

4 stars

Spies and Other Gods is a bit of a stumper that trips me up in trying to review it. It sits somewhere between 3.5-4 stars. It didn't grip me, as such, but did pepper the story with interesting characters who do quite a lot of talking. Maybe the gently developing story felt dialogue heavy as it's more of a thinking man's spy yarn? I'm not certain but it seemed to take a while before my pulse quickened. Not that that's a bad thing. Sometimes a gradual lead in creates a punchier story. In this instance I felt we were on cruise control for a lengthy period which suddenly woke me up with a burst of speed and tempo. Then I paid close attention.

Characters here range from the conscience of MI5 narrating to heads of the bureau and committee members who oversee activities. Agent handlers and agents to low ranking personnel. Many of which are lightly sketched whilst others take a while to get the full measure of them. It's at the point when characters reveal their backstory that things really take off. 

If I'm honest I am not sure what I felt about the novel. I am still processing it, which doesn't help you much. It's lingering in the back of mind working out the events that unfold, mainly, in the last third. Some parts could be spotted earlier on whilst others stump me. A heady mix of knowns, known unknowns and surprising developments. Doesn't that sound delicious?