By Margaret S. Hamilton
“Jo used to think that espionage was a glamorous job, all
tuxedoes and martinis and foreign travel, but after spending time with these
people, she now understood what it really entailed: never being entirely
honest, even with those you loved…Being a cop wasn’t easy, but at least she
could be honest with those she cared about, those who mattered in her life.”
(p.85)
The Shadow Friends is the third book in Tess
Gerritsen’s Martini Club senior thriller series. Intrepid retired CIA agent
Maggie Bird ran the investigation in the first two books. In Gerritsen’s third,
Ingrid Slocum, Maggie’s CIA colleague and neighbor in the rural town of Purity,
Maine, takes the lead.
“Shadow friends” are former CIA colleagues. Ingrid notes
similarities between the deaths of a Russian disease expert and conference
hotel waitress and her failed mission thirty years earlier. Ingrid is lured
into investigating present-day events by her former lover, Rodrigo Estrada, who
now runs his own investigative firm. During Ingrid’s investigation in Amsterdam
and later, Madrid, her retired analyst husband, Lloyd, transforms from a
passive observer to her active protector. Maggie Bird serves as Lloyd’s wing
woman and two other members of the Martini Club, Ben Diamond and Declan Rose,
join in. The group may be too old for active field work, but their experience
and loyalty to each other guide the ex-spies in solving the current case.
Jo Thibodeau, the local Purity police chief, represents the
law and reminds the former spies of the legal consequences of their actions.
The “friends,” share their specialized knowledge with Jo as they intrude on Jo’s
investigation.
The members of the Martini Club foil a Russian sleeper
agent and end the agent’s violent rampage. Peace and order are restored to
Purity, Maine, but Jo Thibodeau knows it’s only a temporary fix.
Gerritsen’s characters are vividly drawn, appealing in
their unique ways. Maggie raises chickens on her egg farm, Ingrid is an active
volunteer in the community, and Lloyd is a superb cook. Ben and Declan are
loyal friends, ready to assist as needed. Jo is exasperated by the club
members’ disregard for the law, but they value her input and trust her.
I’m looking forward to the fourth book in the Martini Club
series.
Readers and writers, does a cozy thriller about retired
spies appeal to you?
Margaret S. Hamilton is the author of the Jericho Mysteries
series.
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