#42 The Traitor in the Tunnel by YS Lee
This review has spoilers for previous volumes in The Agency series. There are no real spoilers for The Traitor in the Tunnel. 
Now an established agent of The Agency, Mary Quinn’s next assignment brings her to Buckingham Palace where she must find a thief who is stealing from Queen Victoria. Her investigations bring her into the tunnels beneath the palace, where she once again runs into James Easton, who she hasn’t seen since he rejected her upon discovering her checkered past. Things become more complicated when Prince Bertie becomes tangled up in the deaths of two people. The main suspect is an elderly Chinese man who bears the same name as Mary’s estranged father. Could this opium addicted criminal truly be the same man who left her as a child?
The Traitor in the Tunnel is the third book in The Agency, an ongoing series about a young female spy in Victorian England. The greatest strength of this series can be found in its likable protagonist, Mary Quinn. It’s easy to sympathize with Mary as she faces her most personal case yet, and the scenes between her and her father are truly heartbreaking. Another real strength of the series is its romance. The chemistry between Mary and James is just as electrifying in book three as it was when they first met in A Spy in the House. Lee wisely knows how long to carry on a “will they or won’t they” type of relationship, and when to resolve it. The Traitor and the Tunnel does answer the question of whether James and Mary end up together or not. Although I won’t spoil what or how things happen, I was quite happy with the results.
When comparing The Traitor in the Tunnel to the first two books in the series, I noticed that the multiple storylines weren't juggled quite as elegantly, but it was still enjoyable to watch Mary try to solve the mysteries around her. Like previous volumes in the series, the book reads very smoothly. There are some sequences at the end of the book that are truly nail biting, even though they sometimes stretch credulity. I also liked the fact that the book wasn’t afraid to poke fun at the series as a whole, given the fact that Mary’s adventures are very atypical for a Victorian teenager.
The Traitor in a Tunnel is a satisfying entry into one of my favorite series, YS Lee’s The Agency. Major changes take place in Mary’s life during this book, and I’m interested to see on how they will impact her in the long run. The author is currently hard at work on a fourth book in the series, Rivals in the City. Even though this book lacks a release date at this time, it’s safe to say that I will be reading it the first chance I get.
Rating: four and a half stars
Length: 384 pages
Source: Lewiston Public Library
Other books I've read by this author: A Spy in the House, The Body in the Tower
Next I will be reviewing Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld
xposted to temporaryworlds, bookish, and goodreads
Now an established agent of The Agency, Mary Quinn’s next assignment brings her to Buckingham Palace where she must find a thief who is stealing from Queen Victoria. Her investigations bring her into the tunnels beneath the palace, where she once again runs into James Easton, who she hasn’t seen since he rejected her upon discovering her checkered past. Things become more complicated when Prince Bertie becomes tangled up in the deaths of two people. The main suspect is an elderly Chinese man who bears the same name as Mary’s estranged father. Could this opium addicted criminal truly be the same man who left her as a child?
The Traitor in the Tunnel is the third book in The Agency, an ongoing series about a young female spy in Victorian England. The greatest strength of this series can be found in its likable protagonist, Mary Quinn. It’s easy to sympathize with Mary as she faces her most personal case yet, and the scenes between her and her father are truly heartbreaking. Another real strength of the series is its romance. The chemistry between Mary and James is just as electrifying in book three as it was when they first met in A Spy in the House. Lee wisely knows how long to carry on a “will they or won’t they” type of relationship, and when to resolve it. The Traitor and the Tunnel does answer the question of whether James and Mary end up together or not. Although I won’t spoil what or how things happen, I was quite happy with the results.
When comparing The Traitor in the Tunnel to the first two books in the series, I noticed that the multiple storylines weren't juggled quite as elegantly, but it was still enjoyable to watch Mary try to solve the mysteries around her. Like previous volumes in the series, the book reads very smoothly. There are some sequences at the end of the book that are truly nail biting, even though they sometimes stretch credulity. I also liked the fact that the book wasn’t afraid to poke fun at the series as a whole, given the fact that Mary’s adventures are very atypical for a Victorian teenager.
The Traitor in a Tunnel is a satisfying entry into one of my favorite series, YS Lee’s The Agency. Major changes take place in Mary’s life during this book, and I’m interested to see on how they will impact her in the long run. The author is currently hard at work on a fourth book in the series, Rivals in the City. Even though this book lacks a release date at this time, it’s safe to say that I will be reading it the first chance I get.
Rating: four and a half stars
Length: 384 pages
Source: Lewiston Public Library
Other books I've read by this author: A Spy in the House, The Body in the Tower
Next I will be reviewing Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld
xposted to temporaryworlds, bookish, and goodreads