(5 / 5)

The Righteous Spy, by Merle Nygate is a spy thriller which follows in the footsteps of great spy stories. The subtle difference is that you don’t actually know who to trust as we follow Eli, Rafi and Petra on a plot to gain British SIS acceptance of Mossad’s ability to intercede in UK spying activities, through the use of unsuspecting Sahar.

Although the book does not have action hero’s like James Bond or Jason Bourne, it burns slowly and builds like a good Wagnerian symphony into an amazing and, in this case, an unexpected crescendo.

The characters are well formed and that grows a relationship with the reader. The use of common language, ensures that we don’t forget who we are dealing with, not just a UK or US agent handler.

The story manipulates us between glimpses of what may be construed as a practical example of living with the constant threat of attack, and the clandestine going on of agents operating on foreign soil. As Sahar writes in her diary:

‘My dresses and trousers are hanging inside out. I’m confused at the moment. We always do that, don’t we brother, we do that when the bombs fall, the houses shake and the windows shatter; when the dust rises up and billows like clouds of sand in a storm; the dust and debris doesn’t cover our clothes.’

 In all I found the story pulling me in – wanting to know what was on the next page. The ending was not as I suspected. But the question begging is – was it really the end?

Merle Nygate has written a spy thriller with a difference and I would highly recommend The Righteous Spy.

The Righteous Spy on Amazon