The Spy Coast by Tess Garritsen

I came across The Spy Coast, when perusing a "most anticipated" list of books for March. The Summer Guests was on that list. It sounded really good but found that there was one book before it: 

The Spy Coast. The Martini Club #1

About: "A retired CIA operative in small-town Maine tackles the ghosts of her past in this fresh take on the spy thriller from New York Times bestselling author Tess Gerritsen.

Former spy Maggie Bird came to the seaside village of Purity, Maine, eager to put the past behind her after a mission went tragically wrong. These days, she’s living quietly on her chicken farm, still wary of blowback from the events that forced her early retirement.

But when a body turns up in Maggie’s driveway, she knows it’s a message from former foes who haven’t forgotten her. Maggie turns to her local circle of old friends—all retirees from the CIA—to help uncover the truth about who is trying to kill her, and why. This “Martini Club” of former spies may be retired, but they still have a few useful skills that they’re eager to use again, if only to spice up their rather sedate new lives.

Complicating their efforts is Purity’s acting police chief, Jo Thibodeau. More accustomed to dealing with rowdy tourists than homicide, Jo is puzzled by Maggie’s reluctance to share information—and by her odd circle of friends, who seem to be a step ahead of her at every turn.

As Jo’s investigation collides with the Martini Club’s maneuvers, Maggie’s hunt for answers will force her to revisit a clandestine career that spanned the globe, from Bangkok to Istanbul, from London to Malta. The ghosts of her past have returned, but with the help of her friends—and the reluctant Jo Thibodeau—Maggie might just be able to save the life she’s built."

I really enjoyed this book. On the surface, it might remind readers of The Thursday Murder Club, but it’s quite different. While the group in this story does host a monthly book club with potlucks and martinis, the similarities mostly end there.

The main characters were former CIA operatives. As one of them retires to an isolated area in Maine, a few of their "coworkers" follow suit. This group is younger than the characters in The Thursday Murder Club and far more physically active. They maintain their skills through rigorous practice, set up elaborate security systems, and remain somewhat suspicious—even of each other. The characters are  closer to the characters in the movie Red, starring Helen Mirren and John Malkovich.

Like many first books in a series, this one alternates between past and present, exploring the group’s beginnings in the CIA and focusing on one key mission. These flashbacks tie directly to present-day events. When Maggie gets an unexpected visitor demanding information about “Operation Cyrano” and later discovers a body in her driveway, she decides to leave her home and go east to uncover the truth. Despite her protests, her friends rally to support her.

The story is packed with action and misdirection, making it a great spy thriller with a hint of James Bond. It’s a gripping read that I highly recommend.

Fans of Tess Gerritsen might recognize her name from the Rizzoli & Isles series, which inspired the popular TV show. You can learn more about her and her works on her website.

https://www.tessgerritsen.com/

The Busy Body by Kemper Donovan

 Hi everyone! I hope Spring is showing its face where you are. It was the first day of Daylight Savings Time where I am. I have dubbed it Mixed Up Monday (vs Freaky Friday). We lost an hour of sleep and the entire work day was a very mixed up day. There was evidence that not only was I tired and not as sharp as I should be, but all work coming in had issues, errors and well general weirdness. Glad when the day ended.

For our March Mystery Book Club, we read The Busy Body by Kemper Donovan. It is the first in the Ghostwriter series by the author.

About: "It's a dream assignment. Former Senator Dorothy Gibson, aka that woman, is the most talked-about person in the country right now, though largely for the wrong reasons. As an independent candidate for President of the United States, Dorothy split the vote and is being blamed for the shocking result. After her very public defeat, she's retreated to her home in rural Maine, inviting her ghostwriter to join her.

Her collaborator is impressed by Dorothy's work ethic and steel-trap mind, not to mention the stunning surroundings (and one particularly gorgeous bodyguard). But when a neighbor dies under suspicious circumstances, Dorothy is determined to find the killer in their midst. And when Dorothy Gibson asks if you want to team up for a top secret, possibly dangerous murder investigation, the only answer "Of course!"

The best ghostwriters are adept at asking questions and spinning stories . . . two talents, it turns out, that also come in handy for sleuths. Dorothy's political career, meanwhile, has made her an expert at recognizing lies and double-dealing. Working together, the two women are soon untangling motives and whittling down suspects, to the exasperation of local police. But this investigation-much like the election-may not unfold the way anyone expects."

We had a good discussion about this book. Everyone went around and said they liked it well enough, good story etc. Then people in the group starting commenting on different aspects of the book which created a lot of "I didn't catch that, oh is that what it was, I totally missed that...". There are quite a few red herrings in the story. The main character, the ghost writer isn't named. That bothered me for quite awhile. I went back several times looking for the characters name. It is not there. But as  people talked, we decided that a ghostwriter's name isn't the writer's real name so that is probably why they aren't named. I did not guess "who dunnit" but I knew there was something off about that character. There is a lot of dry wit and I found parts of the repertoire hilarious. There are many references and humorous quips about to British mysteries; Sherlock Holmes, Agatha Christie, Poroit, and Miss Marple comparing the characters in the story. 

We also debated: Who is the busy body in the story? (If you have read this book, I would like to know what you think.) Who I thought/think was the busy body and who others think it was differed. Hmmm

A few of the members had already read book two, Loose Lips, or were waiting to pick it up at the library. All in all, we decided it was a pretty good book and most left wanting to read book two, Kemper Donovan also has a podcast, All About Agatha, (as in Christie). A few people had already checked out the podcast and listened to a couple of episodes.

About the author:

"I’ve lived in Los Angeles for most of my adult life. Starting out, I worked at a wonderful company called Circle of Confusion (no, really) representing film/television screenwriters and comic books. My very first client wrote the screenplay for the feature film Hanna, released by Focus Features in 2011. (If you haven’t seen it, watch it; you won’t be sorry.) Before that I went to college at Stanford University (with apologies to the Bay Area, I am definitely more of a SoCal person), and law school at Harvard. Technically, I am a retired lawyer, which means I passed the New York Bar and then immediately switched my status to “retired” to avoid fees and continuing education requirements….

I began writing my first novel, The Decent Proposal, when I was still a manager. After an extremely long gestational period and an even longer process acquiring representation and then selling the book for publication, I turned to writing full-time. Around the same time, I also began a side project with my dear friend, Catherine Brobeck. Together we created the podcast All About Agatha, devoted to the one and only Agatha Christie. Tragically, Catherine passed away at the end of 2021, and I have continued on with the podcast solo. It was my work on All About Agatha that inspired me to write my own mystery series, which is currently being published by Kensington Books. 

I am married, and my husband and I have two daughters who keep us extremely busy. When I’m not with them, or chattering into a microphone, or staring at a laptop with my head in my hands, I enjoy doing things that have a more obvious/tangible/short-term payoff such as running and attempting to play the violin (emphasis on the attempt)."

https://kemperdonovan.com/about-me/