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American Spy  By  cover art

American Spy

By: Lauren Wilkinson
Narrated by: Bahni Turpin
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Publisher's summary

American Spy updates the espionage thriller with blazing originality.” (Entertainment Weekly)

“There has never been anything like it.” (Marlon James, GQ)

“So much fun.... Like the best of John le Carré, it’s extremely tough to put down.” (NPR)

Named one of the Ten Best Books of the Year By Chicago Tribune and One of the Best Books of the Year by The New York Times Book Review Time • NPR • Entertainment Weekly Esquire BuzzFeed Vulture Real Simple Good Housekeeping • The New York Public Library

What if your sense of duty required you to betray the man you love?

It’s 1986, the heart of the Cold War, and Marie Mitchell is an intelligence officer with the FBI. She’s brilliant, but she’s also a young Black woman working in an old boys’ club. Her career has stalled out, she’s overlooked for every high-profile squad, and her days are filled with monotonous paperwork. So when she’s given the opportunity to join a shadowy task force aimed at undermining Thomas Sankara, the charismatic revolutionary president of Burkina Faso whose Communist ideology has made him a target for American intervention, she says yes.

Yes, even though she secretly admires the work Sankara is doing for his country. Yes, even though she is still grieving the mysterious death of her sister, whose example led Marie to this career path in the first place. Yes, even though a furious part of her suspects she’s being offered the job because of her appearance and not her talent.

In the year that follows, Marie will observe Sankara, seduce him, and ultimately have a hand in the coup that will bring him down. But doing so will change everything she believes about what it means to be a spy, a lover, a sister, and a good American.

Inspired by true events - Thomas Sankara is known as “Africa’s Che Guevara” - American Spy knits together a gripping spy thriller, a heartbreaking family drama, and a passionate romance. This is a face of the Cold War you’ve never seen before, and it introduces a powerful new literary voice.

Nominated for the NAACP Image Award

Shortlisted for the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize

“Spy fiction plus allegory, and a splash of pan-Africanism. What could go wrong? As it happens, very little. Clever, bracing, darkly funny, and really, really good.” (Ta-Nehisi Coates)

“Inspired by real events, this espionage thriller ticks all the right boxes, delivering a sexually charged interrogation of both politics and race.” (Esquire)

“Echoing the stoic cynicism of Hurston and Ellison, and the verve of Conan Doyle, American Spy lays our complicities - political, racial, and sexual - bare. Packed with unforgettable characters, it’s a stunning book, timely as it is timeless.” (Paul Beatty, Man Booker Prize-winning author of The Sellout)

©2019 Lauren Wilkinson (P)2019 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

“An expertly written spy thriller...that tackles issues of politics, race, and gender.... Like the best of John le Carré, it’s extremely tough to put down. It marks the debut of an immensely talented writer who’s refreshingly unafraid to take risks, and has the skills to make those risks pay off.” (NPR)

“For the novel’s engaging intelligence and serious reckoning with the world’s postwar order, Wilkinson deserves the comparisons to John le Carré she’s already receiving. But in bringing a virtually unheard-from fictional viewpoint to espionage literature, she has reinvigorated the genre.” (Time)

“Lauren Wilkinson reminds us of a less-covered side of the Cold War with her debut set in 1986 Africa. FBI agent Marie Mitchell is stationed in Burkina Faso, and when she’s assigned to shadow Thomas Sankara, ‘Africa’s Che Guevara,’ the personal, political, and professional collide for her in unforgettable ways.” (The Washington Post)

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What listeners say about American Spy

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

A Spy Novel for Black folk.

I listened to the Audible version of this book and it was one of the most important and amazing experiences of my life. The most interesting thing about the book at its onset was the genuine style that the reader displayed. This book was interesting on so many levels, too many to write about at this very moment. I will say that the story itself is quite interesting and has a bit of a Tom Clancy style to it. I really enjoyed it and I hope that you will too. I spend a great deal of time listening to Audible versions of books because I have learned that sometimes hearing the right person read a book can dramatically improve your experience with that book. With this book I was able to hear the different French accents as well as the African dialects. You are able to hear the stress in the readers voice. You're able to visually see what that person is going through. all you have to do is close your eyes and listen. My review title of course is important; it is a spy novel for Black folk. I could be wrong and I hope that someone will comment and point me in the right direction but this is the first book I have ever read that starred a black international spy. I'm glad I got a chance to read and like I said earlier I hope you enjoy it too.

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19 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Bahni all the way

I chose this because it was on Obama's list, but I lost myself in all the political details and the ending leaves you hanging. I will listen to anything Bahni Turpin reads.

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14 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
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  • MH
  • 11-27-19

What a waste of time

This book starts with a scene that leads you to believe it will be full of action. Nope. As you read on you hope to gain insight into the characters. Doesn't happen. It's just a complete waste of time. I read this book for my book club and we were all very disappointed by it.

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11 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Wow! What a wonderful surprise.

Positively original historical fiction that you will not be able to put down. I'm blown away and will be eagerly awaiting the 2nd installment...please have a 2nd one!!! Oh and Bahni is amazing as always. I'll listen to anything she's reading and to be honest she's the reason I decided to give this a shot. So very happy I did.

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11 people found this helpful

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    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

A slow story with no big bang.

I liked the character development but so much of the story was drawn our over extra detail, I prefer my stories to be a little more exciting but who knows maybe this is the way it plays our in real life. After all spies can't all be Jame Bond or Jason Bourne. It was easy listening and I did not want to stop but I could walk away for several days and not miss the book. Sounds like the plot left wide open room for a squeal.

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7 people found this helpful

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    3 out of 5 stars
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Expected more...

The story was just “ok.” I expected much more from such a rich topic with the potential for excellence. There were many occasions were I got annoyed by the characters and “lag” in the plot development - and just wanted to get fast forward through. Telling the story as if reading from a journal did not manifest as fluidly as I imagine it was in the author’s concept. Bahni Turpin, again, was phenomenal in her narration. Probably the only reason I finished the story. Had it been anyone else, I would’ve stopped and returned the book.

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7 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Great book, presented amazingly

I now want to ready everything Bahni Turpin reads aloud!! She clearly understood every sentence that she read, and she trusted the listener. When there was dialogue, every voice - male or female - sounded natural and real. Ms. Turpin is brilliant!

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6 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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A book that your minds keeps coming back too

I wasn’t sure about this one at first, but as it goes on it’s brutally honest and vulnerable. One of those books that you miss when it’s finished.

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5 people found this helpful

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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The American Spy is smart

I love how the protagonist was smart and strong without being over-the-top. Wilkinson made her human without being superhuman. She is a mother, a daughter, a sister, and a friend just trying to do the right thing for her job and a lover trying to be real and be honest. Wilkinson writing is so fluid, and it's not preachy or braggadocios.

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5 people found this helpful

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    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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Big let down

This book started out so great and I was excited to read it. But it was a huge disappointment. What could’ve been an interesting and intriguing story turned out to be much ado about nothing.

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5 people found this helpful