Thank you to Pegasus Books and Netgalley for the eARC of this book!
I have long loved political thrillers and historical fiction, and this book has aspects of both, which was a really nice combination.  We follow Lara, a Russian scholar of geopolitics, as she is approached with a cache of recordings that were recently found in London, but which date back to WWII.  She has to unravel the mystery of the recordings, while also trying to figure out who she can trust.  Simultaneously, we see Lara's brother investigating a conspiracy of his own in the Alaskan oil fields.  This book had a great premise, and it was a fun read if you like political intrigue.

The Bookworm by Mitch Silver is a gripping thriller and enjoyable for the most part. There’s so much going on though that it gets a bit overwhelming. Lara, the bookworm, is a Russian history professor who get caught in the middle of a couple of conspiracies.

First, we have the WW 2  hoax that manages to draw Hitler’s attention away from England toward Russia, stalling the invasion long enough that it never happens. Lara is given the Dictaphone cylinders to listen to by someone who is a little suspicious.

Then we have the Alaskan oil field that is merely a prop in a “deal” between the Russian and American presidents, with no actual drilling going on. Lev, Lara’s brother, discovers the charade, takes photos and barely escapes with his life.

Somehow this all ties together in a well-pace novel with chase scenes, chess games, and a couple of dead bodies. The problem for me though is that it could have been fabulous, but it didn’t quite make it. It ended up a little confusing and it was tough to see who was working with/for whom. It is fun, though, and I liked how the author weaved real historical events and people into his narrative.

Another great thriller that takes you back to World War II to discover and international conspiracy.  Could it be true.

I think I was swayed by the title but as I started reading it I realized it was outside of my normal reading parameters - middle school and even YA.

Sometimes I do judge a book by its cover. Or at least, I make the decision to read it based on cover art and back blurb. That’s what happened with The Bookworm, a gorgeous cover and intriguing back blurb lured me into picking it for review. Unfortunately, the book’s interior didn’t quite match the promising exterior.

Vladmir Putin, in his 2006 State of the Nation address called the demographic crisis “the most urgent problem facing Russia”.  In an effort to encourage Russians to have children, incentives and rewards have been given to a lucky few who have a child nine months after Procreation Day. Yes, that’s right: Russians are given a day off to have sex so they can win prizes for having children. I mention this because the present-day part of our story takes place around that date. Entire jokes are based on that fact. Also, that’s the only thing Russian in the story, aside from a few Russian words here and there.

Larissa Klimt is a newly anointed professor at Moscow State University. Her field of expertise is Geopolitical History, the study of how wars and regime changes are affected more by geography than anything else. After the first lecture of the semester, where some puns on being ‘creative’ that week are exchanged, one student is left in her class. He looks like a thug and she is none too excited to be caught alone with him. She is even less excited by what he has to say. He claims to have proof that will show the Geopolitical theory is completely wrong and leaves said proof in a bag on her desk. Late for a dinner appointment, Larissa grabs the bag and heads out.

Turns out the dinner appointment is a job offer. Having lived in America for many years, Larissa is fluent in English and is offered the opportunity to serve as interpreter to the American President. She is immediately concerned she won’t have the right kind of clothes to be seated next to a man who owns beauty pageants. What? Seriously? That’s her concern? Moving on. She is also a bit concerned about her job; she isn’t supposed to do outside work during the semester. The man hiring her assures her there is nothing to worry about, he’ll work it all out and they agree he will be in touch soon regarding a screen test.

In the meantime, Larissa’s brother Len, working in Alaska, discovers something wrong with the crude oil coming into the pipeline he is stationed at. He and the man he is working with test the stuff multiple times, determine to do more research separately and plan to meet to discuss it in the morning. They won’t get the chance – one of them will be dead before then.

Back in Russia, Larissa listens to the contents of the Dictaphone cylinders in her mysterious bag and discovers that – gasp! – an elaborate hoax caused Hitler to invade Russia rather than England, proving that clever people and not geography determine the course of history.  Whatever will she do with this information?

What follows are murder, political plots, cheap oil schemes, famous historical figures, and some ominous warnings. That’s pretty much the plot of this book.

The author has an easy to read writing style that makes turning the pages fairly effortless. For  a mystery, the story is straightforward and requires little emotional or intellectual engagement to follow. That is both an asset, in that it makes this a book easy to pick up and put down, but also a liability: the reader has no reason to pick it up aside from the fact that it’s right there in front of them. This lack of connection with the tale meant I wouldn’t have cared if Larissa died and I wasn’t dying to know what happened next. Throughout my reading time I felt much like I do while perusing an interesting article in a magazine at the doctor’s office, entertained but not invested.

The characters also feel like magazine cutouts. Beautiful people who simply look the way you would imagine a thug, nationalist, or heroine would look. Larissa is gorgeous, interracial, intelligent – but all those words don’t lend her personality. I never understood what motivated her or what motivated anyone in the book. Even when the author has the character explain their rationale it rings false, like a pat answer rather than an actual reason. I’ll add that the author also waters down and creates cardboard caricatures of the real people he includes. The current American president receives a mild makeover, making him nothing like he is in real life but turning him into the one thing he isn’t: boring.

I also had a huge problem with the whole mystery plotline;  I just didn’t buy it. Not. One. Little. Bit. The author fails to take into account how the generals on the ground, especially during the WWII era, would have had enormous sway over where and when attacks took place. While historians debate the minutiae of what occurred regarding the England/Russia invasions, the general reasons are pretty well understood. So the big revelation around which the book revolves really didn’t work for me.

I also struggled with the whole location factor, because Russia and America feel interchangeable. There are no deep cultural differences to make the reader aware of where the action is taking place, just some random Russian words thrown out every once in a while, and talk of Procreation Day.  From cell phones to take out to speed dating to job politics, Larissa has the life of any separated, soon-to-be-divorced, woman here in the States. In trying to give the book universal appeal the author succeeded instead in turning it into a grocery store brand loaf of white bread: edible, mildly nourishing, inoffensive and ultimately forgettable.

Giving The Bookworm a grade was a bit of a conundrum. It’s a pleasant, easy to read mystery story that’s also a tad silly and generic. Generic means C to me and I pushed it to a plus thanks to the research the author clearly did on simulacrums of old books. As to who would enjoy it, I think someone who likes to relax for a few minutes with a book before going to bed might like it. It’s not so engrossing that it will keep you up at night, nor so boring it will set you to snoring right away. Readers who are endlessly looking for a great read will need to look elsewhere, though. This one just doesn’t meet that standard.

The Bookworm was a hard book to rate. It was an ambitious novel mixing real characters with history (both real and imagined) and current events (both real-ish and imagined). Quite a lot happens and I cannot decide if it was successful or not, but, did find it entertaining and full of possibility. 

The scope was extremely broad and whilst unlikely I couldn't put this book down. Lara, and her quest for facts, kept me enthralled. I liked the historical twist and the unexpected reason behind Hitler attacking Russia. I think the onionskin effect as it applied to the conspiracy theories - there were many of them! - seemed far fetched but is probably not as unreasonable as they seemed. So much food for thought! 'Entertaining' is the best label I can apply to this work of fiction, as it certainly is!

This is a great story filled with current politics, history and expertly woven conspiracy theories.  I am the first to admit that I hate politics but I do enjoy history so as one comes with the other, I will deal with politics to learn more about history.  
     At times, I was lost with all the political scheming, but Mr. Silver did a pretty good job of explaining things within the story without inserting school-type lectures into it.  I did find myself skimming a bit just to get to the action though. Without a spoiling anything I will say that the ending was a good wrap up but a few bits were not necessary.  
     Some of the political figures are not-so-vaguely based on real life people and while I get it for the purpose of the story, it was slightly annoying.  I liked the main character of Lara and her brother, Lev.  Both were good people you could root for and who doesn't want The Bookworm to come out on top AND save the world?

There are multiple story lines in this novel but I really was only interested in one - Lara the "bookworm," who does research in a Russian archive and is handed these mysterious recordings discovered near a dead body in London. She is uniquely positioned because she is from Russia but studied overseas, and now teaches English. Her brother is an interesting character with ties to the oil industry in Alaska and Russia, and his life is in danger at some point. But along the way there are a lot of minor characters coming and going in the present-day, and some of them prove to be more important than others. Just a few too many, especially on the Russian side.

Then there are the historical story lines like this very convoluted conspiracy involving Hitler, the Russian front, a young JFK, as told on the recordings by Noel Coward, that are somehow connected to the present day dealings between Russia and the "west." I think it gets confusing, not to mention far-fetched.

I just think, in general, that the author is trying to do too much. There are also a lot of super contemporary references, but the perspective of the main characters should feel Russian and I often had to remind myself that they weren't Americans. Then I'd feel like I was rooting for the wrong people. Not the American president who is lying to the American people about the oil deals with Russia but for the Russian scholar who might uncover a secret that would make the world hate America. But wait, I'm American... it's a strange phenomenon, and I rather enjoyed having my head messed with in that way. It's possibly stranger coming from an American author.

This is a clever action thriller.  It's a good read, although it is flawed by trying to do too much in one book. 
A fake document prepared for the British in September 1940 plays a pivotal role in preventing a modern day diabolical (and fantastic) oil price-fixing scheme from succeeding.  
With support from John F. Kennedy and Winston Churchill,  Noel Coward and Anthony Blunt collaborate on the fake document which is aimed at convincing Hitler to postpone attacking England in favour of attacking Russia.  The document is carefully made to pass scrutiny by the Germans and is left in a Belgian monastery for them to find as they invade the country.  It soon finds its way to Hitler who decided not to invade Britain because of it.
Fast forwarding to present time, Lara Klimt, a young Russian historian stumbles upon the story of the fake document. At the same time her brother working in Alaska comes up against the oil price-fixing plot.  The action takes place mostly in Moscow where the US president is coming for a visit.   The story finally comes to an exciting conclusion in Red Square.
It's all rather busy and over-the-top, but makes for interesting and fun reading. There's cameo appearances by the likes of Gary Kasparov (the chess master) and a Trump-like U.S. President. Reader also learn about such Russian oddities as "Conception Day". 
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a copy to review.

*3.5 stars.

'The Bookworm' is Larissa Mendelova Klimt, a Russian professor of 'geohistory' who has been given that nickname by friends because she likes nothing better than spending hours digging through dusty wartime files in the archives, looking for hidden gems among the captured Nazi documents for the book she is writing.

Lara later learns that a bookworm, Anobium punctatum, is actually a furniture beetle whose ravenous larvae eat their way through the leaves of books (and bindings and even bookshelves) when they emerge from their eggs. 

Lara is given six dusty cylinders of recordings by a mysterious young messenger and finds these recordings, made in 1940, have testimony given by playwright Noel Coward about a hoax he and Anthony Blunt created involving a book, a Bible, that they hoped would be given to Hitler, supposedly carrying an ancient prediction from Nostradamus written on the flyleaf that would cause Hitler to change his plans for attacking Great Britain. The bookworm larvae and other tools of forgery would be a great aid in this hoax. 

But who would benefit from this information coming to light now, some seventy years later? Is Lara being drawn into some Machiavellian political machinations of which she has no clue? 

There are many more threads to this suspenseful thriller than I will mention in this review, including a state visit during the G20 summit from the current US president who seems to be involved in a plot of his own. These threads do come together eventually but seem so confusing as they are unfolding--the murkiness of motives in the political arena. Just try to keep all that straight! Who are the good guys; who are the bad guys; who benefits from the various plots?

The highlight of the book for me are the fascinating recordings supposedly made by Coward in which he drops the names of several well-known people he was involved with at the time, including a young JFK. I have to say that I did not like the ending and would like to kick Lara in the seat of her pants for her choice (or perhaps I should save the kick for the author? Ha!)

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and author for providing me with an arc of this interesting and suspenseful new thriller.

Lara Klimt, a professor of Geopolitics is 'the bookworm.' Educated in the US she is fluent in English as well as Russian. She has spent her summer break in the Russian State Military Archive (the Osobyi Archiv) in Moscow researching recordings and writings from the Fuhrerbunker for her book on the origins of the invasion by Germany during WWII. However, just as she heads back to University to start the teaching year, she receives some recordings from a mysterious source that threatens to blow all she thought she knew about the German invasion in WWII out of the water.

Mitch Silver has woven two grand conspiracy plots into his novel. One from the 1940s involving notable figures such as Churchill, JFK, Noel Coward and Ian Fleming and one in the present day  cooked up by the Soviet and US leaders involving oil fields in Alaska. How all this comes together is complicated and perhaps just a little too contrived. While each conspiracy is an interesting story in its own right, it's a lot to fit into one book and it just all felt a little rushed. Perhaps, also as a result of the book having to pack in so much plot and action, the characters all felt a little underdeveloped. Lara as the main character is the best developed but even then she remains shadowy. Her twin brother Lev, seemed more likeable but didn't feature enough to feel that I got to know him and the other characters were not fleshed out at all. I did enjoy the premise for the book imagining a plot cooked up in the US during WWII to divert Germany towards invading Russia rather than the UK. I also enjoyed the historical background and the use of past and present notable characters and I particularly liked the idea of a book planted in the monastery during WWII to cahnge the course of hstory. I also learnt about the role 'Conception Day' plays in increasing the Russian population, which I hadn't heard of before!

I liked this book! This book definitely made me think about things with history and our current political situation but this was not what I expected. I enjoyed how this story mixes things up and ties WW2 with the current Russia/Trump situation. The main issue I had was that this book was so slowwwww….especially the first half. I mean this novel was unique and I love something out there! This story brings to the table a mix of historical figures like The Kennedys and Nostradamus and throws it in with WW2. If it wasn’t slow, I’m sure I would have loved this book but for now I am settling for an overall, ‘I liked this book but don’t know if I would read it again.’

Filled with political intrigue, "The Bookworm" is a thriller that is relevant today. While the title is misleading, since it has, sadly, nothing to do with books, the overall story does not disappoint.

This book starts strong with a good quote and an interesting scene where a book is placed in a monastery, and we aren't sure why yet.  But then it quickly becomes bogged down with too many characters' points of view.  Sticking with Lev and Lara might have helped the reader get centered more quickly.   This book has great potential, but it took work to get a sense of which plotline was most important.  The ending and reconciliation with Victor was pretty abrupt, but a pleasant surprise.  I expected more of the book to revolve around a book because of the title, but the oil pipeline and the divorce and other stuff took away from that for me.

This book was a multi-pronged story. You have the historical aspect of it and the “truth” of how Hitler chose his targets. How much truth is there to Coward’s testimony? Where’s the bible? Then you have the Russian side of things and the main character, Lara. She’s a history professor and she’s approached by shady looking guys with dictaphone cylinders and a handsome “reward” if she uncovers the whereabouts of the missing Bible. Then she’s given an even more handsome offer by another party. Who’s working for whom? Who are the bad guys here?

*Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher*

It was a real struggle to finish this. The entire first half is slooow. Things do pick up at the 50% mark, however, and from there the plot moves along at a good pace. 

The Bookworm sounded amazing, but it fell apart for me in the execution. The idea of the outcome of WWII having been determined by a forged book was brilliant. The problem was that, barring Lara, the characters had all the depth of a mud puddle. Lev, in particular, was disappointing. It felt like he was dropped into the story just to push the Alaska oil angle. Besides that, with a plot like this, readers need to believe that it could really happen. The forged book angle worked, but all the different bad guys chasing her around? Not believable at all. 

A Russian reviewer noted that not only were most of the foreign phrases used improperly, but that Lara never would have been allowed near the archives because of her heritage.. If true, the access issue could have been resolved with basic research. 

*ARC via netgalley*

Rec'd arc from Netgalley. 

I don't know what I expected from this book, but I found that it was hard to pay attention. The cover is captivating -- lots of action in this, but not something I would recommend. The ending was odd and came way too quickly.

And put the word “book” in a title and again my interest is aroused!  A member of the British intelligence service sneaks into Belgium during the summer of 1940 and hides a book in the monastery at Villers-devant-Orval in anticipation of the Nazis sweeping in and taking anything of value back to Berlin.  Fast forward to the current day when Larissa Mendalova Klimt, a Russian historian and researcher, is finishing her summer work of old researching Nazi records. When an arm bone with a rusty handcuff is discovered in London, it is Klimt, known as Lara the Bookworm, who connects that finding with the research.  As have several others apparently.  Lara is given six Dictaphone cylinders which are recordings by Noel Coward (yes, that Noel Coward who actually worked as a spy in WWII) which relate the story of the Bible that was planted at the monastery.  Lara is approached by at least a couple of people who are interested in the recordings, albeit for different reasons.  A second plot line involves Lara’s brother, Lev, who is working in Alaska in the oil fields.  He sends information to Lara which portends a deal between the newly elected president of the US (clearly President Trump) and the Russian president, Putin.   But the real story is the Bible and how it affected Hitler’s decisions early on in the war.  A fast-paced interesting book with plenty of events to keep you guessing.   Thanks to Pegasus Books and NetGalley for an advanced copy of the book in exchange for my review.

Lara Klimt, known as "The Bookworm" to her friends, must use all of her researching abilities to uncover a secret from World War II and stop an international conspiracy. For the majority of the book, I enjoyed Lara's quest to find the truth behind a WWII mystery involving Noel Coward, JFK and Winston Churchill. Good action, interesting characters throughout the book kept me engaged and entertained but I felt the ending was a bit of a letdown. Without giving any plot points away, the ending left unresolved questions and the actions of some of the characters made no sense at all. Overall it was a good book.