Fatal Ally

Wow! This was good. A beautifully written, plotted and conceives spy thriller by an experienced writer still at the top of his game.

The characters were credible and well drawn and the book drew me in from the first chapter.

This was pacy and exciting stuff and sizzling with action and political intrigue and shenanigans.

I will certainly be seeking out his back catalogue as this was one of the best spy thrillers of the year.

Fatal Ally is a gritty, unsettling novel about the misuse of power, personal needs and grudges, played out in the arena of international politics. The key players are the UK, US and Russian intelligence agencies and the chessboard is war torn Syria. Hubris and vengeance is high on the agenda and lives are lost in an instant because of a single decision made by one or the side of the intelligence divide.

A British intelligence agent flies to Russia to help a Russian asset defect. At the same time, a Syrian American woman is leading a special forces team through an ISIS occupied part of Syria on a mission to effect regime change by destroying the Presidential Palace at the behest of the CIA. These two very contrasting players, a hoary Russian defector and a lithe, female CIA agent become pawns in the global game for no reason other than the personal interest of one individual which leads to a betrayal and the past experiences of another, which leads the UK Government to seek vengeance.

No one is spared in this novel, the Arabs are painted over and over again as ignorant and cruel, the Russians as brutal, despotic and cold. The US and UK Government officials are portrayed with some sympathy for their personal predicament, but little for their lack of morality, loyalty and empathy.

Allies shift allegiances as events unfold and no one can be trusted to be who they seem to be - wives are traitors, husbands unfaithful, principled UK operatives become willing executioners; but in the end, the kindness shown by surprising characters, a baker's wife and a career mercenary, show that there is still a glimmer of hope in this dark and cruel world.

The portrayal of what the war has done to Syria, turning it into a latter-day dystopia, is heart breakingly realistic and disturbing. One paragraph encapsulated this: He felt troubled but it took him a few minutes before he realized why. So many years since he'd heard words of kindness from gentle people. People who looked out for each other, who took no part in brutality or execution, who would always give more than they took. They seemed to echo from a distant world he had once visited years before - and to which he had never been able to return.

The is a book that is well written, well thought out and well researched. The characters are not caricatures, but real people capable of a range of emotions and states in response to changing situations. There is no good and bad here, the good guys do bad things and the bad guys are capable of good.

The author provides a unique and expert insight into intelligence communities and politicians that wage war and the effects of their decisions at a country-wide as well as an individual basis. I cannot recommend this book highly enough.

It has been a long time between books for British journalist and spy writer Tim Sebastian.
His last spy thriller, Ultra, appeared in 1997 and appeared to make the end of a relatively brief, but notable, spy writing career of nine books over the same number of years. Now after a twenty year, or so, break from espionage fiction he has returned with Fatal Ally.
Despite the long absence from the genre, Sebastian has slipped easily back into spy writing and has produced a tense and topical novel about the uneasy relationship between allies.
The book moves convincing between Moscow, Washington, London and the blood soaked border between Syria and Jordan. The pacing and the characters are very good and the intricate plot will keep you well engaged. There have been some outstanding pieces of spy fiction created so far this year and Fatal Ally is right up there with them.

After American Intelligence betrayed Margo Lane’s Russian contact to Moscow, she had no reason to trust the Americans. Now the British Service has heard from a Russian agent who has had no contact with them for five years. He is offering to provide intelligence in exchange for asylum. An invitation is issued to a retirement party for one of his former co-workers in the New York embassy. From there he will be brought back to London. Since the operation is taking place on American soil Margo is ordered to notify the CIA.

Harry Jones is the president’s national security advisor. When he is briefed on the operation, he sees it as an opportunity to use this information to save someone he cares for. Once again a British operation is betrayed to the Russians. This time the British will not excuse the betrayal. Margo’s assignments take her to Moscow and war-torn Syria, where her actions are to leave a clear message to the White House that such interference will not be tolerated.

Tim Sebastian’s story will keep you on the edge of your seat as Margo, Syrian rebels and a Russian operative converge near the border with Jordan. With well-written characters and a look at how fragile alliances can become, this is an excellent and timely thriller. I would like to thank NetGalley and Severn House Publishers for providing a copy of this book in exchange for my review.