Play Book Tag discussion

The Secrets We Kept – Lara Prescott
3.5***

Prescott’s debut is a literary espionage novel. The story is told from the perspectives of three different women. Sally has adopted a glamorous and sophisticated persona, which she has created by practicing deceit all over the world to pry secrets out of men. Irina is the daughter of a Russian immigrant, and the newest member of the CIA’s typing pool. Olga is Boris Pasternak’s mistress and muse. When the Soviet government refuses to allow Pasternak to publish his masterpiece, Doctor Zhivago , Olga helps arrange for it to be published in Italy. It becomes an international sensation, and the CIA hatches a plot to smuggle the book back into the USSR. Irina is recruited to help, and Sally is tasked with training her.

Although I have gotten tired of the multiple-narrators device, I have to admit that Prescott did a good job of it in this novel of intrigue and manipulation. Sally and Irina, in particular, each had information that the other lacked, and their push/pull relationship had to be affected by this. I was drawn into their dynamic and thought Prescott gave us a perfect ambiguous ending to their story.

I remember what a blockbuster hit the movie of Doctor Zhivago became. My friends and I all wanted fur hats (yes, even in Texas). At that age I had no idea of the political ramifications the novel had in Russia. I’m glad that Prescott chose to tell this story and enlighten me.


LINK to my review

3 stars from me, I liked it but I felt something was missing-not sure what. I never knew that the CIA was involved in the publication and the smuggling of Dr. Zhivago back into the USSR, and that drew me in. I thought for a debut, it was pretty well written.

For me there was no connection of Olga to Sally & Irina. So it seemed like two stories loosely tied together.

It held my attention but it wasn't particularly memorable.