Book Review: The Last Spymaster

Reviewed By: Harriet Klausner

The Last Spymaster     Amazon US HC Amazon Canada HC
Gayle Lynds
Class/Genre:   Mystery   Espionage   Government Agency   Thriller
St. Martin's, Jun 2006, $24.95

During the Cold War, CIA spymaster Jay Tice sold out his country to the Russians, but was caught. Convicted, he was sentenced to spend the rest of his life at the Allenwood Federal Correctional Complex in Allenwood, Pennsylvania. No one has ever escaped from the prison so Tice is expedited to one day die there.

However, Tice does the impossible and vanishes without a trace. CIA Director of Operations Laurence Litchfield sends his best hunter, Elaine Cunningham, to find the escaped spymaster and learn how he pulled the rabbit out of the hat. Elaine wants to say no as she no longer has the passion especially since her spouse died in Afghanistan, but accepts the duty. Elaine follows clues that take her on a death ride of the east coast, but she soon concludes this is not one clever espionage agent fleeing into the cold, but something much greater in scope and diabolical, but what and who to warn remains just out of her reach.

This is a terrific espionage thriller that grips readers because characters like Tice, Cunningham, and former East German spy Raina Manhardt provide passion to the complex well written plot. The action-packed story line takes the reader and Elaine on quite an odyssey as she follows the death trail in her quest to hunt down Tice. The relationship between Tice and Manhardt adds depth as they were the ultimate star-crossed lovers during the Cold War. Gayle Lynds writes a fantastic thriller that brings heart to THE LAST SPYMASTER.

Harriet Klausner

Reprinted with permission. Do Not repost without permission from the author, Harriet Klausner

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