Thomas Kell thought he was done with spying. In the wake of the mission that killed his fiancée, Rachel, he has left SIS (the British secret service) behind, and is living a quiet, solitary life in London. But then chance drops a ripe possibility in his lap: one of his former colleagues is on vacation in Egypt when he spots Tom's nemesis, Alexander Minasian, the SVR (Russian secret service) agent who carried out Rachel's murder. And, unbelievably, Minasian appears to be in a relationship with an older German man named Bernhard Riedle.
Tom knows that because of the homophobic atmosphere within the SVR, if he can catch Minasian with Riedle, he'll have a means of blackmail to find out who ordered Rachel's killing. Tom also knows that his former bosses at SIS will not approve of this plan, so he goes undercover, moving into the same apartment building as Riedle. The stakes climb higher as Tom's deception grows, but when he finally comes face to face with his nemesis, the encounter leaves Tom reeling as Minasian reveals secrets he never could have guessed.
Charles Cumming (A Foreign Country, The Trinity Six) creates believable threats and details the intricacies of spycraft as Kell and Minasian negotiate how to meet each other without either of their governments becoming aware of their clandestine activities. Fast-paced and lethal, A Divided Spy is perfect for fans of Robert Ludlum or John le Carré. --Jessica Howard, blogger at Quirky Bookworm