The Underhanded: Adam Sikes

The Underhanded

The first scene sets the tone for espionage and blindsided murder if the central character. This carrier or messenger to receive a special item killed did Mosher know he was the intended victim. We meet Professor William Dresden whose solitude in the South of France is about to turn his world into a frenzy as a phone call comes from out of nowhere and the caller claims to know the truth about his father’s death.

Adeline Parker is an intelligence agent demanding a face-to-face meeting in an out-of-the-way place. What she revealed turns him into a fugitive running for his life. An immigration crisis, climate impact, a resurgence of ethanol nationalist movement, Russian banking on the eastern door. How did she uncover his life story and what is the Strasburg Covenants? There is a group is from Europe comprised of politicians, generals, royals, and rich and influential men. As they talk about the Covenants and decide their purpose, William learns some of the hardcore truths about what these people want to do, how this would impact the world, Europe, Russian, United States and other countries that want to break from the EU.

As the discussion continued William learned more about the Executive and the NEH that pulled the finding and orchestrated a good lashing from her colleagues and what about his father? He retired from the US state department and became an economic advice to the EU as an investment advisor for national economics. She claims the killed him for it and the accident was staged. But the talk was cut short when a bomb exploded. Events escalade and then we met Herr Kanzler who assigned someone to take out William and failed. As events turn in different directions we learn more about William except most of his questions were not answered and Adeline was in total control. Enter Sir Alfred Graham who knows all of the answers, explains his past and we learn and elaborates on the politics involved, the involvement of the Chinese and they were once again on the move but where? Then the explanations arise and the root of what the Executives are planning and why there has not been a third world war. They manipulate fears, greed and try to override the social system. They influence the population to spawn the political vehicles and hide and not let it’s them As Alfred explains about China’s inability to project real military power outside this region ant that Europe is a fully integrated economic and social system. Is the threat to the EU real William wants to know? Then the shoe falls and he learn about obfuscation and its true meaning. He is referring to the Economics ability to hide their dirty footprints. The Russians used to plant fake news and promote alternative messaging or placing fake news during  the recent presidential campaigns. The intelligent services knew what was a long before CNN or the Washington Post. There was a trail to follow, and it led right back to Moscow. There are other groups and individuals mainly unaffiliated with the less than agile government of the world that don’t leave trails. They linked what is happening to his father who was part of the Executive, and he is thought to be an expert in technology. During his lecture at the Wilson institute, he referred to Reginald Waters have been an adviser to Cecil Rhodes, and the architect of many of Rhodes’ imperial ambitions. Later it was rumored to have a hand in the Kitchener and later rumored to have a hand in the Sykes Peace agreement and the subsequent division of the Middle East and to Himmler the uncle of Hemrick Himmler the infamous commander of the Third Reich SS had been a savant to service  to the royal family of Bavaria. This is not even half of it and when it’s processed in his mind he cannot believe what he’s heard, and it affects him both mentally and physically.

Even worse the men stated were instrumental in some of the very things the prometon of imperial agents. White Man’s burden social hierarchy and he’s the one that can unravel the mystery but how? His family has been in league with the Executive from the beginning: ALL OF THEM!

Then it gets more interesting as William manages to get to the library and into the archives and finds the clue to where they would go next but first he has to deal with Adeline, and she has to come clean and be honest but will she?
Enter the HG Krautherbank where the bank’s board had connections across the Continent and inroads into all the great empires of the day include France and in a few year the first preferred institution within elite circles Reginald waters, Brigadier Gibbons the men who you think were the founding member of the Executive they have interests at HG and the transactions were significant in the hundreds of millions.

Unraveling what he learns about the bank and the fact that his trust was being monitored by someone he thought he could trust the unveiling of his family’s connection to Ludolph Himmer and Rhodes and Gibbons plus his father, is astounding. Then we meet the seven men and women plus Kanzler who explains their job, tasks and what is within each one’s folder that he/she is expected to execute. Chapter 24 takes us inside the mind of Kanzler and the history behind the Executive and his take on Russian as a resilient country and they feel as they do about to protect   what is their actions in many different countries to protect ethnic . Russians were as prime examples and Kanzler turned to Marie and what she reveals you won’t believe. As Adline sends for help and Miika arrives and hacks into the HG bank and what they learn unravels the history behind Williams family and their ties to the Executive and how he realizes that he was not paying attention and the truth about the amount of money in his fund you have to read it to believe it. While thinking they are home free a simple item that was shut off and still on lets them know that the Executive has someone that realizes that they broke into the Bank and the system. The chase is on, and William and Adeline are on the move, but little does Kenzler realize that someone close to him is about to betray him in the worst way and the one man he trusted is a turncoat and someone takes control and takes out those that sat at the meeting. Why?  Underhanded means secret and dishonest way : intended to deceive or trick someone as defines each character in this novel and the way you would define their actions and how they proceed to get information and relay it but not in an honest way. Death and killing comes easy to both sides but what William relates is sad, destructive and how thousands of people were killed, burned, buried without any respect for their lives and he killed a man to protect Adeline and he has no choice but to accept it how can you accept killing?

How does he feel when he reads Reginald’s journal and learns more about his father as the new Kenzler and his goals. Harsh truths, lies and even more betrayals as William has to decide where to go next. Home and become a professor, understand what he is told by the law, or find another way to take down those that are racist, want to overthrow our laws and government and take the world in their own direction?

Lives are at stake, but you get the feeling they are expendable as the author creates an ending that just might be a new beginning and where will William and Adeline go next? What about Sofia and her goals? The Underhanded: Adam Sikes gives multiple meanings to the title as every character is exactly that Underhanded in some way or ways.

Fran Lewis just reviews