Aubrey Nye Hamilton Reviews: Desperate Spies by Mark de Castrique

  

North Carolina native Mark de Castrique is an award-winning veteran of the broadcast and film business. In Washington DC, he directed news and public affairs programs and now produces videos for private sector clients.

He’s written two dozen novels, mostly thrillers and mysteries including the Blackman Agency Investigations series, the Buryin’ Barry series, and some stand-alone novels. He displays his knowledge of US government operations in The Secret Lives series. In Book 3, Desperate Spies (Severn House, November 2025), Ethel Fiona Crestwater, a retired FBI agent who now rents rooms in her Arlington, Virginia, house to government agents, and Ethel’s double first cousin twice removed Jesse Cooper return for another hair-raising adventure.

Ethel’s last case as an active FBI agent resulted in a shootout. She killed a suspected Russian spy after he shot an accidental bystander, a college student; Ethel received a serious injury in return. Now, 18 years later, her victim’s brother is out of prison and planning to kill her in retribution. The father of the college student, Tony Bagatelos, is a lawyer with Mafia ties. He is also the attorney for Herman Wilkes, the senior senator from New York who is facing ethics charges over campaign contributions. Bagatelos has approached the FBI to become a confidential informant. He wants to turn over important information but will only give it to Ethel because he always believed he owed a debt to the person who stopped his daughter’s killer.

The FBI doesn’t know what the information Bagatelos is offering is about: the senator, who is suspected of shady dealings, the Mafia, or perhaps something else. But Ethel agrees to meet with the lawyer at a crowded shopping mall, where he gives her a thumb drive and promises more information to come. Upon returning to his car, Bagatelos is stabbed and dies on the floor of the parking garage. The security cameras did not capture the assailant clearly and the license plates turned out to be stolen.

The thumb drive held two pieces of information about classified advances in quantum computing that Bagatelos shouldn’t have had. The resulting puzzle is a complex morass of technology, cybersecurity, politics, spycraft, and police detection with Ethel and Jesse in the middle of it all.

Another well-written, fast-moving story about an indefatigable woman who believes in keeping her friends and who doesn’t believe in retirement. The measures described that countries will employ to get ahead of its nation-state competitors in technology reminds me of the Space Race from the 1960s. Readers familiar with the DC metro area will enjoy traveling through recognizable streets and neighborhoods.

Parts of the story are just too realistic to be funny. The thread with the two agencies who get crosswise with each other while trolling on the internet for potential spies and cyber criminals would be hilarious if it didn’t sound so credible. The senator with slipping acuity surrounded by staff who are desperate to hold onto their power base could be any one of several real-life political figures.

It's a pleasure to have the opportunity to see Ethel and Jesse in action again, although I found this story more serious than the previous two. Recommended.

·         Publisher: ‎ Severn House

·         Publication date: ‎ November 4, 2025

·         Language: ‎ English

·         Print length: ‎ 240 pages

·         ISBN-10: ‎ 1448316707

·         ISBN-13: ‎ 978-1448316700

 

 

Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/4nLGfuJ

 

 

Aubrey Nye Hamilton ©2025

Aubrey Hamilton is a former librarian who works on Federal It projects by day and reads mysteries at night.

Aubrey Nye Hamilton Reviews: Dangerous Women by Mark de Castrique

Mystery writer Mark de Castrique is a veteran of the broadcast and film production business. In Washington DC, he directed news and public affairs programs and received an Emmy Award for his documentary film work.

He’s written a number of thrillers and mysteries including the Blackman Agency Investigations series, the Buryin’ Barry series, and some stand-alone novels. In Secret Lives (Poisoned Pen Press, 2022) he introduced Ethel Fiona Crestwater, a seventy-five-year-old retired FBI agent who now rents rooms in her Arlington, Virginia, house to FBI and Secret Service agents, and Crestwater’s double first cousin twice removed Jesse.

Crestwater returns in Dangerous Women (Poisoned Pen Press, 2023) when one of her boarders is injured in what appears to be a mugging gone wrong. Her companion is killed and his backpack with laptop and papers from their office is taken, but a wallet full of cash remained. Both were law clerks to Supreme Court justices; a high-visibility case with far-reaching environmental and energy impacts is under consideration by the jurists. The decision is expected imminently; the outcome is being watched by Native Americans, ranchers, mineral rights groups, fossil fuels special interest groups, and dozens of associated factions. It wasn’t hard to reach the conclusion that someone tried to find out how the decision might be trending and went too far.

The attack took place in the District of Columbia but it involved the Supreme Court, which has its own police force. The question of jurisdiction was being debated when Crestwater alerted the Director of the FBI, who used to be one of her roomers, and he decided that the FBI would lead the investigation, since the crime appeared to affect Federal executives and cross state lines. Crestwater as usual ignored them all and dove headfirst into the deep political waters roiling around the investigation.

This is a dynamic, tightly plotted political thriller. The issues under consideration are timely and relevant. The combination of Crestwater and her much younger cousin is positively inspired. He provides enthusiasm and energy, and she has decades of investigative experience and knowledge of the government to draw on. Propulsive action and crisp writing raise the caliber of this book to above the ordinary, as does the insider knowledge on display. Natives to DC and Arlington will appreciate the references to the streets and the landmarks of the region. Fans of the Joe DeMarco series by Mike Lawson should definitely take a look at this book. Starred review from Publishers Weekly.

The third book in the series is scheduled for release in fall 2025.

·         Publisher: ‎Poisoned Pen Press (October 24, 2023)

·         Language: ‎English

·         Paperback: ‎320 pages

·         ISBN-10: ‎1728258332

·         ISBN-13: ‎978-1728258331 

 

Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/3VAveQX 

 

Aubrey Nye Hamilton ©2024

 

Aubrey Hamilton is a former librarian who works on Federal It projects by day and reads mysteries at night.

Lesa's Book Critiques: DANGEROUS WOMEN BY MARK DE CASTRIQUE

 Lesa's Book Critiques: DANGEROUS WOMEN BY MARK DE CASTRIQUE

Aubrey Nye Hamilton Reviews: Secret Lives by Mark de Castrique

Mystery writer Mark de Castrique is a veteran of the broadcast and film production business. In Washington DC, he directed news and public affairs programs and received an Emmy Award for his documentary film work.

He’s written a number of thrillers and mysteries including the Blackman Agency Investigations series, the Buryin’ Barry series, and some stand-alone novels. In Secret Lives (Poisoned Pen Press, 2022) he introduces Ethel Fiona Crestwater, a seventy-five-year-old retired FBI agent who now rents rooms in her Arlington, Virginia, house to active FBI and Secret Service agents and who runs circles around her boarders, literally and figuratively.

Ethel has just rented a room to her only relative Jesse, a double first cousin twice removed, while he attends a local university. A running joke in the story is the way she always introduces him with his full relationship to her, not just cousin but double first cousin twice removed.

Jesse is up at 4:30 in the morning FaceTiming with his girlfriend who is attending university in London, when he hears gunshots outside his window. He sees one figure on the ground and two running away. He dashes to the scene where Ethel joins him after calling the police and an ambulance. They both recognize the victim as another of Ethel’s boarders, who lives in Richmond but stays with Ethel when he has temporary duty in the National Capitol Region.

Thus begins a complicated tale of murder, theft, and deceit involving millions of dollars in counterfeit money and cryptocurrency. Along the way the reader is treated to a thorough explanation of how cryptocurrency works and why it is such a dubious commodity.

Law enforcement jurisdiction over the murder gets a lot of play. It took place in Arlington County but the victim was a Secret Service agent who had worked a joint operation with the FBI. All three groups agree to work together but naturally pursue private Agency interests. I had trouble keeping all of the factions separate. Ethel had long-running associations with all three and she tailors what she tells each one carefully while she runs her own investigation.

Anyone who has lived in the Washington, DC, region will recognize the many local landmarks cited in the book.

Ethel is a fine addition to the ranks of Mrs. Pollifax, Sister Jane Arnold, Victoria Trumbull, and the many other senior sleuths who remind mystery readers that age does not limit detective skills.

The next book in the series, Dangerous Women, is scheduled for publication in October 2023.

Highly recommended.

 

·         Publisher: ‎Poisoned Pen Press (October 11, 2022)

·         Language‏: ‎English

·         Paperback‏: ‎288 pages

·         ISBN-10‏: ‎1728258308

·         ISBN-13: ‎978-1728258300

 

 

Aubrey Nye Hamilton ©2023 

Aubrey Hamilton is a former librarian who works on Federal It projects by day and reads mysteries at night.

Lesa's Book Critiques: Dangerous Undertaking by Mark de Castrique

Lesa's Book Critiques: Dangerous Undertaking by Mark de Castrique

Lesa's Book Critiques: Secret Undertaking by Mark de Castrique

Lesa's Book Critiques: Secret Undertaking by Mark de Castrique