A young scientist working inside an Iranian nuclear development facility decides to drop a pebble into the pond and see where the ripples end up. He sends an e-mail to the general CIA website and attaches some test results from his lab. That begins a chain of events that the scientist surely could never have anticipated. In a story that looks a lot like this week's news headlines, the CIA together with British intelligence work to determine the exact state of Iranian nuclear development - just how close to having operational weapons are they? The title of the book refers to the super-secret British special ops group who has the authority to use lethal force (not quite a "license to kill", but very close) that is given the assignment of bringing the scientist out of Iran to be interrogated.

I thought the premise of the book seem promising - but it didn't work for me. All the characters are flawed and conflicted and struggling to make the right decisions, but I just didn't care about any of them. I may have been distracted by real life. I know I was put off by the audio production. Normally I am a big fan of audio books, and usually this type of story lends itself well to audio, but they used the wrong reader this time. All in all, a disappointment since I'd been wanting to read this book for several months. If you're interested in trying it, go for the print version - not audio - I wish I had. ( )

Mediocre spy novel, slandering Iran, not as good as some of this author. ( )

Back in the late 90s, I picked up my first book from David Ignatius while running through an airport. On a hop from New Jersey to Cleveland, I devoured most of it. I got a second and a third - but then my airplane commuting stopped and I lost interest in the genre of 'cold war fiction'. Coming back to Mr. Ignatius' work again has rekindled my passion for the spy thriller.

I was apprehensive: no longer the mystery of the big, bad Soviet Bear, there's now a new player with the secrets of the Iranian government being just as seductive and the security services of the US and UK back into play fighting the 'bad guys'. If, like me, you gave up on that whole LeCarre genre, I'd urge you to give this work a try. You won't be disappointed - and it may rekindle a lost pleasure as it has with me. ( )

This is a very enjoyable book. The timing of this book good not be better, given the insight it gives the reader into life and politics in Iran.

From Tehran to Washington and back. Ripping good spy novel. Believable charactors and actions. Honest interpersonal relationships and the nuance of volitile Iran and its people are just outstanding. ( )