The Spy Coast

October 16, 2023
Gerritsen (the Rizzoli & Isles series) delivers an amusing and exciting tale of retired CIA agents in Maine who swing into action when one of their own is threatened. Leading the action is Maggie Bird, a former spy who’s recently relocated to the hamlet of Purity, where she hopes to live her life out in relative anonymity as she tends to her chickens and enjoys the company of the local Martini Club. When a dead body is dumped in her driveway and someone takes a few shots at her from across a field, Maggie connects the dots to the tragic case that led her to retire from the CIA 17 years ago. With the help of her baby boomer drinking buddies—four ex-agents with a full assortment of tradecraft skills—Maggie dives back into Operation Cyrano, which began as a simple case to root out a Russian sleeper agent and ended in a plane crash off the coast of Malta that killed Maggie’s husband, among others. The plot bustles along nicely, careening from Thailand to Italy and many points in between, but the real surprise is the richness of Gerritsen’s supporting cast, a cantankerous bunch whose love for one another runs deep. Some details toward the end hint that a sequel may be in the works, and it’d be more than welcome. Maggie and her gray-haired tribe are more than capable of helming a long-running series. Agent: Meg Ruley, Jane Rotrosen Agency.