The Athena Protocol Blog Tour: Review + Giveaway

The Athena Protocol
Author: Shamim Sarif 
Genre: YA Mystery/Thriller/LGBT
Release Date: October 8, 2019
Publisher: HarperTeen

Synopsis:

Jessie Archer is a member of the Athena Protocol, an elite organization of female spies who enact vigilante justice around the world.

Athena operatives are never supposed to shoot to kill—so when Jessie can’t stop herself from pulling the trigger, she gets kicked out of the organization, right before a huge mission to take down a human trafficker in Belgrade.

Jessie needs to right her wrong and prove herself, so she starts her own investigation into the trafficking. But going rogue means she has no one to watch her back as she delves into the horrors she uncovers. Meanwhile, her former teammates have been ordered to bring her down. Jessie must face danger from all sides if she’s to complete her mission—and survive.

The Athena Protocol is an exhilarating new young adult thriller that will have readers hooked until the very end. I don't normally go for this type of "thriller" - one with governments, politics, militias, etc., but every once in awhile I'll give one a shot. I'm glad I gave this book a chance! Although I wasn't thrilled with the overall plot and the setting, there were some really great parts to this novel.

The main character, Jessie, is part of an elite organization of women who fly under the radar and get things done vigilante style. I really liked the concept of this group of highly trained women taking things into their own hands to help other people that no one else would or could help. Jessie is a good main character who really matures and changes throughout the story. She begins by being kind of arrogant about her former training and takes pride in her abilities as an operative. But things soon take a bad turn and she has to rely on these skills as well as herself and others in order to survive her mission. I thought she was realistic and easy to connect with right from the beginning. Although I couldn't empathize with all of her circumstances, I definitely could relate to her feelings and inner thoughts. I loved watching her grow and mature throughout the story. The secondary characters such as her two teammates (Hala and Caitlin) and the three women who are in charge of the organization were well rounded and realistic as well. I liked getting to know each of them and seeing them all grow and change as people along with their relationships to the other characters.

The big factor for me was the author's writing style. I'm a huge fan of the first person point of view, which is what the book is told in. We get to see the story unfold from Jessie's perspective and because it's in the first person, we get to know her on an incredibly deep level that I don't think other writing styles can provide. I really enjoyed learning about Jessie - her inner thoughts and feelings, hopes and dreams, fears and nightmares and everything in between. The author made Jessie feel so realistic that by the end of the book, it felt like I had been with her throughout the entire story. Honestly, if this novel would've been written in any other style aside from the first person, I don't think I would've liked it very much. Like I mentioned, this isn't exactly my usual cup of tea. These thoughts and opinions are completely my own and I know most other people won't feel the same way I did. I'm just really glad the author chose to tell Jessie's story from her point of view. I'd definitely recommend this book to readers who enjoy spy thriller books, books with lots of action and adventure, and contemporary fiction.

 

Born in the UK, Shamim is an award-winning novelist, screenwriter, and director. 

Her next book, The Athena Protocol, is an all-female YA contemporary action thriller that is published by Harper Teen in September 2019. 

Her debut novel, The World Unseen, won a Betty Trask award and the Pendleton May First Novel award. 

Shamim has adapted and directed the films of three of her novels including, most recently, Despite the Falling Snow. The book was published by Headline in the UK and St Martin’s Press in the US. The movie stars Rebecca Ferguson and Charles Dance in a story of love and betrayal in cold war Russia. Her films have won 47 awards internationally. 

Shamim’s third novel, I Can’t Think Straight, formed the basis of her cult hit film of the same name. 

Shamim’s book festival appearances include Hay-on-Wye, Cheltenham and Edinburgh. 

An accomplished speaker, Shamim has spoken at TED events worldwide, at the INK Conference in India and DLD in Munich. Corporate speaking events have included Deloitte, Goldman Sachs, Citibank and Disney. 

Shamim lives in London with her wife, Hanan, and their two sons.

Win a copy of The Athena Protocol by Shamim Sarif (US Only)

Starts: October 2, 2019

Finishes: October 16, 2019
 
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