Rating: 4 Stars
By Gabrielle Pantera
“All of my work has to be vetted by MI6 before publication, so I have to be careful,” says Sentinel author Matthew Dunn, a former MI6 operative. “I’m bound for life by the Official Secrets Act. That said, being a fiction writer gives me huge latitude. I can turn something real into a story and get away with it.”
The highly trained MI6 agent Will Cochrane, code name Spartan, is assigned to work with Sentinel, the only other agent who has passed the same tests. Sentinel manages a network of agents, who are being killed one by one. Everyone’s loyalty is called into question as they work to find the answers. Sentinel has his own way of doing things. Why is someone trying to start a war between America and the Russians? Isn’t the Cold War over?
The writing and characters are well defined. Sentinel is more introspective then you’d expect from a spy novel. Will is a Brit and they’re known for their reserve so the introspection doesn’t delve too deep. The spycraft details Dunn includes in the novel, like dead-letter drops, brush passes as well as other little details, are a nice touch. Dunn also knows his weapons and how to use them. A great gift for any fan of spy and action novels.
“My starting point for Sentinel was envisaging a situation where America and Russia were on the brink of war,” says Dunn. “Though the Cold War ended over two decades ago, Russia is still a vast power. It’s been a sleeping giant, though has been rebuilding itself on a capitalist platform and of course retains a nuclear arsenal capable of destroying all of humanity. Within this concept, I wanted to show how intelligence agencies work during times of severe crisis and in particular how valuable foreign assets can be to obtain time-sensitive intelligence. I always approach my stories from the human angle and that is best personified in the lonely and extremely dangerous work of spies.”
“Like all thriller writers, first and foremost I’m a storyteller so my imagination and creativity is key,” says Dunn. “I draw from experiences that I and others have had. Moreover, most of Sentinel is told from the perspective of my protagonist, MI6 officer Will Cochrane, and when throwing him into situations I constantly ask myself what I would have done when faced with the same situation.”
“Being in my mid-forties, I’m ten years ahead of Will Cochrane on a number of different levels,” says Dunn. “I’m getting married, have two young children, and these days spend most of my time writing and spending time with my family. It’s a world away from the man I used to be during my service in MI6. That man was quite similar to Will Cochrane. He’s the hardest character for me to write because it frequently feels like I’m exposing my soul to my readers. Being a private guy, that’s uncomfortable for me to do.”
Dunn says he gets fantastic feedback from female readers who’ve read Sentinel. “I don’t write for any particular segment, male or female. Instead I write stories that I’d like to read. Thinking about it, perhaps it’s not so surprising that so many women have loved my books. Unlike stories set in battlefields, the world of intelligence includes people from all walks of life…young, old, female, male. Some of my favorite characters in Sentinel are female spies who have a wealth of experience.”
Dunn’s background as an MI6 operative gives him a thorough understanding of the world of espionage…how to recruit and run agents, direct action, obtaining secret intelligence, conduct operations in hostile territories, weapons and tradecraft. “On that level, little research was required,” says Dunn. “But if there are gaps in my knowledge, I won’t bluff. I’ll ensure I do my research properly and talk to the right people.” All of the locations included in Sentinel and Spycatcher are places he’s been to, many of them as a deep cover operative.
Spycatcher was shortlisted in this year’s Barry Awards for Best Thriller.
“I’ve had my own web-site designed by a company,” says Dunn. “It will go live in a week. My publishers, agent, fiancé and others have been trying to drag me, kicking and screaming, into the 21st century.The web site will contain a blog and news section which will keep my readers posted on upcoming events.”
Sentinel: A Spycatcher Novel by Matthew Dunn . Hardcover, 320 pages, Publisher: William Morrow (August 7, 2012), Language: English. ISBN: 9780062037923 $25.99.
