The Kompromat Kill by Michael Jenkins #SpyThriller @FailsafeQuery @damppebbles

If you love spy/espionage novels, be sure to check out The Kompromat Kill by Michael Jenkins. I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thanks to Emma Welton of damppebblesblogtours for a chance to join this tour!

My thoughts

For those who don’t know (me), Michael Jenkins defines kompromat:

Compromising information collected for use in blackmailing, discrediting or manipulating someone, typically for political purposes.

The Kompromat Kill by Michael Jenkins

The novel opens in 1986, as Marcella, a British spy, plans an escape route to help defectors cross the Iron Curtain border. Then we jump forward to the present day, as Jack, MI5’s Director of G Branch, deals with the aftermath of the gruesome torture/murder of a well-known Jewish couple in London. Thanks to a symbol written in blood in the bathtub, Jack knows it’s the work of a Nizari assassin. And the assassin isn’t finished yet . . .

That’s only the beginning of this complicated story.

While this is book two of the Sean Richardson series, the book can easily be read as a standalone. Jenkins introduces a lot of each character’s backstory when we first meet them. But given that this seems to be a trait of many spy novels I’ve read, I didn’t think anything of it. I didn’t know book one existed until I read the acknowledgments section!

Characters

Sean Richardson is an ex-spy hiding out in France with his journalist girlfriend, painting canvas after canvas of beautiful scenery to keep traumatic memories from escaping the “drawers in his mind.” There’s trauma a-plenty, too: a stint in an Afghan prison, the death of his wife, the unceremonious boot from the intelligence force after a fling with an enemy model/spy. He has a girlfriend, but apparently thinks little of cheating on her. Either that, or she’s accepted that sex might be part of his job and doesn’t consider it “cheating.” Either way, it puzzled me a bit because he’s an otherwise sympathetic guy.

The Nizari assassin, Nadege, is also a troubled, mentally unstable woman. It’s a bit of a cliche that Nadege is a femme fatale: a beautiful seductress who kills without remorse. Even so, Jenkins gives her some different aspects, too. The love of her life is Petra, another woman. Early on, it becomes clear that Nadege not only kills at the request of her government, but also to avenge a wrongdoing against Petra as a young girl. She’s also conflicted about Sean’s reappearance in her life. And as Jack observes to Sean, she’s begun making mistakes in her work.

The rest of the characters aren’t as well-developed as Sean. I did enjoy his military buddies (Jugsy, Swartz, and Phil Calhoun), and their interactions with each other were some of the most natural in the book. They really felt like people who’d worked together in stressful, life-or-death situations. Though I rarely care about the details of any military operation, these guys kept my attention because of their brotherly camaraderie.

One very minor character caught my attention. Pearly is rarely on the page and then only in a flashback. But she’s a master of disguises who can transform any person’s appearance. I would’ve loved to have met this elderly woman. (Hint, hint, Mr. Jenkins: I want Pearly in book 3!)

Plot

As enemies, Sean and Nadege are evenly matched. Neither is afraid to use whatever is at their disposal: lies, sex, anything.

The stakes are high: many lives depend on the success of Sean’s operation. Yet Sean isn’t even given the official backing of the MI5. He’s working in a “deniable operation” outside the legality of traditional operations: if things go belly up (or as the novel’s Brits phrase it, “pear shaped”), then the MI5 can deny they ever told him to do anything. He’s as disposable as a bomb, and considering his mental health, he’s about as volatile as a bomb, too.

It’s a complicated plot and I don’t want to include spoilers! But the story is enough to make my head spin. Then again, intelligence work (the fictional version, at least) does spin heads quite well: all the lies and counter lies designed to find something akin to the truth. Somewhere, somehow. But even when the truth becomes clearer, it’s never truly transparent, no matter how much whistleblowers want them to be.

Authenticity

The political maneuverings and spy operations in the book feel authentic. The balance between transparency/accountability and national security isn’t easy to maintain. Once lawyers and political committees become involved, information is almost impossible to secure. There’s also the ever-present threat (as Jack sees it) of internal whistle-blowers. Hence the need for deniable operations and the use of proxies for the dirtiest of the dirty work of national security.

I particularly enjoyed the blending of fact and fiction. Here, we have references to various current events: the US President’s killing of the Iran nuclear deal, the EU nations refusing to side with the US over the matter, and the POTUS’s economic sanctions against Iran. There are also references to the Snowden leaks. There’s lots of “insider” type knowledge.

Michael Jenkins clearly knows his subject matter well enough to make the internal workings of the intelligence community feel authentic to outsiders. (Who knows how true insiders feel? It’s all classified: they can’t complain if it’s inaccurate!)

All of this makes the plot feel as though it not only could happen but it might actually be happening, outside the awareness of the average citizen.

Narration

Certain writing quirks did irritate me. The constant repetition of a person’s name in dialogue made the dialogue feel a bit stiff. We get a lot of backstory for each new character; the backstory may be necessary but they do briefly take us out of the story. And as I mentioned earlier, Nadege feels a bit cliched. Though Jenkins does try to develop her character, certain elements feel rather forced, with more telling than showing. I also got a bit tired of how gorgeous all the women are. (C’mon, are all female spies beautiful?!)

Honestly, though, I was okay with most of the relatively trivial writing issues. There is enough excitement in the plot to help me overlook them.

Recommended. 3 1/2 stars.

I recommend this book to fans of spy novels or action thrillers. If you like military or political thrillers, this might pique your interest, too.

Purchase Links:

Social Media:

Twitter: @FailsafeQuery

Facebook: thefailsafethrillers

Website: https://www.michaeljenkins.org/

About Michael Jenkins

“I started climbing at 13, survived being lost in Snowdonia at 14, nearly drowned at 15, and then joined the Army at 16. Risk and adventure was built into my DNA and I feel very fortunate to have served the majority of my working career as an intelligence officer within Defence Intelligence, and as an explosive ordnance disposal officer and military surveyor within the Corps of Royal Engineers. 

“I was privileged to serve for twenty-eight years in the British Army as a soldier and officer, rising through the ranks to complete my service as a major. I served across the globe on numerous military operations as well as extensive travel and adventure on many major mountaineering and exploration expeditions that I led or was involved in.

“I was awarded the Geographic Medal by the Royal Geographical Society for mountain exploration in 2003 and served on the screening committee of the Mount Everest Foundation charity for many years. It was humbling after so many years of service when I was awarded the MBE for services to counter-terrorism in 2007.

“The Failsafe Query is my debut novel, with The Kompromat Kill, my second.”