Review of “The Beijing Conspiracy” by Shamini Flint

Hi readers. Hope life is good with you all. I have just finished the above novel and thought I’d let you know what I thought.

First of all, the blurb from the book itself –

One man is caught up in a lethal global conspiracy in this explosive spy thriller.

“I need your support. There is no one else I can trust. Please help her. Please help our daughter.”

When ex-Marine Jack Ford receives a letter containing news of a daughter he never knew he had, he feels compelled to return to China, a country he hasn’t visited since 1989 when, as a young American spy, he fell in love with a beautiful student activist and found himself caught up in the horrors of the Tiananmen Square massacre. But why has Xia got in touch now, after a thirty-year silence?

On arrival in Beijing, Jack finds himself accidentally in possession of an explosive piece of information both the Chinese and American governments are desperate to get their hands on. Alone in a strange city, suspected of being a traitor by his own side, not knowing whom to trust, Jack is faced with an impossible dilemma: should he save his new-found daughter or prevent a new world war from breaking out? –

I think it can be best described as a political action thriller. And not one that the Chinese Communist Party would be too impressed about either. If I suddenly disappear, you can guess what happened! It starts off and ends at a frenetic pace. In between not so much and it was tough to keep on reading at times. The book is very long, contains a multitude of characters and can at times be difficult to keep on top of. The intrigue revolves around two different factions in the Chinese government – one wants the status quo, the other liberalization and democracy.

It also relies somewhat on coincidence, which I found a tad unfulfilling. One man after very many years of inactivity finds himself at the heart of two conspiracies at the one time. A bit of a long shot.

There were things I really enjoyed. The action scenes are enjoyable and very well written. I also found the relationship between Ford and Xia, his old love to be suitably complex and interesting.

All in all, I’d give it three stars out of five.

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