A Gentleman's Game: A Queen & Country Novel [Hardcover]

Greg Rucka (Author)

Book Description

Series: Rucka, Greg | Publication Date: September 28, 2004

Tara Chace may be the most dangerous woman alive. She can seduce you into believing she’s the woman of your dreams—or kill you with the icy efficiency of an executioner. As the new head of Special Operations for British Intelligence, she no longer has to court death in the field—she wants to.

Throw away the old rules, the old school, the old-boy network. The world of international espionage is about to learn the hard way that spying is no longer merely…

A GENTLEMAN’S GAME

Greg Rucka’s electrifying thrillers have pushed the boundaries of suspense fiction to where few have dared to go. Now, in A Gentleman’s Game, one of the genre’s most fearless writers brings readers of international espionage his most
fearless heroine yet: a no-holds-barred woman who’s as lethal as an assassin’s bullet.

When an unthinkable act of terror devastates London, nothing will stop Tara Chace from hunting down those responsible. Her job is simple: stop the terrorists before they strike a second time. To succeed, she’ll do anything and everything it takes. She’ll have to kill again.

Only this time the personal stakes will be higher than ever before. For the terrorist counterstrike will require that Tara allow herself to be used as bait by the government she serves. This time she’s turning her very life into a weapon that can be used only once. But as she and her former mentor race toward destiny at a remote terrorist training camp in Saudi Arabia, Tara begins to question just who’s pulling the trigger—and who’s the real enemy. In this new kind of war, betrayal can take any form...including one’s duty to queen and country.

Based on the graphic novel series that won the coveted Eisner Award, A Gentleman’s Game is an electrifyingly realistic, headline-stealing thriller with an unforgettable protagonist—one who redefines every rule she doesn’t shatter.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Inspired by his Eisner Award–winning Queen & Country graphic novel series, the author of the adrenaline-charged Atticus Kodiac thrillers (Critical Space) offers up this British cloak-and-dagger hardcover introducing Tara Chace, an intrepid, relentless female assassin. In a coolly orchestrated terrorist raid chillingly reminiscent of September 11, a well-trained trio of al Qaeda–linked fanatics bomb London subway trains at three major stations, killing 372. In retaliation, Minder One (the head assassin of Her Majesty's Secret Intelligent Service) Tara Chace is given the assignment of killing Dr. Faud bin Abdullah al-Shimmari, a Saudi Arabian religious leader. She can't undertake an operation inside Faud's high-security Saudi homeland, but when the Mossad gets involved on a mission of its own, the hit is scheduled to take place on Yemeni soil. In a bit of bad luck, Chace completes her primary mission with a daring hit on Faud inside the Great Mosque, but ignites international outrage when she blows away a Saudi prince, too. As a result, her queen and countrymen betray her, and she is forced to flee with one final chance to avoid being sacrificed as a pawn in a worldwide political chess game. Though a trifle muddled by bureaucratese, the novel's superb pacing, offbeat characters, wry plot twists and damning insight into oily schizoid Middle Eastern diplomacy add up to an engrossing read.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

This is a little tricky, so pay attention. This novel is based on Rucka's comic-book series, Queen & Country, which was in turn inspired by (or perhaps directly based on) a 25-year-old British television series called The Sandbaggers. The comic-book series chronicles the adventures of Tara Chace, a Special Intelligence Service agent (otherwise known as a minder or a sandbagger) who takes on dangerous missions for the British government. In the novel, she is tasked with the assassination of the mastermind behind a series of terrorist attacks that took the lives of more than 300 British citizens. The relationships between some of Rucka's characters mirror the relationships between similar characters in the TV series, and there are even scenes in the novel that are very much like scenes in episodes of the series. Also like the series, the novel is as much about the political machinations behind a mission as it is about the mission itself, and Rucka does an excellent job of building the tension and suspense. It's a story about people whose lives are controlled--and often sacrificed--by government officials whose decisions are always politically motivated. There are echoes of le Carre here, to be sure, although the tone is less cerebral. Those who know The Sandbaggers will be intrigued, but the novel will also interest anyone with a taste for classic British espionage. A sequel would be most welcome. David Pitt
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 352 pages
• Publisher: Bantam (September 28, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0553802763
• ISBN-13: 978-0553802764
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.8 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,177,432 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

The author of four novels about professional bodyguard Atticus Kodiak -- Keeper (nominated for a Shamus Award by the Private Eye Writers of America), Finder, Smoker, and Shooting at Midnight, Greg Rucka has been writing since he was eight years old, and hopefully is improving with age. A longtime comics fan, his first graphic novel series was the suspense thriller Whiteout, published by Oni Press and nominated for three Eisner Awards in 1999. Since that time he has been a contributing writer for DC Comics and an active participant in the Batman series of titles.
Born and raised in California, he earned his undergraduate degree at Vassar College and his MFA at the University of Southern California. He currently resides in Portland, Oregon. Mr. Rucka has two tattoos, and rides a motorcycle.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Effective Action/Espionage Thriller, September 28, 2004

By 

Daniel H. Bigelow (Cathlamet, WA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Gentleman's Game: A Queen & Country Novel (Hardcover)

Greg Rucka is spinning a series of novels off his Oni Press comic-book series about adventure, personal lives, and office politics in the British secret service. His first effort, A Gentleman's Game, promises well for the venture, and it is interesting to see how the characters translate from the graphic format to the prose novel.

Rucka's great strength is in creating flawed yet highly compelling characters. His protagonist, the intense and deadly Tara Chace, made a terrific spy in the comics and easily carries the lesser burden she shoulders in the novel, where one of the villains -- a British citizen turned terrorist, equally compelling -- gets nearly equal time. The novel also follows Tara's bitter, hostile, chain-smoking, gold-hearted boss, the great Paul Crocker, as he does his best to navigate the treacherous shoals of intelligence office politics to clear the way for his agents. New characters, like an amusing pair of Israeli spymasters, and old favorites from the comics like Tom Wallace and the stolid Poole, are equally interesting and welcome.

Rucka has a deep knowledge of his subject, and while his descriptions of weapons can become tiresome (he's the kind of guy who knows, and thinks we have to know, how many foot-pounds of pressure people put on triggers and the brand name every gun anyone has), his acronym-laden spy jargon is convincing and adds flavor to the text.

Rucka may always be a better comic book writer than novelist because he seems weakest when he describes places, people, and action -- things an artist can easily cover him on. But even at his weakest, he is perfectly adequate, and much of this book finds him at his best. There may have been one fight too many towards the end (another possible holdover from a comic-book sensibility), but any weaknesses in this book are minor compared to its strengths. Chace and Crocker are terrific characters, the setting and plot are convincing, and the story is gripping. I picked up A Gentleman's Game right after work and I didn't even put it down to cook and eat. It's intelligent entertainment; I can't wait for the next one.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Riveting novel drawn from Rucka's graphic novel series, October 15, 2004

By 

Bookreporter (New York, New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Gentleman's Game: A Queen & Country Novel (Hardcover)

Greg Rucka has been making a name for himself in the suspense genre for several years with his series of novels involving the enigmatic Atticus Kodiak. Rucka, however, is arguably best known to readers of sequential art collections (that would be comic books to you, fan boy!). He has been toiling mightily in that area for some years now, working on such A-list characters as Superman, Batman, Grendel, Wolverine and Wonder Woman. He has made what is arguably his greatest contribution to that genre with his own creation, a series of graphic novels titled QUEEN & COUNTRY, which involve the inner workings of a branch of a British intelligence agency. It is from the latter that A GENTLEMAN'S GAME, Rucka's latest novel, is drawn.

The focus of A GENTLEMAN'S GAME is Tara Chace, Minder One for The Division of Operations. She is, in less polite terms, an assassin, who is very good at what she does, which is to take out the bad guys --- the terrorists, who have the destruction of Great Britain on their minds and in their hearts. Chace does her job well and finds herself being offered up as a sacrificial lamb by the very agency, and country, to which she has sworn loyalty. Rucka deftly guides his reader through a complex plot, where agents are considered to be expendable commodities.

One of the more fascinating characters here, as in the QUEEN & COUNTRY books, is Paul Crocker, Director of Operations and Chace's superior officer. Crocker is a political animal who somehow maintains a balancing act between protecting the interests of Great Britain and those of his agents, even while one goal is at odds with the other. While one may occasionally differ with Rucka's worldview, he has a canny vision with respect to the manner in which the world ultimately works. While Rucka is quick to give credit to others when it comes to his insight, he is ultimately the channel through which this vision is communicated, and in such a riveting manner.

A GENTLEMAN'S GAME can only increase the width and depth of Rucka's readership. For those unfamiliar with his novels, there are the Atticus Kodiak books (among others) to explore. For those unfamiliar with his sequential art stories, QUEEN AND COUNTRY graphic novels await. And if you've been fortunate enough to read all of Rucka's work to date, you have the pleasure of anticipating his next novel. Recommended.

--- Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A great spy thriller, November 19, 2004

By 

David S. Carter "librarian" (Ann Arbor, MI USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Gentleman's Game: A Queen & Country Novel (Hardcover)

Besides being known as a comic writer, Greg Rucka also has a career as a novelist, best known for his Atticus Kodiak thrillers. So it makes a certain amount of sense for him to combine his two worlds by writing a novel based on his creator-owned Queen & Country series. This presents us then with two questions: How does A Gentleman's Game work as a spy thriller, and how does it work as an extension of the comic book?

As a spy thriller, it works very well indeed. As the main protagonist, Tara Chase is a great character, highly competant but flawed. The plot is a doozy: following a terrorist attack on the London subway system, Tara's SIS section is called upon to retaliate against the terrorists. I won't spoil the plot any further, except to say that there are a couple of great twists that come just at the right time and are as logical as they are surprising. In fact, one of the greatest joys of the novel is that none of the characters have to act like idiots in order for the story to work. While characters may make bad decisions, they are not stupid decisions. I have no idea how accurate the details and settings of this novel are, but it certainly has the feel of authenticity and that Rucka has done his homework. His prose is detailed but doesn't get bogged down, and he can write action as well as the quieter moments. Given that this is based on a comic with which a majority of the readers will be unfamilar, there is a good deal of info-dumping in the first 50-100 pages to get things set up, but it is integrated into the plot and never feels like a plot summary.

A Gentleman's Game also works well as the next chapter for the Queen & Country series. While it is not necessary to be previously familiar with Tara Chase and the rest of the cast from the comic, fans of the comic will find much here to enjoy. Unlike many novels based on comics where the author has to pretty much put things back in place by the end of the book, since Rucka owns Queen & Country he can do whatever he wants, and by the end of A Gentleman's Game things have definitely changed in Tara's world. Rucka uses the opportunities inherent in the novel format to flesh out Tara's world and to give us insight into her internal life and the lives of those around her. This is a both a deeply personal story and a large plot-driven story; and while it would not have been impossible to tell in comic form, it would have had to have been very different, given the difference in the two mediums.

In closing, if you are a fan of spy thrillers, you will enjoy A Gentleman's Game, and if you are a fan of Queen & Country, this novel is a not-to-be-missed installment in the story of Tara Chase.