Review - The Spy Wore Silk by Andrea Pickens

Set in Regency London, Ms. Pickens' first book in a series about female spies trained by the government follows Sienna, a former London street urchin as she searches for a traitor amongst the members of The Gilded Page Club, a group of male book collectors. Her most obvious suspect proves to be her most valuable ally.

Ms. Pickens is a talented writer. Her characters are real, the setting is beautifully drawn with just the right amount of historical detail while the dialogue snappy and period appropriate. Though a tad slow to start, the story itself soon moves along at a decent pace.

I did not, however, really enjoy the book as I found the plot and its various devices not particularly to my taste. There was too much focus on the sexual games the heroine played with those she was investigating, which somewhat diminished the developing love story. Nor could I truly accept the notion that the heroine and her fellow spies could be so adept at so many different accomplishments.

For readers of historical romance, however, who enjoy tales of fighting women and the men who love them, this book is worth adding to your reading list. © Teresa Eckford, 2007

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This review first appeared in the May 2007 issue of The Historical Novels Review