Alma Katsu – The Book Diva's Reads

Book Spotlight: RED LONDON by Alma Katsu

Red London, Red Widow #2, by Alma Katsu
ISBN: 9780593421956 (Hardcover)
ISBN: 9780593421963 (eBook)
ISBN: 9780593672426 (Digital Audiobook)
ASIN: B0B6246LWV (Audible Audiobook)
ASIN: B0B457GWQF (Kindle edition)
Page Count: 352
Release Date: March 14, 2023
Publisher: G.P. Putnam’s Sons
Genre: Fiction | Spy Thriller | Political Thriller

One of CrimeReads‘ Most Anticipated Crime Fiction of 2023
One of BookPage‘s Most Anticipated Mystery/Suspense of 2023

CIA agent Lyndsey Duncan’s newest asset might just be her long-needed confidante…or her greatest betrayal.

After her role in taking down a well-placed mole inside the CIA, Agent Lyndsey Duncan arrives in London fully focused on her newest Russian asset, deadly war criminal Dmitri Tarasenko. That is until her MI6 counterpart, Davis Ranford, personally calls for her help.

Following a suspicious attack on Russian oligarch Mikhail Rotenberg’s property in a tony part of London, Davis needs Lyndsey to cozy up to the billionaire’s aristocratic British wife, Emily Rotenberg. Fortunately for Lyndsey, there’s little to dissuade Emily from taking in a much-needed confidante. Even being one of the richest women in the world is no guarantee of happiness. But before Lyndsey can cover much ground with her newfound friend, the CIA unveils a perturbing connection between Mikhail and Russia’s geopolitical past, one that could upend the world order and jeopardize Lyndsey’s longtime allegiance to the Agency.

Red London is a sharp and nuanced race-against-the-clock story ripped from today’s headlines, a testament to author Alma Katsu’s thirty-five-year career in national security. It’s a rare spy novel written by an insider that feels as prescient as it is page-turning and utterly unforgettable.

Praise for Red London:

“Katsu’s second book in this taut spy series is even better than the first with the requisite suspense driving the twist-laden plot….Starring an outstanding, multidimensional protagonist.” —Booklist (starred review)

“Katsu paints a vivid picture of modern London at the intersection of a vast geopolitical game between Russia, its monied exiles, the British upper classes, and American intelligence.” —CrimeReads

“Katsu, a former intelligence officer, shows us how intelligence-gathering works, how spies relate to each other, how intelligence agencies uneasily coexist. What sets the novel apart even more is the smoothness with which the author builds her tense narrative and characters—Lyndsey is unflashy but sensitive and principled and good at what she does, while Emily is one of the most sympathetically drawn victims in recent spy fiction. A strong second installment in a series we hope continues.” —Kirkus Reviews

“Entertaining . . . Katsu knows her tradecraft. . . . A spy novel that focuses on relationships, women, and family is a refreshing change. . . . Katsu should win new fans with this one.” —Publishers Weekly

“An elegantly written novel of espionage, reminiscent of the great Daniel Silva. Well-plotted, wholly credible, and enormously tense—spy fiction fans simply must read this one!” —Mark Greaney, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Burner, a Gray Man novel

Meet The Author

Alma Katsu is the award-winning author of eight novels, most recently Red London, Red Widow, The Deep, and The Hunger. Prior to the publication of her first novel, she had a thirty-five-year career as a senior intelligence analyst for several U.S. agencies, including the CIA and NSA, as well as RAND, the global policy think tank. Katsu is a graduate of the masters writing program at the Johns Hopkins University and received her bachelors degree from Brandeis University.

Ms. Katsu has relocated from the Washington, DC area to the mountains of West Virginia, where she lives with her husband and their two dogs.

Connect with the author via his Amazon | BookBub | Facebook | Goodreads | Instagram | Twitter | Website

Book Spotlight: THE FERVOR by Alma Katsu

The Fervor by Alma Katsu
ISBN: 9780593328330 (hardcover)
ISBN: 9780593328347 (ebook)
ISBN: 9780593552421 (digital audiobook)
ASIN: B09FW9G5ZX (Audible audiobook)
ASIN: B09B8NJS8C (Kindle edition)
Publisher: G.P. Putnam’s Sons
Release Date: April 26, 2022
Genre: Historical Fiction | Gothic & Horror | Suspense Thriller

From the acclaimed and award-winning author of The Hunger and The Deep comes a new psychological and supernatural twist on the horrors of the Japanese American internment camps in World War II.

1944: As World War II rages on, the threat has come to the home front. In a remote corner of Idaho, Meiko Briggs and her daughter, Aiko, are desperate to return home. Following Meiko’s husband’s enlistment as an air force pilot in the Pacific months prior, Meiko and Aiko were taken from their home in Seattle and sent to one of the internment camps in the Midwest. It didn’t matter that Aiko was American-born: They were Japanese, and therefore considered a threat by the American government.

Mother and daughter attempt to hold on to elements of their old life in the camp when a mysterious disease begins to spread among those interned. What starts as a minor cold quickly becomes spontaneous fits of violence and aggression, even death. And when a disconcerting team of doctors arrive, nearly more threatening than the illness itself, Meiko and her daughter team up with a newspaper reporter and widowed missionary to investigate, and it becomes clear to them that something more sinister is afoot, a demon from the stories of Meiko’s childhood, hell-bent on infiltrating their already strange world.

Inspired by the Japanese yokai and the jorogumo spider demon, The Fervor explores a supernatural threat beyond what anyone saw coming; the danger of demonization, a mysterious contagion, and the search to stop its spread before it’s too late.

Advance Praise for The Fervor

One of CrimeReads’ Most Anticipated Crime Fiction 2022
One of Book Mark‘s Best Sci-Fi and Fantasy Books of April
One of CNN‘s Most Anticipated Reads of April
One of Crime Read’s Recommended Books of April

Advance Praise for THE FERVOR by Library Journal

“Katsu has no peer when it comes to atmospheric, detail-rich historical horror, but this volume is more unsettling than anything she’s written yet, because its demons attack readers uncomfortably close to home. A must-read for all, not just genre fans.” —Library Journal (starred review)

“The action leaps off the page and has a cinematic quality. The Fervor is a stunning triumph and unfurls like a masterfully woven tapestry. It is suffused with secrets, pain, Japanese myths long thought forgotten, and above all the guilt that permeates throughout. . . . The ghosts of this story will haunt readers long after they’re finished reading.” —Booklist (starred review)

“The plot moves at a dizzying pace . . . a balance of incisive detail and steady progression . . . What appears to be a story of supernatural suspense mixed with historical fiction transforms into an important reminder of the United States’ short memory of its own atrocities and its long history of anti-Asian sentiment, violence, and racism. . . . It’s enjoyable to experience the ambitious, weblike weaving of the book’s many elements.” —Kirkus Reviews

“No one does historical gothic horror better than Katsu, and I can’t wait to immerse myself in this very creepy tale.” —CrimeReads

“Another enthralling historical horror novel.” —Book Riot

“Katsu weaves myriad perspectives into a powerful historical horror novel centered on the internment of Japanese Americans during WWII. . . . The meticulous and compassionate portraiture, placed against the backdrop of what evils humans do to one another, creates a horror that renders even the creepiest spiders merely decorative in comparison. Horror readers looking for sharp social commentary should snap this up.” —Publishers Weekly

“I’m in awe of Alma Katsu’s uncanny ability to take historical fiction and infuse it with something so dark and otherworldly. I read this book in two sittings and during the night in between, I dreamt about it. A supernatural story with true heartache.” —Jamie Ford, author of The Many Daughters of Afong Moy and Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet

Meet The Author

Alma Katsu is the author of seven novels, most recently Red Widow, The Deep, and The Hunger. Prior to the publication of her first novel, she had a 35-year career as a senior intelligence analyst for several U.S. agencies, including the CIA and NSA, as well as RAND. Katsu is a graduate of the master’s writing program at the Johns Hopkins University and received her bachelor’s degree from Brandeis University. She lives in West Virginia with her husband.

Connect with the Author: Facebook | Goodreads | Instagram | Twitter | Website

Book 150: THE TAKER Review

It isn’t easy to describe or categorize The Taker by Alma Katsu. It is a dark tale with gothic elements. It is a love story featuring twisted notions of love and plenty of jealousy. It is also a historical novel, spanning more than 200 years in the life of the main character, Lanore or Lanny. It may not be easy to describe The Taker in terms of genre, but I can say that this was an enticing read from beginning to end, and forces the reader to answer how far is too far when it comes to love?

The story begins in present time with Lanny taken into a hospital for evaluation after admitting to killing a man in the woods. Dr. Luke Findley isn’t quite sure what is going on with this young woman, but he is quickly beguiled by her tale. Lanny begins to tell Luke about her life in the town of St. Andrews, a life that began more than 200 years earlier. Her story tells of the hard life experienced by her family in the wilds of Maine in the early 1800s, as well as her friendship and then affair with Jonathan St. Andrews, scion of the St. Andrews family, founders of the town. Lanny’s tale moves to Boston, where she encounters Adair and his entourage.

Lanny’s tale is not light and happy but filled with pain, dark and twisted desires, love and jealousy, as well as alchemy and magic. Lanny has become immortal at the hands of Adair and also suffers untold horrors at his hands. She is also exposed to culture and beauty that she had never dreamed possible. Unfortunately her abiding love (or possibly obsession) for Jonathan, as well as her description of his physical beauty and attraction, results in Adair’s desire to meet this object of beauty and desire. Lanny does return to St. Andrews but finds that she no longer fits in with her family and worse, Jonathan doesn’t want to leave his little fiefdom. Tragedy lends a hand and circumstances force Jonathan to leave Maine for Boston, where Lanny is forced to share Jonathan with Adair and others.

Love is supposed to be a give and take relationship. Ms. Katsu goes further and describes a love relationship as having a giver and a taker. The question arises as to who is really the giver and who is the taker in this tale? Lanny is far from perfect and must learn to deal with the repercussions of her decisions, decisions that have spanned 200 years and adversely affected many lives. I don’t think her story would be so interesting if it were all sweetness and light. It is the darkness, the jealousies, and her willingness to do pretty much anything for love that made The Taker such a wonderful read. Look for this hauntingly beautiful love story to be released on September 6, 2011.

Disclaimer: I received this book free for review purposes from through Simon & Schuster Galley Grab. I was not paid, required or otherwise obligated to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”