Review by Booklist Review
*Starred Review* When a son replies to his mother with the exclamation, Fuck me,' she is faced with several interpretations, none of them pleasant. That sentence may strike one as shocking, obscene, or witty (or possibly all three), but in the context of Butler's third Christopher (Kit) Marlowe Cobb novel, it suggests all that and quite a bit more. Cobb, once a journalist moonlighting as a spy, is now a full-time spy working undercover as a journalist. It's 1915, and as Woodrow Wilson dithers over U.S. involvement in WWI, Cobb is assigned to track the doings of a British citizen of German heritage, Albert Stockman, also a spy, but for the kaiser. Cobb utters the obscene exclamation above when he learns that he will be joined on his mission by another spy, a woman whose task is to get close to Stockman, to seduce him if necessary, in an effort to learn more about the secret weapon the Germans are devising. That woman, Isabel Cobb, is Kit's mother. Adding one more level of sexual confusion and mother-son ambiguity, Isabel, a celebrated actress, is in rehearsal for her gender-bending starring role in Hamlet, a production that will be opening in Berlin. As he has in the first two volumes in this series, Butler combines fascinating historical detail about the pre-WWI period with genuine suspense and a tongue-in-cheek wit that gives the whole a uniquely tart flavor. The multilayered, adversarial relationship between Kit and Isabel grows more fascinating with each installment and will leave readers eager to learn more.--Ott, Bill Copyright 2014 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by School Library Journal Review
In Butler's third novel featuring reporter-turned-American intelligence agent Kit Cobb (after The Star of Istanbul), it is 1915, and Cobb is in London getting his latest assignment. He and another agent are to infiltrate the circle of an English lord whose loyalties may be in doubt. Cobb's task becomes much more complex when he discovers the agent he is working with is none other than his mother, the renowned stage actress Isabel Cobb. Fortunately or not for Kit, the nobleman is infatuated with Isabel. The action moves from a London experiencing its first zeppelin raids to an isolated castle on the coast of Kent before heading behind enemy lines to imperial Germany itself, where Isabel is to perform on a Berlin stage. As in his earlier Cobb thriller, Butler mixes a steady current of action with period detail and just enough of the broader sweep of history to provide context for the reader. Verdict This will appeal to fans of the series and historical thrillers in general. With 2014 being the centennial of the start of World War I, its setting might attract even more readers looking for a fast-paced and well-written story.-Dan Forrest, Western Kentucky Univ. Libs., Bowling Green (c) Copyright 2014. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
