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by Chris Pavone ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 6, 2012

A thoroughly competent and enjoyable thriller with unanticipated twists that will keep readers guessing till the end.

An impressive thriller by first-time novelist Pavone, with almost more double-crosses than a body can stand.

Dexter and Kate Moore move to Luxembourg with their two young children so Dexter can make a pile of money working as a security consultant for a bank. Unknown to him, Kate has been working for the CIA but has recently quit, disgusted by her role as an agent occasionally called on to terminate wayward enemies. In Luxembourg they meet Bill and Julia, an attractive couple with whom they begin to socialize, but, as in all good thrillers, nothing is as it seems. Bill and Julia are FBI agents hot on the trail of the seemingly innocuous and nerdy Dexter, whose knowledge of bank security—trying to find breaches in the system—also allows him to find cunning access points, and it seems he may have stolen €50 million. That her husband has a secret life he hasn’t been sharing surprises Kate...who, of course, also has a secret life she hasn’t been sharing. Kate pushes herself to try to find out whether Bill and Julia are right about Dexter or whether they’re trying to run a scam of their own, for it appears that Julia in particular is not to be trusted. The novel switches chronology from a series of flashbacks to how Kate and Dexter’s life unravels in Luxembourg and how Julia and Bill catch up with the Moores in Paris a year later. While Kate occasionally has to rely on former CIA contacts to help straighten out the mess she finds herself in, she shows herself quite capable of ruthlessness and venality.

Pub Date: March 6, 2012

ISBN: 978-0-307-95635-4

Page Count: 336

Publisher: Crown

Review Posted Online: Dec. 3, 2011

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2011

SUSPENSE | SUSPENSE | GENERAL THRILLER & SUSPENSE

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New York Times Bestseller

by Max Brooks ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 16, 2020

A tasty, if not always tasteful, tale of supernatural mayhem that fans of King and Crichton alike will enjoy.

Are we not men? We are—well, ask Bigfoot, as Brooks does in this delightful yarn, following on his bestseller World War Z (2006).

A zombie apocalypse is one thing. A volcanic eruption is quite another, for, as the journalist who does a framing voice-over narration for Brooks’ latest puts it, when Mount Rainier popped its cork, “it was the psychological aspect, the hyperbole-fueled hysteria that had ended up killing the most people.” Maybe, but the sasquatches whom the volcano displaced contributed to the statistics, too, if only out of self-defense. Brooks places the epicenter of the Bigfoot war in a high-tech hideaway populated by the kind of people you might find in a Jurassic Park franchise: the schmo who doesn’t know how to do much of anything but tries anyway, the well-intentioned bleeding heart, the know-it-all intellectual who turns out to know the wrong things, the immigrant with a tough backstory and an instinct for survival. Indeed, the novel does double duty as a survival manual, packed full of good advice—for instance, try not to get wounded, for “injury turns you from a giver to a taker. Taking up our resources, our time to care for you.” Brooks presents a case for making room for Bigfoot in the world while peppering his narrative with timely social criticism about bad behavior on the human side of the conflict: The explosion of Rainier might have been better forecast had the president not slashed the budget of the U.S. Geological Survey, leading to “immediate suspension of the National Volcano Early Warning System,” and there’s always someone around looking to monetize the natural disaster and the sasquatch-y onslaught that follows. Brooks is a pro at building suspense even if it plays out in some rather spectacularly yucky episodes, one involving a short spear that takes its name from “the sucking sound of pulling it out of the dead man’s heart and lungs.” Grossness aside, it puts you right there on the scene.

Pub Date: June 16, 2020

ISBN: 978-1-9848-2678-7

Page Count: 304

Publisher: Del Rey/Ballantine

Review Posted Online: Feb. 9, 2020

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2020

GENERAL SCIENCE FICTION & FANTASY | GENERAL THRILLER & SUSPENSE | SCIENCE FICTION

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by Max Brooks

BOOK TO SCREEN

THEN SHE WAS GONE

by Lisa Jewell ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 24, 2018

Dark and unsettling, this novel’s end arrives abruptly even as readers are still moving at a breakneck speed.

Ten years after her teenage daughter went missing, a mother begins a new relationship only to discover she can't truly move on until she answers lingering questions about the past.

Laurel Mack’s life stopped in many ways the day her 15-year-old daughter, Ellie, left the house to study at the library and never returned. She drifted away from her other two children, Hanna and Jake, and eventually she and her husband, Paul, divorced. Ten years later, Ellie’s remains and her backpack are found, though the police are unable to determine the reasons for her disappearance and death. After Ellie’s funeral, Laurel begins a relationship with Floyd, a man she meets in a cafe. She's disarmed by Floyd’s charm, but when she meets his young daughter, Poppy, Laurel is startled by her resemblance to Ellie. As the novel progresses, Laurel becomes increasingly determined to learn what happened to Ellie, especially after discovering an odd connection between Poppy’s mother and her daughter even as her relationship with Floyd is becoming more serious. Jewell’s ( I Found You , 2017, etc.) latest thriller moves at a brisk pace even as she plays with narrative structure: The book is split into three sections, including a first one which alternates chapters between the time of Ellie’s disappearance and the present and a second section that begins as Laurel and Floyd meet. Both of these sections primarily focus on Laurel. In the third section, Jewell alternates narrators and moments in time: The narrator switches to alternating first-person points of view (told by Poppy’s mother and Floyd) interspersed with third-person narration of Ellie’s experiences and Laurel’s discoveries in the present. All of these devices serve to build palpable tension, but the structure also contributes to how deeply disturbing the story becomes. At times, the characters and the emotional core of the events are almost obscured by such quick maneuvering through the weighty plot.

Pub Date: April 24, 2018

ISBN: 978-1-5011-5464-5

Page Count: 368

Publisher: Atria

Review Posted Online: Feb. 5, 2018

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2018

GENERAL THRILLER & SUSPENSE | SUSPENSE | FAMILY LIFE & FRIENDSHIP | SUSPENSE

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by Lisa Jewell

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Book summary and reviews of The Expats by Chris Pavone

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"Starred Review. An impressive thriller by first-time novelist Pavone, with almost more double-crosses than a body can stand... An enjoyable thriller with unanticipated twists that will keep readers guessing till the end." - Kirkus Reviews "Starred Review. The sheer amount of bombshell plot twists are nothing short of extraordinary, but it's Pavone's portrayal of Kate and her quest to find meaning in her charade of an existence that makes this book such a powerful read." - Publishers Weekly "Starred Review. Brilliant, insanely clever, and delectably readable, this debut thriller breaks the espionage genre bounds with its American-as-apple-pie heroine." - Library Journal "Starred Review. European locales, information on private banks and cybercrime, and the particulars of expats' quotidian but comfortable lives ooze verisimilitude. A must for espionage fans." - Booklist "I often thought I was reading the early works of Ken Follett, Frederick Forsyth, and Robert Ludlum. Smart, clever suspense, skillfully plotted - The Expats is a lot of fun to read." - John Grisham "Bristling with suspense and elegantly crafted, The Expats introduces a compelling and powerful female protagonist you won't soon forget. Well done!" - Patricia Cornwell

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Chris Pavone Author Biography

Chris Pavone is author of five international thrillers: The Expats (2012), The Accident (2014), The Travelers (2016), The Paris Diversion (2019), and Two Nights in Lisbon (2022). His novels have appeared on the bestseller lists of the New York Times , USA Today , Wall Street Journal , Washington Post , Chicago Tribune , and IndieNext ; have won both the Edgar and Anthony awards, and have been shortlisted for the Strand, Macavity, and Los Angeles Times Book Prize; are in development for film and television; and have been translated into two dozen languages. He has written for outlets including the New York Times Book Review and Magazine , the Telegraph , and Salon ; has appeared on Face the Nation , Good Day New York , All Things Considered , and the BBC; and has been profiled on the arts' front ...

... Full Biography Link to Chris Pavone's Website

Name Pronunciation Chris Pavone: puh-vo-KNEE

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The almost universal appeal of Chris Pavone’s debut novel slowly becomes evident as the reader is gently tugged and prodded and then gradually catapulted through its plot, word by word and page by page. It’s a thriller in the same way that Scott Turow’s PRESUMED INNOCENT is a courtroom drama; while both at their surface are easily classified as genre fiction, the truth goes deeper. At heart, THE EXPATS is about the depth of the secrets that are kept by and between husband and wife, together and from each other.

"The almost universal appeal of Chris Pavone’s debut novel slowly becomes evident as the reader is gently tugged and prodded and then gradually catapulted through its plot, word by word and page by page.... Look for THE EXPATS to be a spring and summer travel companion for vacationers everywhere."

At first, it seems that it’s Kate Moore who’s the holder of all the trick cards in her marriage with her husband, Dexter. To the world, Kate is a working mother whose job concerns something vague and intangible, having to do with writing position papers for the U.S. State Department.  In reality, she works for the federal government, but her job is far more interesting than shuffling papers across a desk.

Dexter, an expert in computer system security, is a smart guy and a dependable husband but is somewhat lacking in ambition. He could have made millions during the computer software bubble but for poor timing (“missed it by that much,” as Maxwell Smart used to say), though he is content to more or less dawdle along. Furthermore, he is not especially good looking; he is one of those guys who you see with his wife and wonder How did he land her ? All in all, Kate and Dexter’s lives aren’t bad, even though they have difficulty making ends meet. And, of course, there are Kate’s job-related secrets, which she fears will come back to haunt her one day.

Everything changes when Dexter is offered a lucrative job in Luxembourg, giving the Moores a chance to live in a new and exotic place and for Kate to quit her job --- her real one --- and reinvent herself. Unfortunately, the perfect life that she envisions never materializes. Dexter is working longer and longer hours for a secretive employer whose identity cannot be revealed due to what he refers to as “confidential issues.” Meanwhile, Kate is bored with being a full-time mother. Truth be told, she misses her old job. The exotic, cosmopolitan locale of their new home and their side trips to other destinations in Europe cannot make up for the drudgery of day-to-day housekeeping and the almost daily coffee klatches with the other ex-pat wives. Additionally, there is an incident from Kate’s past that  haunts her on a daily basis and threatens to turn her world upside down

That threat soon manifests itself in the form of another American couple who almost aggressively seeks Kate and Dexter’s friendship. Utilizing a skillset that is rusty but still reliable, Kate begins to do some investigating, not only of her new friends, but also of her own husband, whose behavior becomes more secretive by the day. She discovers fake offices, false records, and secret bank accounts containing staggering sums of money. As she slowly unravels the truth about Dexter, she finds that what she initially thought was a deception or two involves a long-range scheme that runs wider and deeper than she ever could have imagined and that she fears will swallow her family whole. She begins taking steps to avoid that, but her own past may well impede her efforts.

THE EXPATS is one of those (relatively) rare thriller novels that will appeal to men and women in equal measure. Everyone has secrets, many of which are kept for good reasons and differ from person to person, situation to situation. Anyone who has ever been in a personal relationship and kept a secret (or a carload of them) from their significant other will see themselves in Kate and Dexter, no matter how ordinary or mundane they might see their lives as being. The fact that it is set against the backdrop of several of Europe’s more sophisticated locales doesn’t hurt the story one bit, either. Look for THE EXPATS to be a spring and summer travel companion for vacationers everywhere.

Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub on March 23, 2012

The Expats by Chris Pavone

• Publication Date: January 22, 2013
• Genres: Fiction , Spy Fiction , Suspense , Thriller
• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Broadway
• ISBN-10: 0770435726
• ISBN-13: 9780770435721

CHRIS PAVONE

K ate Moore is a typical expat mom, newly transplanted from Washington DC to the quiet cobblestoned streets of Luxembourg. Her days are filled with coffee mornings and play-dates, her weekends with trips to Paris and Amsterdam. Kate is also guarding a tremendous, life-defining secret, one that’s becoming unbearable, indefensible. It’s also clear that another expat American couple are not really who they’re claiming to be; plus Kate’s husband is acting suspiciously. While she travels around Europe, looking for answers, she’s increasingly worried that her past is finally catching up with her. As Kate digs, and uncovers the secrets of the people who surround her, she finds herself buried in layers of deceit so thick they threaten her family, her marriage, and her life.

Praise for THE EXPATS

“I often thought I was reading early works of Ken Follett, Frederick Forsyth, and Robert Ludlum. Smart, clever suspense, skillfully plotted — The Expats is a lot of fun to read.” — JOHN GRISHAM

“Smartly executed . . . Pavone is full of sharp insights into the parallels between political espionage and marital duplicity . . .  Thoroughly captivating .” — NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW

“ Bristling with suspense and elegantly crafted , The Expats introduces a compelling and powerful female protagonist you won’t soon forget. Well done!” — PATRICIA CORNWELL

“ Impossible to put down . . . Pavone invokes memories of the great writers of spy fiction of the past, and he has the chops to be mentioned with the best of them.” — ASSOCIATED PRESS

“ Bombshell-a-minute . . . Pavone creates a fascinating, complicated hero.” — ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY

“Expertly and intricately plotted, with a story spiraling into disaster and a satisfyingly huge amount of double-crossing . . . An impressively assured entry to the thriller scene.” — THE GUARDIAN   (London)

“ Riveting . One of the most accomplished debuts of recent years: not just a worthy addition to the literature of espionage and betrayal, but a fine portrait of a marriage disintegrating under the pressure of secrets and lies.” — JOHN CONNOLLY

“ Sly . . . Pavone strengthens this book with a string of head-spinning revelations in its last pages . . . The tireless scheming of all four principals truly exceeds all sane expectations.” —J ANET MASLIN,  NEW YORK TIMES

“ A blast . . . a fantastic tale with action that spans the globe.” — DALLAS MORNING NEWS

“A meticulously plotted, psychologically complex spy thriller . . . The sheer amount of bombshell plot twists are nothing short of extraordinary, but it’s Pavone’s portrayal of Kate and her quest to find meaning in her charade of an existence that makes this book such a powerful read .” — PUBLISHERS WEEKLY   starred review

“A gripping spy drama and an artful study of the sometimes cat-and-mouse game of marriage.” — FAMILY CIRCLE

“ The Expats has got to be one of the best-written spy thrillers I’ve ever read . It captures in wonderful detail the texture of expatriate living while delivering a riveting story of great-game deceptions wrapped inside the smaller deceptions of marriage. At moments horrifying, hilarious, and very wise, The Expats has given Chris Pavone a permanent place on my short list of must-read authors.” — OLEN STEINHAUER

“A stunningly assured first novel . . . The juxtaposition of marital deceptions and espionage is brilliantly employed.” — BOOKLIST   starred review

“A truly riveting , corkscrewing plot of espionage and intrigue that raises questions of trust, loyalty, destiny, and justice. I devoured this book in one sitting, and finished it bedazzled in the ancient boulevards of modern Europe, wanting more.”— NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC

“ Brilliant , insanely clever, and delectably readable.” — LIBRARY JOURNAL   starred review

“ The Expats is a gem . Clever, suspenseful with a jet fueled story that rockets from one corner of the globe to another, it is never less than a thrill a minute. But what I liked best about Mr. Pavone’s novel was his wonderful evocations of the far-flung locales. I read the book with a bag packed and plane ticket in my hand! An absolute winner!” — CHRISTOPHER REICH

“ Superb . . .  An engineering marvel.” — RICHMOND TIMES-DISPATCH

“Hard to put down . . . as much a novel about a woman trying to balance a job, a husband and kids as it is a spy thriller.” — SAN FRANCISCO BAY GUARDIAN

“A thoroughly enjoyable thriller . . . Pavone masterfully layers all the action and deceit, the head games and plot twists, keeping the reader guessing.” — SUSPENSE

“Spy stories need to budge over to make space for Kate Moore—mother, wife, expat and ex-CIA operative. I loved her.” — ROSAMUND LUPTON

“ Refreshingly origina l . . . Part Ludlum in the pacing, part Le Carré in the complexity of story and character, but mostly Chris Pavone . . . You appreciate Pavone for crafting a thriller so good that you wonder what other ideas he has up his cloak, right alongside the obligatory dagger.” — NEWARK STAR-LEDGER

“In his debut novel, author Chris Pavone is firing on all cylinders. He slowly builds tension and methodically crafts a story with an end game that’s so elaborately executed, readers will shake their heads in awe and disbelief . . . the plot twists come fast and furious with the action building to a spectacular climax.” — KING FEATURES

“An impressive thriller by first-time novelist Pavone, with almost more double-crosses than a body can stand . . . A thoroughly competent and enjoyable thriller with unanticipated twists that will keep readers guessing till the end.” — KIRKUS REVIEWS  starred review

“One of the finest debut novels this readers has come upon in a long time . . . turn off the phone. Lock the door. You won’t want to be interrupted when this novel really heats up.” — HUDSON VALLEY NEWS

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The Expats by Chris Pavone – review

W hat would happen to an expert CIA agent, 15 years in the job, who gives it all up to be a stay-at-home mum, exchanging assassinations and double-dealing for playdates, coffee mornings and tennis lessons? That's the reality of life for Kate Moore in Chris Pavone 's debut, after her computer-geek husband Dexter accepts a job in Luxembourg and she decides that family is more important than work.

Her days pass "in a cold thick fog of kitchen mopping and grocery shopping and pot scrubbing" as Kate learns about the realities of 24/7 life with two small boys and no work to escape to – Lego, playgrounds, SpongeBob SquarePants . As Dexter works all hours at his mysterious new job in banking, she makes friends with other mothers, joins the American Women's Club of Luxembourg and meets an American couple, Julia and Bill Maclean. But Kate is bored – intensely, dangerously bored. So when she decides there's something off about the Macleans, she begins to investigate.

Kate can't tell if her suspicions are real or a delusion dreamed up to fill her empty life, "to have something to do. Anything." But the way the Macleans won't tell her anything concrete about their pasts, the way they keep turning up when her family is holidaying around Europe, means that all of a sudden she finds herself clinging to a windowsill outside Bill's office. And "this is where she belonged, up here on this ledge. This is what had been missing from her life".

Tension builds, notch by notch, as Kate uncovers deception buried beneath deception, lies inside lies. Nothing, even her family, is what it seems, and she is terrified that her own dirty past as a CIA operative is catching up with her.

Pavone, a former book publishing editor who lived in Luxembourg for two years with his family, has created a startlingly real heroine in Kate. She's a former spy with a talent for languages and maps, hand-to-hand combat and guns; an expert assassin, cold enough and capable enough to kill. But Kate is no cipher: she's also a fiercely loving mother and a wife who has kept her past secret from her husband all these years. And she's terrified when her two worlds start to collide. Cutting a tomato in half, the juices bleed on to a paper towel: "dark red tendrils reaching out, grabbing Kate's consciousness and dragging her back to a hotel room in New York City, a man lying on the floor, blood oozing from a crater in the back of his head, seeping into the pale carpeting in the same pattern as this tomato's juices, on this paper towel".

Expertly and intricately plotted, with a story spiralling into disaster and a satisfyingly huge amount of double crossing, The Expats certainly doesn't feel like a first novel. This is an impressively assured entry to the thriller scene.

• The Observer

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The Expats: A Novel by Chris Pavone

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER EDGAR AWARD WINNER  *  ANTHONY AWARD WINNER BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE ACCIDENT Can we ever escape our secrets? In the cobblestoned streets of Luxembourg, Kate Moore's days are filled with playdates and coffee mornings, her weekends spent in Paris and skiing in the ...

Introduction

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER EDGAR AWARD WINNER  *  ANTHONY AWARD WINNER BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE ACCIDENT Can we ever escape our secrets? In the cobblestoned streets of Luxembourg, Kate Moore's days are filled with playdates and coffee mornings, her weekends spent in Paris and skiing in the Alps. But Kate is also guarding a tremendous, life-defining secret—one that's become so unbearable that it begins to unravel her newly established expat life. She suspects that another American couple are not who they claim to be; her husband is acting suspiciously; and as she travels around Europe, she finds herself looking over her shoulder, increasingly terrified that her own past is catching up with her. As Kate begins to dig, to uncover the secrets of the people around her, she finds herself buried in layers of deceit so thick they threaten her family, her marriage, and her life.       Stylish and sophisticated, fiercely intelligent, and expertly crafted, The Expats proves Chris Pavone to be a writer of tremendous talent. Now with Extra Libris material, including a reader’s guide and bonus content

Editorial Review

A reader’s guide for the expats , a novel.

By Chris Pavone

In order to provide reading groups with the most informed and thought-provoking questions possible, it is necessary to reveal important aspects of the plot of this novel. If you have not finished reading The Expats , we respectfully suggest that you wait before reviewing this guide.

Hailed by Patricia Cornwell as “bristling with suspense” and praised by John Grisham as reminiscent of early novels by Ken Follett, Frederick Forsyth, and Robert Ludlum, The Expats garnered coast-to-coast acclaim, marking the debut of an unforgettable new voice in American fiction.

An international thriller, The Expats is the story of a seemingly ordinary working mom, Kate Moore, whose husband, Dexter, is offered a lucrative job in Luxembourg—a move that will unravel everything they believed about each other. Kate and Dexter have struggled to make ends meet, so they jump at the chance to start a new life abroad with the promise of rich rewards. But Kate has been leading a double life, and leaving America forces her to abandon her dangerous but heroic job. She soon discovers that it will be harder than she thought to shed her past, especially while coping with the weight of an unbearable secret. Dexter seems to be keeping secrets of his own, working long hours for a banking client whose name he can’t reveal. When another American couple befriends them, Kate begins to peel back the layers of deception that surround her, revealing a heart-stopping con that threatens her family, her marriage, and her life.

Sophisticated and expertly crafted, The Expats is set in some of Europe’s most enchanting locales, and races toward a provocative, startling conclusion. We hope this guide will enhance your experience of the pulse-pounding journey.

Questions and Topics for Discussion

1. How does Kate’s sense of self shift throughout the novel? In the end, how does she reconcile the roles of wife, mom, and adrenaline-seeking agent?

2. In chapter ten, on page ninety-three, Kate thinks about crossing an unspoken line that exists in many marriages: “You know the lines are there, you feel them: the things you don’t discuss. . . . You go about your business, as far away from these lines as possible, pretending they’re not there.” To what degree did Kate and Dexter deceive themselves, as much as they deceived each other? Is complete honesty realistic for most married couples?

3. After working hard to keep her own career a secret from Dexter, why is it hard for Kate to accept his secrecy about his job? Was she setting a double standard or just responding to her well-honed instincts?

4. What were your initial theories about Julia and Bill, and the “Today” scenes?

5. Kate was well suited to her job when she led a solitary life. What did the CIA give her in lieu of love? As she realizes that Dexter and her family are all she has, how does her understanding of love change?

6. What is Hayden’s role in Kate’s life? Do you have a Hayden to rely on?

7. How do Kate and Dexter feel about the power of breadwinners in a marriage? What does their story say about resenting a spouse who doesn’t seem to be contributing (Dexter in America) versus resenting a spouse who seems to be a workaholic (Dexter in Luxembourg)? In the end, which of the novel’s characters prove to be the most materialistic?

8. Kate is haunted by the Torres episode. How did this continue to define her decision making and actions years later? If you were ever in a situation like this, how far would you go to protect your family?

9. Dexter often cites human gullibility as a weakness in I.T. security. Discuss the characters who let their guard down for love, vanity, sex, wealth, or other lures. What ultimately makes Dexter gullible? Does his gullibility make him blameless?

10. As the plot began to unfold, which revelations surprised you the most? What truth was buried beneath the layers of deception?

11. The Expats delivers a highly realistic portrayal of female agents, motherhood, and strong women who outsmart men. What is the effect of knowing that the book was written by a man?

12. Does it matter that the Colonel was bloodthirsty? Do the ends justify the means?

13. What does the novel say about trust and how it is earned? What do Kate and Dexter discover about the strength of their trust for each other?

14. Discuss the life of expatriates in general—a role the author experienced when his wife accepted a job in Luxembourg. If you were to live abroad, where would you want to set up housekeeping? How do expats balance the fact that they’re foreigners with the need to feel at home? Would you enjoy close-knit communities of expat spouses, or would the lack of privacy be hard to handle?

Discussion Questions

Notes from the author to the bookclub, book club recommendations.

Recommended to book clubs by 4 of 6 members.

Member Reviews

enjoyed this book!

I love to travel, and reading The Expats was fun because of the foreign locales and international intrigue.

nooooo. others liked it.

I'd rate it between 3-4 stars. I liked the book but not quite as much as I thought I would. I never really bought into Kate, as ex-CIA. Lots of twists and turns, with some of them, I have to say, unconvincing.... (read more)

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Chris Pavone. Crown, $26 (336p) ISBN 978-0-307-95635-4

Reviewed on: 01/02/2012

Genre: Fiction

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Book review: ‘the expats’.

THE EXPATS By Chris Pavone Crown, $26, 336 pages THE CHILD WHO By Simon Lelic Penguin, $15, 320 pages

Kate Moore is the kind of woman who can kill, and who has killed, in-between being a mother to her two small sons and a wife to her rather nondescript husband, Dexter. Only one killing seems to haunt her, but she has been well trained to control her emotions.

So it is no surprise that she effortlessly dominates “The Expats,” a complicated tangle of a psychological thriller in which Chris Pavone weaves a web through which wriggle agents of the CIA, the FBI, Interpol, assorted war criminals and women who possess a talent for cold savagery in addition to good grooming.

When Kate relocates with her family to Luxemburg because of Dexter’s new and amorphous banking job, she also makes a major change in her own professional life. She has never told Dexter that she worked for 15 years as an operations officer for the CIA. Nor did she tell him that the job involved shooting people. She ostensibly cuts all ties with the agency although there are a few loopholes she can climb back thtough, as one might expect.

But the move to Luxembourg is not what she expected. She finds it boring to be plunged into domesticity, cooking, scrubbing and babysitting her two small sons. What she does find surprising is that she becomes more than curious about the new job of the previously predictable Dexter. He is so mysterious about his work and what it involves that it rouses her suspicion, a situation in which Kate presumably sees the irony that he might be involved in intelligence work.

It turns out that it’s worse than that. Dexter is being pursued by the FBI and Interpol on a case that appears to involve the embezzlement of $25 to $50 million Euros. Moreover, Julia and Bill, two expats who have made a point of befriending Kate, appear to be those chasing Dexter. As in most espionage mysteries, nothing is what it seems, and Dexter does turn out to have an explanation for his behavior tht is not as histrionic as it would appear.

But if there’s one thing Kate knows how to do it is dig out facts, and she has little else to occupy her mind. What she unravels is a scheme of remarkable complexity that is skilfully told but is still confusing. Mr. Pavone plunges around with a plot-load of surprises as everyone cons everyone else, and he moves smoothly between the mundane and the melodramatic. He has a nice touch with the denouement that has both Bill and Kate clutching their Berettas under the table as the details of a detente are worked out. The spinning of the plot is ingenious and Mr. Pavone has created a fascinating, faintly sinister character in Kate whose previous career will probably warrant another book.

Simon Lelic’s “The Child Who” is a book as unrelievedly grim as its topic: the bloody murder of a child by a child. The ghastly killing of a young girl by a young boy is almost matched by the utter misery of the 12-year-old killer and the ripples of the truly violent reaction that spread through the stricken families.

Dysfunctional families proliferate in Mr. Lelic’s pages. Lawyer Leo Curtice has saddled himself with the task of defending 12- year-old Daniel Blake, who has admitted killing 11-year-old Felicity Forbes. Even his teenage daughter Ellie wants to know why he would take on such a nightmare, and his wife Megan is concealing deep-seated family problems. The description of a stick used on a child’s body found mildewed and bound with wire from disused fairy lights is something you don’t want to read twice. Even Leo Curtice has trouble explaining his desire to defend what would seem to be the indefensible, especially when he begins to receive messages threatening his own estranged dauhter Ellie and communications break down with his wife.

Based on a real life crime in England, the book digs deep into the darkest side of human frailty. It is the kind of crime that makes a community explode in vengeful anger, and the Curtice family bears the brunt of the kind of rage that recognizes no reason.

Not even the sentencing of Daniel Blake assuages that rage because the legal system isn’t prepared to deal with a 12-year-old killer. And a new psychological nightmare overwhelms Curtice when his daughter disappears. There is no real resolution in such a situation, although the Curtices succeed in repairing their marriage when the truth about their daughter’s disappearance is finally told. Leo, the lawyer torn by a compassion he can neither understand nor explain, emerges as a tragic figure coping with horror, forced to realize the darkness that lies around him. Mr. Lelic is a strong, evocative writer capable of casting a grim light on what many would seek never to see. It is not a book for the squeamish.

• Muriel Dobbin is a former White House and national political reporter for McClatchy newspapers and the Baltimore Sun.

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You Won’t See The Expats Book Ending Coming

Nicole Kidman leads the new drama based on Janice Y. K. Lee’s novel.

It might be some time before fans get that much-anticipated third installment of Big Little Lies . But in the meantime, Nicole Kidman has a new drama about motherhood, trauma, and women’s relationships that you’ll be just as obsessed with.

Prime Video’s new drama Expats is based on Janice Y. K. Lee’s 2016 novel, The Expatriates . Kidman, Ji-young Yoo, and Sarayu Blue star as Margaret, Mercy, and Hilary, three American women living in Hong Kong, when a tragic event crashes them into each other’s orbit in surprising ways.

The series, which premiered on Jan. 26, is a weekly drop — so you’ll have to wait until the Feb. 23 finale to see the full-circle conclusion to the women’s stories. But you can skim ahead for an idea of what’s to come. To that end, here’s a spoiler-filled recap of the Expats book.

Meet The Expats

Margaret and her husband, Clarke, live in Hong Kong with their three children, Daisy, Philip, and their son, G. (The show changes G’s name to Gus.)

Hilary and her husband, David, have been trying for a child, but are growing apart. So, Hilary, who’s also friends with Margaret, considers adopting a son, Julian, as a single parent.

Mercy is a single woman in her 20s who moved to Hong Kong after college, and finds a job babysitting for Margaret’s family.

During a fateful trip to Seoul, Mercy is watching the kids on a busy street when G disappears. The 4-year-old boy can’t be found anywhere, and Margaret grieves his loss — while still holding out hope that she’ll find him.

A Domino Effect

Mercy spends the next year experiencing guilt and depression from the tragedy. She ultimately begins having an affair with David, who suddenly disappears from Hilary’s life. Mercy also begins dating Charlie, an acquaintance from college. But when she learns she’s pregnant with David’s child, she ends things with Charlie and decides to have the baby.

Meanwhile, Hilary decides to adopt Julian on her own. When she tells David this, he informs her of his affair and Mercy’s pregnancy.

Hilary and Margaret are catching up one day when they realize that the person who’s changed their lives so thoroughly is the same woman, Mercy.

Surprising Support

Margaret also emails Mercy (their first communication since G’s disappearance), and the women decide to meet for a meal. Both women are honest about their pain and seem to gain some closure from the experience.

Mercy soon gives birth to a daughter in the fall, nearly two years after the incident. Both Margaret and Hilary come to the hospital to show their support. It’s proof of the trio’s unusual bond, with each woman forging a very different path of motherhood.

This article was originally published on Jan. 26, 2024

Amazon Prime Video's Expats Ending & Spoilers from the Book, Explained

Amazon Prime Video's Expats is set to end differently from its source material in Janice Y.K. Lee's book, The Expatriates . 

Expats had a similar premise as The Expatriates where a case of a missing boy drastically affected the lives of three women. 

Despite the core similarity, considerable changes to the show's narrative could drastically alter its ending. 

Expats: How the Series Differs from the Book

One of the biggest differences between Expats and Janice Y.K. Lee's book is the setting where Gus (Connor James) went missing.

In the series, the boy got lost in the busy streets of Mong Kok in Hong Kong while he disappeared in a crowded area in Seoul, Korea in the book. 

Margaret even stayed behind for weeks in Seoul in the book while her family went back to Hong Kong. 

In Expats , Nicole Kidman's Margaret first met Mercy (Ji-young Yoo) on a private yacht while The Expatriates revealed that the pair were introduced through a mutual friend. 

The book also noted that Mercy had been looking over Margaret's kids several times before Gus went missing (In the series, the kid disappeared during Mercy's first stint as a nanny). 

Expats Episode 1 established Mercy and David's (Jack Huston) affair right off the bat and the next installments further dove into their relationship by taking a deep look at it. However, in the book, the pair only hooked up and there was no deeper connection. 

[ Expats: Do They Find Gus? Here's What Happened In the Book ]

Here’s How Expats Could End

Janice Y.K. Lee's book The Expatriates ended with a lot of twists and turns and could hint at where the Prime Video streaming series based upon it is going. 

Gus (who is named G in the book) was never found in the book, and his disappearance served as the anchor of Margaret, Mercy, and Hilary's story. 

Margaret continued to grieve her missing son and Hilary's plan of adopting a boy named Julian was disrupted after David confessed that he impregnated Mercy. 

The book's biggest focal point centered around Mercy, with the ending hammering down how crucial she is to the overarching story. 

The pregnancy led to her reconciliation with Margaret while it also helped Hilary move on by showing support to Mercy and the newborn child at the end. 

Some argued that Margaret and Hilary's support was shocking, but others pointed out that it was the book's way of showing that motherhood can change everything, acting as a fresh start for the main trio involved. 

Expats Episode 4's cliffhanger ending hinted at the expected trajectory of the show's ending. 

At the end of the installment, it was revealed that Mercy was pregnant and the body that the Shenzen Police Department found was not Gus. 

The fact that Clarke broke down even though the body was not Gus suggested that seeing a young boy dead was too much for him and it could hint that he had already given up to search for him. 

As for Margaret, though, her smile in the end teased that she would not stop clinging to the hope of seeing Gus again. 

Episode 5 could focus on Margaret's final quest to search for her son before ultimately giving up similar to how the book left the boy's fate unresolved. 

Mercy's pregnancy would then slowly take over the final two installments. 

The character could grapple with the idea of abortion or she could come to terms with having a child that could lead to her coming clean with Hilary over her affair with David. 

Mercy could also finally overcome the guilt and pain from Gus' disappearance which would lead to her seeking amends with Margaret. 

The pair could reconcile, with Margaret realizing that nobody (not even Mercy) wanted Gus to disappear and it was an accident. 

Sometimes, the only way to move forward is to accept the things that we can't control.  

The first four episodes of Expats are streaming on Prime Video. 

Check out Expat's remaining release schedule here !

Read more about Expats below:

Full Cast of Expats - Every Main Actor & Character In the Series (Photos)

Expats: Who Is Jenny? Margaret Connection Explained

Who Is Bodhi del Rosario? 5 Things to Know About Expats Star

Who Is Tiana Gowen? 5 Things to Know About Expats Actress

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Nicole Kidman leads an ensemble of privileged, disconnected American 'Expats'

Linda Holmes

Margaret (Nicole Kidman) is an expat American living in Hong Kong, grieving as a mother and a wife. Prime Video hide caption

Margaret (Nicole Kidman) is an expat American living in Hong Kong, grieving as a mother and a wife.

Nicole Kidman has done a lot of different things in film: she's been a horny schemer in Malice , a strong-willed young Irish immigrant in Far and Away , she was even Virginia Woolf in The Hours . But in television, she specializes in women who are rich and haunted. Haunted by a nightmarish marriage in Big Little Lies , haunted by the possibility that her husband is a murderer in The Undoing , and now haunted by a tragedy in Expats , the splashy Amazon series adapted from Janice Y.K. Lee's 2016 novel The Expatriates , about three American women who are not from Hong Kong, but live there.

Kidman plays Margaret, a landscape architect. When we meet her, Margaret seems to be in a fog, barely engaged with her son and daughter, or with her husband, Clarke (Brian Tee). Clarke's job is the reason the family has come from New York to Hong Kong, and at the opening of the series, he's secretly seeking comfort in a church because something bad has happened. When an innocent question about a child named "Gus" causes Margaret to flee a room, the nature of that something bad begins to emerge.

Hilary (Sarayu Blue) lives in the same fancy building as Margaret, and it's clear they've been friends, although now, there is tension between them. Margaret has hurt Hilary somehow, and Hilary is finding it difficult to reconcile. Hilary and her husband, David (Jack Huston), have been trying to have a baby around the edges of her busy professional life and his questionable trustworthiness. Their marriage is in trouble, in both ways Hilary knows about and ways she doesn't, yet.

Mercy (Ji-young Yoo) is a young woman working catering jobs who not infrequently finds herself explaining to people she meets that she isn't local, and isn't Korean but Korean American, and doesn't speak Cantonese. She provides a voiceover prologue to the series that makes it clear that she feels very guilty about something, and that she's having trouble moving on from it.

Production (sour) notes

At this point, it's worth taking a moment to note the lengthy and sometimes stormy history of this production. The Expatriates was published in 2016, and news that Nicole Kidman's production company had acquired the rights emerged in early 2017 — just before the premiere of Big Little Lies on HBO. The final major piece of the Expats puzzle slid into place in late December 2019, when Lulu Wang, just months after the release of her film The Farewell , came on board to direct, write and executive produce "multiple episodes."

During filming in 2021, Kidman and several crew members got an exemption allowing them to avoid the COVID quarantine rules that applied to everyone else upon arrival in Hong Kong. As The New York Times reported at the time, there was anger not only among the city's residents, but in its legislature . It was a bitter pill, it seems, that this production about rich outsiders who paid little attention to the lives of ordinary people in Hong Kong was being given a blessing to hand-wave regulations meant to protect those same ordinary people.

Lulu Wang (center) directs Ji-young Yoo and Nicole Kidman as Mercy and Margaret. Glen Wilson/Prime Video hide caption

Lulu Wang (center) directs Ji-young Yoo and Nicole Kidman as Mercy and Margaret.

Perhaps most important, filming was taking place — and airing is taking place — during a dangerous and painful time in Hong Kong's history. (It's a massive story defying a quick summary, but one recent update came from NPR's Emily Feng in December. The headline: "Beijing tightens its political grip on Hong Kong.") In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter , Wang talked about the fact that the show "interrogates privilege" and described how the show was shot during the pandemic. She did not, however, say much about filming and airing a show largely about oblivious rich people when this is the political backdrop.

Of course, given past reporting on how censorship has affected Amazon's content decisions in India , growing censorship laws in Hong Kong , and China's treatment of disfavored speech and groups (again, here's Emily Feng ), it's hard to believe Wang and the rest of the writers had anything like a free hand in dealing with politics while they shot in Hong Kong. And nobody seems eager to disclose what the limitations might have been.

If you can't say anything important, should you say nothing at all?

What there is of an effort to address the fraught politics of contemporary Hong Kong comes in the fifth episode, "Central." A double-length installment, it switches the focus to a set of characters we've never or rarely spent time with before: a couple of Hong Kong students, a rich Hong Kong woman who's trying to find a new "helper" for her house, and the two "helpers" who work for Margaret and Hilary's families. Essie (Ruby Ruiz) and Puri (Amelyn Pardenilla) are both Filipina, so they too are far from home, but their circumstances are very different from the ones Margaret and Hilary face. Over the course of one long night that includes a power outage, protests swell ... and then they rather quietly subside. Someone is arrested and it's worrying, but he's unharmed.

The series only occasionally takes a wider view of the city and its population, but the focus unfortunately remains too narrowly focused on a particular kind of expat struggle. Prime Video hide caption

The series only occasionally takes a wider view of the city and its population, but the focus unfortunately remains too narrowly focused on a particular kind of expat struggle.

Maybe it's better than nothing that Expats acknowledges the existence of the strife in Hong Kong, even if it does so very nonspecifically, focusing on the broader notion that there are protests and there is disruption, rather than saying much about what the protests are about. (Again, it's hard not to wonder whether a fairly dispassionate presentation of protests as a historical fact devoid of detail was a freely made choice.) But this episode feels attached to the series like a rabbit's foot to a keychain, more for the blessings it's supposed to bring than for its function. So, maybe it's not better than nothing. Maybe doubling down on the degree to which Hilary and Margaret, in particular, are ignoring the city under their feet would have made more sense.

Some of the early publicity around this series suggested that it was a satire. The book may well be a satire, but this series is not a satire. Margaret and Hilary are selfish, and the existence of the expats we meet implicates them in a variety of destructive systems as they throw parties and talk only to each other, enjoying the parts of life in Hong Kong that are pleasurable and avoiding the parts that are not. But mostly, Hilary and Margaret are presented as sympathetic, as our protagonists, guilty of excess but little culpability for their circumstances, much like the women in Big Little Lies . Kidman's gift for portraying the grief that Margaret tries to bury under a layer of ice isn't witty, quite; it's her pain that dominates.

The writing of the series cannot seem to lower its pH and satirize these women, or even to let go of any claim they might have to victimhood. Margaret's passing interest in news reports about crackdowns on protests is distasteful, but it's not connected to her story; it's just a flaw here, like a short temper. In individual moments, our three women — Hilary and Margaret at least — may be presented as insensitive, but that doesn't make the series an incisive critique of them. Sour milk does not satirize the dairy industry just because it tastes bad.

Mercy is a different story. Mercy is interesting, because while she's also an expat, she's quite a different kind. Yoo imbues her with complex, guilt-ridden believability, making her an outwardly confident young woman with an thick hide that she hobbles off to repair after something hurts her. It's the strongest performance in the series, and it's the one that holds up best under the strain of the show's uncertain footing.

Marriage, Privilege, Redux?

David (Jack Huston) and Hilary (Sarayu Blue) navigate a messy marriage. Jupiter Wong/Prime Video hide caption

David (Jack Huston) and Hilary (Sarayu Blue) navigate a messy marriage.

The most perplexing thing about Expats is that its story has almost nothing to do with the fact that these women are expats. You could pack up this series and fly it to Manhattan, tell the same core stories about these three women (Margaret's loss, Mercy's guilt, Hilary's marriage), and change ... almost nothing. In fact, you could ship it to Monterey to be the third season of Big Little Lies , and it would have a lot in common with the other seasons (tragedy, guilt, marriage).

Perhaps in an effort to avoid saying the wrong thing about expats, or about Hong Kong, Expats winds up saying nothing about those things at all. The insularity of a woman living abroad who doesn't speak the local language is a perhaps ironic mirror of the insularity of a story that doesn't take much notice of its setting other than as scenery.

There was probably a different vision for this show at some point. A vision of it as glamorous and gorgeous and darkly funny (darkly funny like The Farewell was), making affluent people who are expats or even just tourists squirm in recognition. But along the way, it became something far less interesting than that: a good-looking rich-people melodrama. Moreover, it's a project that invites you, right from its title, to be bewildered by its indifference to life in Hong Kong. It's like showing up at a billionaire's house and taking 100 pictures of the koi pond from every angle, while the house is burning down behind you. There's nothing wrong with the photos you've taken, but there is the feeling you could have captured something far more worthy of your attention by just turning your head.

• nicole kidman

Review: 'Expats' raises the bar beyond the superficial gloss of watching the rich enjoying their privileges

There is so much right with "Expats."

There is so much right with "Expats," the six-part series now streaming on Amazon Prime, that its false notes don't snap you out of its relentlessly haunting spell. At least not entirely. Such is the talent of Beijing-born Lulu Wang, the series creator whose skill with family dynamics among immigrants found sublime expression in her Awkwafina-starring 2019 feature, "The Farewell."

Based on "The Expatriates," the 2016 novel by Janice Y. K. Lee, "Expats" takes its sweet time laying the groundwork for the shocking surprises it intends to spring, but once in, you'll be totally hooked. The resplendent "Big Little Lies" Emmy winner Nicole Kidman is utterly transfixing as Margaret, the Queen Bee among the elites of Hong Kong.

When we meet Margaret in the first episode she is busily arranging a 50th birthday bash for her husband Clarke Woo (Brian Tee), the man whose career she put ahead of her own job as a landscape architect in New York . For now, she lets her resentment simmer underneath.

There's something more devastating fueling Margaret's discontent. A year ago, her youngest son Gus (Connor James) went missing (or was he kidnapped?) in a crowded street market whose circumstances aren't fully detailed until episode 2. But the tension is palpable.

Margaret basically cedes the care of their daughter Daisy (Tiana Gowen) and older son Philip (Bodhi del Rosario) to the family's Filipino helper, Essie (the outstanding Ruby Ruiz), a live-in housekeeper beloved by the kids but resented by Margaret, who wonders why Philip has crafted a drawing of Gus holding hands with Jesus.

MORE: Review: 'Anatomy of a Scandal' features exhilirating performances

Margaret reaches out to her expat neighbor and bestie, the India-born Hilary (a smart, sassy and mysterious Sarayu Blue), who hasn't been the same since her unfaithful husband David (Jack Huston doing smarmy to perfection) revealed secrets implicating him in the disappearance of Gus. The plot doesn't just thicken, it boils over.

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The party for Clarke is meant as a tentative return to normalcy. Good luck with that. At the celebration, Margaret loses it when she spots Mercy (Ji-young Yoo), the young Korean-American babysitter she entrusted with Gus, as a caterer. As you might guess, an explosion is not far off.

In the second episode, we encounter Margaret, Hilary, Mercy and David in the carefree days before tragedy. Pay careful attention and you'll see the seeds of what's to come. Interestingly, "Expats" is about privileged people who don't pay attention at all. Margaret and her friends barely notice the students of the Umbrella Movement protesting China's civil-rights abuses.

In "Central," the extraordinary fifth episode that runs a feature-length 97 minutes, mostly in pouring rain, Wang pushes past the elites to focus on those who serve with little in return. On her day off, Essie is still caught up in the turmoil of her bickering employers. "You're family," Margaret tells Essie. But is she? Ruiz's expressive face is a map of a conflict not her own.

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At other times, the women play games and gossip about the singing competition for which Hilary's housekeeper, Puri (a superb Amelyn Pardenilla), is auditioning. "You're a good friend, " Hilary tells Puri, who knows she is a servant beyond all else.

In these scenes, where Hong Kong itself becomes a character and a symbol of dislocation, "Expats" raises the bar beyond the superficial gloss of watching the rich enjoying their privileges. Suddenly, the drama is relatable and riveting, a sign of what this uneven series could have been if Wang followed her riskier instincts.

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The Expats: A Novel Kindle Edition

• Book 1 of 2 Kate Moore Series
• Print length 498 pages
• Language English
• Sticky notes On Kindle Scribe
• Publisher Crown
• Publication date March 6, 2012
• File size 2528 KB
• Page Flip Enabled
• Word Wise Enabled
• Enhanced typesetting Enabled
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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com review, a reader’s guide for the expats , a novel.

In order to provide reading groups with the most informed and thought-provoking questions possible, it is necessary to reveal important aspects of the plot of this novel. If you have not finished reading The Expats , we respectfully suggest that you wait before reviewing this guide.

Introduction

Hailed by Patricia Cornwell as “bristling with suspense” and praised by John Grisham as reminiscent of early novels by Ken Follett, Frederick Forsyth, and Robert Ludlum, The Expats garnered coast-to-coast acclaim, marking the debut of an unforgettable new voice in American fiction.

An international thriller, The Expats is the story of a seemingly ordinary working mom, Kate Moore, whose husband, Dexter, is offered a lucrative job in Luxembourg—a move that will unravel everything they believed about each other. Kate and Dexter have struggled to make ends meet, so they jump at the chance to start a new life abroad with the promise of rich rewards. But Kate has been leading a double life, and leaving America forces her to abandon her dangerous but heroic job. She soon discovers that it will be harder than she thought to shed her past, especially while coping with the weight of an unbearable secret. Dexter seems to be keeping secrets of his own, working long hours for a banking client whose name he can’t reveal. When another American couple befriends them, Kate begins to peel back the layers of deception that surround her, revealing a heart-stopping con that threatens her family, her marriage, and her life.

Sophisticated and expertly crafted, The Expats is set in some of Europe’s most enchanting locales, and races toward a provocative, startling conclusion. We hope this guide will enhance your experience of the pulse-pounding journey.

Questions and Topics for Discussion

1. How does Kate’s sense of self shift throughout the novel? In the end, how does she reconcile the roles of wife, mom, and adrenaline-seeking agent?

2. In chapter ten, on page ninety-three, Kate thinks about crossing an unspoken line that exists in many marriages: “You know the lines are there, you feel them: the things you don’t discuss. . . . You go about your business, as far away from these lines as possible, pretending they’re not there.” To what degree did Kate and Dexter deceive themselves, as much as they deceived each other? Is complete honesty realistic for most married couples?

3. After working hard to keep her own career a secret from Dexter, why is it hard for Kate to accept his secrecy about his job? Was she setting a double standard or just responding to her well-honed instincts?

4. What were your initial theories about Julia and Bill, and the “Today” scenes?

5. Kate was well suited to her job when she led a solitary life. What did the CIA give her in lieu of love? As she realizes that Dexter and her family are all she has, how does her understanding of love change?

6. What is Hayden’s role in Kate’s life? Do you have a Hayden to rely on?

7. How do Kate and Dexter feel about the power of breadwinners in a marriage? What does their story say about resenting a spouse who doesn’t seem to be contributing (Dexter in America) versus resenting a spouse who seems to be a workaholic (Dexter in Luxembourg)? In the end, which of the novel’s characters prove to be the most materialistic?

8. Kate is haunted by the Torres episode. How did this continue to define her decision making and actions years later? If you were ever in a situation like this, how far would you go to protect your family?

9. Dexter often cites human gullibility as a weakness in I.T. security. Discuss the characters who let their guard down for love, vanity, sex, wealth, or other lures. What ultimately makes Dexter gullible? Does his gullibility make him blameless?

10. As the plot began to unfold, which revelations surprised you the most? What truth was buried beneath the layers of deception?

11. The Expats delivers a highly realistic portrayal of female agents, motherhood, and strong women who outsmart men. What is the effect of knowing that the book was written by a man?

12. Does it matter that the Colonel was bloodthirsty? Do the ends justify the means?

13. What does the novel say about trust and how it is earned? What do Kate and Dexter discover about the strength of their trust for each other?

14. Discuss the life of expatriates in general—a role the author experienced when his wife accepted a job in Luxembourg. If you were to live abroad, where would you want to set up housekeeping? How do expats balance the fact that they’re foreigners with the need to feel at home? Would you enjoy close-knit communities of expat spouses, or would the lack of privacy be hard to handle?

About the Author

Excerpt. © reprinted by permission. all rights reserved., product details.

• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B005NKGEP2
• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Crown; Reprint edition (March 6, 2012)
• Publication date ‏ : ‎ March 6, 2012
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• File size ‏ : ‎ 2528 KB
• Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
• Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
• Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
• X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
• Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
• Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
• Print length ‏ : ‎ 498 pages
• #184 in Financial Thrillers (Kindle Store)
• #467 in Financial Thrillers (Books)
• #602 in Political Thrillers & Suspense

About the author

Chris pavone.

CHRIS PAVONE is author of of five international thrillers, beginning with the The Expats in 2012, and most recently Two Nights in Lisbon. Chris's novels have appeared on the bestseller lists of the New York Times, USA Today, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, and IndieNext; have won both the Edgar and Anthony awards, and have been shortlisted for the Strand, Macavity, and Los Angeles Times Book Prize; are in development for film and television; and have been translated into two dozen languages.

He has written for outlets including the New York Times Book Review and Magazine, the Telegraph, and Salon; has appeared on Face the Nation, Good Day New York, All Things Considered, and the BBC; and has been profiled on the arts’ front page of the New York Times. He is a member of PEN, the Authors Guild, International Thriller Writers, and Mystery Writers of America, for which he has served as an Edgars judge.

Chris grew up in Brooklyn, graduated from Midwood High School and Cornell University, and worked in publishing for nearly two decades at Dell Magazines, Doubleday, the Lyons Press, Regan/HarperCollins, Clarkson Potter, and Artisan/Workman, in positions ranging from copy editor and managing editor to executive editor and deputy publisher; he also wrote a (mostly blank) book about wine, and ghost-wrote a couple of nonfiction books. Then his wife got a job in Luxembourg, and the family moved abroad, where Chris raised their twin boys and started writing The Expats. They now live again in New York City and on the North Fork of Long Island with an Australian Labradoodle named Wally.

Customer reviews

• 5 star 4 star 3 star 2 star 1 star 5 star 34% 35% 21% 6% 4% 34%
• 5 star 4 star 3 star 2 star 1 star 4 star 34% 35% 21% 6% 4% 35%
• 5 star 4 star 3 star 2 star 1 star 3 star 34% 35% 21% 6% 4% 21%
• 5 star 4 star 3 star 2 star 1 star 2 star 34% 35% 21% 6% 4% 6%
• 5 star 4 star 3 star 2 star 1 star 1 star 34% 35% 21% 6% 4% 4%

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Customers say

Customers find the book very hard to put down. They also appreciate the good descriptions of foreign locales and unusual setting. Opinions are mixed on the writing style, plot, entertainment value, characterization, and realism. Some find the writing fantastic and descriptive, while others find it difficult to follow. They disagree on the entertainment value and characterization. Some customers find the characters well-developed and believable, while other find them implausible and unrealistic. They differ on the pacing, with some finding it fast-paced and others finding it slow-paced.

AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

Customers find the setting intriguing, suspenseful, and well-thought-out. They also appreciate the international settings and excellent vocabulary. Readers also mention the idea of the book is very interesting and can't wait to get started.

"...Lots of verisimilitude and a good sense of place . The plot was also fast and well-paced...." Read more

"...The love affair with European places and details . Fantastic descriptive writing, and one becomes wrapped in the sense of place...." Read more

"...If you're interested in the nature of American expat life, the book is enlightening ...." Read more

"This is a great debut novel. It really appealed to me. I loved the setting in Europe with much of it taking place in Paris, my favorite city...." Read more

Customers find the book very hard to put down, but easy to follow. They also say the initial setup is interesting and the writing is good. They say the last quarter of the book was worth the patience.

"...The pieces fall into place neatly , one after the other - a lot of the enjoyment I got out of the book was trying to second-guess where this was going..." Read more

"...And super plot - kept me engrossed, tough to put down . Strongly recommended." Read more

"Great plot twists — a must read. Very hard to put down . CIA. FBI. Strong Female Protagonists. Strongly recommend you buy it." Read more

"Good read, full of plot twists and turns. Once in the story difficult to put down . Recommend to anyone looking for an interesting story." Read more

Customers are mixed about the plot. Some find the twists great, escapist, and intense. They also say the final reveal is a genuine surprise and the ending makes it worth the time. However, others say the plot becomes too far-fetched, gimmicky, and sloppy. They find the book tedious and predictable.

"...And the final reveal was a genuine surprise ." Read more

"...I liked how true the family details rang and the whole issue of trust versus silence between her and her husband...." Read more

"...It's too gimmicky and usually just a sloppy way to tell a story , but Chris Pavone has done a masterful job of using all of these cuts in time to..." Read more

"Not a fast read, not slow, but intense and excellent. Very good vocabulary, descriptions, characters...." Read more

Customers are mixed about the writing style. Some mention that it's fantastic descriptive writing, with a strong female narrator and a high level of ambience. They also say that Paris and Luxembourg are described in visual detail, and the author provides enough clues so that the reader can solve the mysteries. However, others say that the novel's structure is difficult to follow, with endless and wordy descriptions of routine events. They find it poorly written and difficult to assemble the puzzle pieces at times. However the author gets serious and the flash back is a killer in more than one book.

"...Kate makes for a perfectly strong heroine and the other supporting characters are well developed...." Read more

"...The plot was also fast and well-paced. A little hard to assemble the puzzle pieces at times, but that's the nature of thriller plots...." Read more

"...Very good vocabulary, descriptions , characters. And super plot - kept me engrossed, tough to put down. Strongly recommended." Read more

"...I also found the novel's structure somewhat difficult to follow : action takes place on three levels: today (Paris), a year or so ago (Luxembourg),..." Read more

Customers have mixed opinions about the characterization of the book. Some find it gripping with well-developed characters, while others say it's trite, stupidly plotted, and has implausible characters.

"...Kate makes for a perfectly strong heroine and the other supporting characters are well developed ...." Read more

"...The characters were a little weaker ...." Read more

"...I actually found Kate to be a very believable and relatable character ...." Read more

"...But then she goes all soft and sappy and uncharacteristically female , reverting to what the author assumes are inherent female attributes...." Read more

Customers are mixed about the entertainment value of the book. Some find it entertaining enough, with an engaging atmosphere in European cities. They also mention that the characters are flawed and there's a humorous thread about the rivalry and lack of trust between the FBI and CIA. However, others say that it's boring, repetitive, and bogs down the excitement. They feel that the author wastes the reader's time with endless and wordy descriptions of routine.

"It is hard to believe that this very confidently and highly entertaining book is Chris Pavone's debut novel...." Read more

"...The author wastes the reader's time with endless and wordy descriptions of routine/mundane events...." Read more

" Fun , well researched places and characters mostly consistent with their developed personalities which included some rough and accurate spycraft...." Read more

"...OK, so why is EX boring , and nowhere close to being a good spy novel? Or crime fiction novel? Or however you want to label it. Three reasons...." Read more

Customers are mixed about the pacing. Some find it fast paced and a quick read, while others say it's a little slow in the beginning and the plot takes forever to develop.

"...The plot was also fast and well-paced . A little hard to assemble the puzzle pieces at times, but that's the nature of thriller plots...." Read more

"...The book started slowly , but by the end I couldn't put it down." Read more

" Not a fast read , not slow, but intense and excellent. Very good vocabulary, descriptions, characters...." Read more

"...The plot takes forever to develop . 3) The continuous stream of flashbacks is both tedious and distracting...." Read more

Customers are mixed about the realism. Some mention that the characters are believable, while others say they're not. They also say the book is gimmicky and sloppy, with unsatisfactory endings. Readers also find the characterization in the book does not work for them, and the foreshadowing is poorly done.

"...In fact, as a rule, I am officially sick of them. It's too gimmicky and usually just a sloppy way to tell a story, but Chris Pavone has done a..." Read more

"...Kate was not believable as a CIA field agent , unless incompetency is part of the job requirements...." Read more

"...me of The Americans at its best, but with an internal viewpoint that is perfectly believable ...." Read more

"...And the denouement is really unsatisfactory . So . . . 3 stars." Read more

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Children’s Books

The Children’s Fantasy Novel That Flew Off Britain’s Shelves

“Impossible Creatures” has prompted comparisons to Tolkien, Lewis and Pullman, but action, not awe, is Katherine Rundell’s strong suit.

Cover illustration for “Impossible Creatures.” Credit... Ashley Mackenzie

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By Laura Miller

Laura Miller is a books and culture columnist for Slate and the author of “The Magician’s Book: A Skeptic’s Adventures in Narnia.”

• Aug. 23, 2024
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IMPOSSIBLE CREATURES , by Katherine Rundell. Illustrated by Ashley Mackenzie.

Katherine Rundell, a fellow of St. Catherine’s College at Oxford, belongs to that university’s longstanding tradition of combining scholarship — her biography of John Donne, “Super-Infinite,” won the Baillie Gifford Prize — with writing beloved children’s fiction. “Impossible Creatures,” Rundell’s sixth novel for middle grade readers, became an instant best seller in her native Britain when it was published last year and has garnered numerous awards, including the Waterstones Book of the Year.

The novel begins as Christopher Forrester is packed off to stay at his grandfather’s estate at the foot of a steep hill in Scotland, little realizing that the hill contains a portal to a magically sequestered portion of the world called the Archipelago, islands inhabited by creatures from assorted mythologies. In a parallel story, Mal Arvorian, a girl born in the Archipelago and able to fly thanks to an enchanted coat, investigates signs that the islands’ magic, or glimourie, is fading. This endangers all the unicorns, mermaids, kankos and other fabulous creatures — including her pet, a baby griffin — who need glimourie to survive. Mal enlists Christopher in a journey to find the source of the diminishment. Soon, their party expands to include a surly ship’s captain, an oceanographer and a talking horned squirrel who serves as navigator.

The first book in a series, “Impossible Creatures” marks a departure for Rundell. Her previous novels have their fanciful elements, but this is her first work of fantasy. Oxford’s history of producing illustrious children’s fantasy authors has prompted comparisons of Rundell to J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis and Philip Pullman, but fantasy doesn’t feel like a natural fit for her. Rundell’s true antecedent is Robert Louis Stevenson, another author of thrilling yarns presented in confident, richly colored yet sleek prose.

In Rundell’s “The Explorer,” children survive a plane crash in the Amazon rainforest by building a raft and learning how to eat tarantulas. The heroine of the sublime “Rooftoppers” discovers a secret community of orphans living on the rooftops of Paris, including a boy who never sets foot on the streets and makes a waterproof tent out of pigeon feathers. In “The Good Thieves,” a professional pickpocket and two circus performers help a girl burgle the mansion of a mobbed-up robber baron in Prohibition-era New York.

Such doings may be improbable, but they’re not impossible, and much of the delight to be found in Rundell’s novels comes from the ingenuity and resourcefulness of her child characters when faced with the daunting constraints of reality. “Children have been underestimated for hundreds of years,” an old woman argues in “Impossible Creatures,” articulating a common theme in Rundell’s work. Another is the stifling demands of decorum, especially when imposed on Rundell’s wild, tomboy girls. Mal’s great-aunt and guardian (like many of Rundell’s protagonists, she’s an orphan) forbids “an immense, book-length list of things,” prohibitions Mal routinely defies. Christopher’s father (his mother is dead) is afraid of almost everything.

These complaints barely register before the plot of “Impossible Creatures” kicks into gear with a hired killer forcing Mal from her home and Christopher plunging through a passage in a lake and into the Archipelago. All this happens so hastily that the wonder of Rundell’s premise never has a chance to fully bloom.

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