Our American Friend

What if Melania Trump had ties to the KGB all along? This intriguing premise is the basis of Our American Friend.

First Lady Lara Caine wants an author to write her biography, and she selects journalist Sofie Morse to do the honors. As Sofie develops a relationship with Lara, she learns more about Lara's childhood in Moscow and Paris, and the events that led to her father's mysterious death. Events that seem safely in the past prove to have repercussions through time, and as we glean from the present-day timeline, Sofie is in trouble (and in exile in Croatia).

I loved the premise of this novel, and found it to be an enjoyable read. It starts very slowly and rather confusingly, but revelations about halfway through the book changed the narrative and sped up the pace considerably. I read the last third of the book frantically - I had to know what happened!

There are three timelines that weave throughout this book, and that can get confusing at times. I especially had trouble differentiating between Sofie-today and Sofie-last year (and sometimes Sofie-two years ago?), and found that confusion a bit distracting, specifically when timelines would shift mid-chapter. But again about halfway through the book, things gelled into place and it was much easier to follow.

I would recommend this book to fans of political thrillers, historical fiction, and spy novels.

Thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the ARC.

Pub Date 2/15/22 #OurAmericanFriend #Netgalley

An interesting premise - a former news reporter, Sofie Morse, is hired to write a biography of the First Lady, Lara Caine, who's a former fashion model from Eastern Europe, married to a controversial US President, with a young child (in this case, twin girls) and a shadowy past. (any similarities to a recent resident of the White House are obviously intended) Not much is known about FLOTUS and as Lara opens up to Sofie, we begin to suspect she has a hidden agenda we don't yet understand. And boy, does she ever. Before she knows it, Sofie's immersed in an international intrigue that could have far-reaching effects on world politics. Is she being used as a mere pawn in some game she doesn't understand? Should she trust Lara or start her own investigation into what she's being told? What is the truth?

I could have used less of the back story of Lara's previous life in Russia and in Paris, including an early tragic romance, because after a while it took me out of the story playing out in the present day which I found much more intriguing. Felt like much of it could have been condensed and I would still understand why Lara behaved as she did. Also, I longed to hear more details about how Lara met the man that became her husband and the bargain she struck there.

Parts of the novel rang a bit unlikely and convenient but I did enjoy the thinly-veiled peek behind the curtain of Washington and international politics. I wasn't sure Sofie would be that easily taken in although perhaps the lure of the big scoop plus a hefty paycheck was enough to sway her. But all in all, an enjoyable story. For fans of political intrigue and the machinations that occur behind the scenes in US politics. And it's fun to wonder how much of what's written might actually be true of a certain previous First Lady, who remains to this day an enigma.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.