Official Review: Deceptive Cadence, The Virtuosic Spy, Bo...

[Bfrisco]

[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Deceptive Cadence, The Virtuosic Spy, Book One" by Kathryn Guare.]

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Deceptive Cadence, The Virtuosic Spy, Book One is a spy thriller by Kathryn Guare. The novel follows a virtuosic violinist turned farmer turned spy named Conor McBride.

As the novel begins, Conor is working at his family’s farm when an enigmatic Englishman visits, informing Conor that his assistance is required to locate and help his brother. From the beginning, some of the family tension is clear. After his brother left Conor and his mother with an enormous debt along with the legal ramifications of defrauding the European Union of grant money, Conor is still cleaning up his brother’s mess years later. Although he’s clearly unhappy about going, Conor knows he must. He quickly becomes embroiled in the world of MI6, taking on the role of spy to find and perhaps resolve all that his brother left behind.

I expected a lot from this book, being someone who has a deep love of music and a recent interest in mystery and thriller novels. In some ways, it measured up, but in others it did not. I appreciate the detail and care the author put into the landscapes and the characters she developed for this book. I really found myself laughing out loud at and growing attached to even minor characters. As landscapes were lovingly crafted, the author provided enough details to make the world around her characters real while carefully avoiding the mistake of providing too much detail.

Being someone who isn’t local to several of the places the author described, including Ireland, London, and India, I don’t know how accurate her grasp of the culture or language was for either. I appreciated how often she used short phrases or words, all of which she explained, throughout dialogue and description alike. It brought a realism to the story. One further note that I would love to commend the author for is how doggedly she stuck to ensuring her injuries were realistic. There were no quick fixes for serious issues. When someone was devastatingly injured, the consequences were real. As someone who has read stories that involve characters receiving broken limbs and bullet wounds while still somehow continuing to fight for hours, I truly appreciated that injuries incurred lasting results and long periods of recovery.

However, the book was a bit slow to begin. I wasn’t truly hooked for at least a good quarter of the book. I think the story meandered a bit. There were a lot of stories going on, which allowed for a great deal of twists and turns, but also added quite a lot for the reader to keep track of. There were one or two characters I wish the story had revisited at the end, but overall, I was pleased with how the author wrapped up the story. I also found myself questioning how the main character could be so skilled at everything he did, something even other characters commented on. I still connected well with Conor, but it did annoy me at times.

I would rate this book 3 out of 4 stars, because it is a good read that will draw the reader in with memorable and enjoyable characters, but it is a slow start with a lot to follow.

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[Rebecca Cherian]

I read this while sick in bed, so I dont know if my judgement was lacking.. but I LOVED this book!! I loved how much detail there was and the loving way the author uses language.. how the character actually LIVE.. so in love