THE INTELLIGENCER

The Intelligencer
by Leslie Silbert
Hardback $24.00
Atria Books/ February 2004
336 pages
ISBN 0743432924

What is the difference between history and historical fiction? Both are recording historical fiction but history attempts to be hopefully unbiased whereas historical fiction has liberties to fictionalize those unwritten events surrounding the major facts.

In The Intelligencer by Leslie Silbert many of the unanswered questions regarding Elizabeth I are given possible answers while basing the story in 1593 and present day.

What if a secret document kept by one of Elizabeth’s closest advisors suddenly appeared today?

This involves one story in two different times, the book that is found in the present day and the intrigue and events in the secret document from the year 1593. The author develops the story in both time periods throughout this book, but does it with always a connecting thread that smoothly takes the reader to the time period.

Kate Morgan works for a private investigation firm that is a hidden section to the U.S. Intelligence Agency. The agency has an assignment for Kate involving an attempt to steal a book that no one has been able to translate or decode or figure out what the book is about. The mystery then is what is contained in the book, what information is in the book, why did someone want to steal it, and who would want to possess the book. Being that the book is believed to be the lost account of Christopher Marlowe are the mysteries of Elizabeth I, especially with regards to the execution of Mary, Queen of Scots, places the reader back in the year 1593 and then back to the present in order to further understand the purpose of this book.

Leslie Silbert masterfully has researched this time period and makes many logical historical answers to the long-sought after mysteries and questions from that time. She delves into the life of Christopher Marlowe and his death, William Shakespeare, the execution of Mary, Queen of Scots, the illegal arms smuggling, and the spy network including the advisors to Elizabeth.

The Intelligencer is energetic, dynamic and demonstrates the passion of this author in writing this debut novel. This is not an easy book to put down and is actually addictive to any reader. The flow from 1593 to the present day is masterfully paced. All of the characters are believable and realistic in that you really don’t know if the characters are who or what they truly seem to be in either time period.

Leslie Silbert is a Harvard graduate and then studied Renaissaince literature at Oxford. She has worked as a private investigator for a former CIA officer.

The writing in The Intelligencer is so enthralling, but at the same time seemingly so logical that the reader wonders if this is history or historical fiction. The background and the expertise of Leslie Silbert beautifully are immersed into this delightful debut novel.