I really wanted to like this one, but I'm afraid that I just could not engage with it at all.. I absolutely loved the cover. It was so evocative and definitely caught my eye and my imagination. I was drawn in by the concept, and by the interplay of chess in the spy world - which is of course such a natural metaphor and fit.

Unfortunately, I found it impossible to connect with any of the characters. The back and forth between the chapters focused on Sarah and those focused on the chess pieces were confusing rather than intriguing. And iwas confounded by the fact that, for a spy book, there just didn't seem to be any oomph here - I could not feel the intrigue or the scheming machinations that I was hoping for and that are part and parcel of the genre. This one wasn't for me.

Incidentally I hate having to leave stars for a book that didn't work for me and I wasn't able to finish. Unfortunately Netgalley makes you and my standard rule for consistency's sake is that I give two stars if I wasn't able to engage with the book enough to finish.

I'm not much of a spy/thriller reader but The King's Pawn may just change that. I found the intrigue and MI6 adventures of Sarah Black to be very entertaining.

Sarah, having just graduated from University, is young and inexperienced when she falls for Michael, an agent in the Queen's service, and finds herself catapulted into the world of spies and world travels. Unfortunately she isn't aware of any fellow agents or anyone who can help her since she is basically on her own as she boldly approaches world leaders and practically gets herself killed several times. Can Michael be trusted? Is he leaving her to fend for herself?

I enjoyed the escapades that Sarah was launched into and found it really difficult to figure out who she could trust and who was working with whom. All in all a great spy thriller that kept me on the edge of my seat.

My thanks to #NetGalley and Burning Chair for #TheKingsPawn ARC. This opinion is my own.