Reader Review by dcolson

Keep your wits about you while reading this complex tale of double identity, hidden meaning, and spy vs. spy! Lovely Serena finds herself employed by the MI5 during the Cold War of the 1970s, where she is sent to investigate potential authors who support government sentiments. Serena is entranced by the writing of a young man named Tom Haley. She selects him both as the novelist worthy of governmental promotion and her secret lover. Secrets are many in this tale, however. Author McEwan treats readers to bizarre stories within the story that encroach into Serena's real life with just the right amount of disbelief and suspense, and finishes with a final well-designed twist.