555 Review: "The Secret Speech" by Tom Rob Smith

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(What's a 555 Review?)

Read: 25 June 2009

1) How I got it...
  • Lent by the father of my tutee
2) Why I read it...
3) What's the story?
  • A woman from Leo’s past shows up to take revenge.
  • Formerly the wife of a pastor Leo sent to jail, the woman has become a Vory leader and threatens the security of the newly established state.
  • She also threatens the security of Leo’s family, specifically the future of Leo’s adopted daughter.
  • In any case, Leo's adopted daughter has become unpredictably rebellious--not surprising given her background (which you'll have to read in the first book).
4) What I liked about it...
  • It's set in Russia, a country I'm totally a sucker for.
  • The pleasure of finding out what happens to the old characters, like Leo and his wife.
  • The pleasure of finding out what happens in post-Stalinist Russia.
  • The wider scope--more about the state and more about politics

5) What I didn’t like about it...
  • Plot seemed episodic, not as tightly plotted as Smith's first book.
  • I found a few things really farfetched, e.g. a pastor's wife who becomes an undisputed female leader of the Vory??
  • I thought the adopted daughter's character development was cliche.

Rating:



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