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A cross-century spy thriller, THE INTELLIGENCER mixes modern and Elizabethan intrigue. In fair London, where Silbert lays her scene twice, the first chapter has Christopher Marlowe embarking on his latest undercover mission. The Earl of Essex and Robert Cecil are locked in a subtle, violent contest for the power of Elizabeth's trust and control of her budding spy network. It will be Marlowe's pleasure to play both sides while trying to protect his Queen. The second chapter skips 400 years forward, to a stylish gentleman thief, after the rarest of rare manuscripts. He will not be successful, but the attempt is enough for the owner to call in an expert -- Kate Morgan, spy and historian. Then the plotlines -- all three of them -- are off and galloping, covering all the territory from Iraq through Langley and Rome, then back to London. The manuscript is literally history-changing: it is a bound copy of Marlowe's undelivered spy reports. Kate thought that centuries-old secrets, while fascinating to the historian, wouldn't be world-changing all this time later. But that was before people connected to the Book of Secrets started dying violently. THE INTELLIGENCER keeps up an ambitious pace, deftly switching between times and story lines. The action starts fast and never falters, but Silbert always gives enough information to keep the reader from falling behind. The only misstep in my opinion is an unnecessary and unrealistic subplot; in it the deep dark secret was easy to figure out and the revelations served little purpose other than adding an extra dose of angst to the characters without impacting the major plotlines. While I think the novel would have been more believable without that subplot, the book doesn't suffer for it. THE INTELLIGENCER is an excellent read for history buffs and thriller fans alike.
Reviewed by Linnea Dodson, September 2005
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Contact: Yvonne Klein (ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com)
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