A Line in the
Sand by Gerald Seymour is a page-turner, nail-biting espionage thriller. The
novel in general highlights the after effects of being a spy on a foreign soil,
most remarkably it is the past that comes back either to haunt or to snatch
away the ballast and identity.
A decade ago,
now Frank Perry, then Gevin Hughes, was a salesman for a chemical engineering
firm based in England. On account of his business, he furtively uncovered the
chemical weapons industry of Iran since, in real, he was a spy for the British
government.
Because of his
undercover work Iran had suffered an irreparable loss in the chemical weapons
industry, subsequently reducing their killing powers.
Under the new
identity of Frank Perry, he is gone into hiding at a seacoast village named Suffolk
in England. He lives with his wife Merlyn, who too has dark past, and one son.
Iran wants to
seek the revenge, so they send their deadliest assassin on the job. He is decoded
as Anvil. He sets his footprints around a marshy land in the village. Well
before Perry could understand and realize the things, the British security
agency forms a ring around his home and his life to protect him from the same
people whom he once uncovered.
Well, the
novel is interesting and efficiently moves ahead with mandatory sweeps and
adrenaline invoking actions. At times, the plot is tightly packed, otherwise cruises
smoothly.
With the high
security found in the village, people around him, including village folks and
best of best friends, turn hostile to him. They take their security and space
at stake. The society begins ostracizing them. That is the reality check for
spies and the author has affirmatively asserted that a spy cannot live without
being hunted or haunted.
The
characterization and drawing of sub plots to the main events has been done with
distinct, peculiar élan. One of the gripping points of the novel is the sense
of realization, and the haunting past of life that seemed inseparable even
during being underground. In the espionage thriller genre, this is the best
novel by Seymour.
Good, detailed review. Thanks.
ReplyDelete