Despite its length, the story was incredibly gripping.
From the blurb:
Surviving this mission may mean losing each other . . . or their lives.
In the summer of 1992, Trey Carter—Southern, evangelical, and deeply closeted—accidentally outs himself at a pool party. This spirals him down a dark path and into the hands of the Central Intelligence Agency, but Trey’s skills are in football and gymnastics, not guns and espionage. He’s not the first twenty-one-year-old to make a mistake but may be the first to fall involuntarily into a dark ops protocol.
Special Officer Rick Morgan’s blood is boiling. The CIA has plucked Trey from his normal life, threatened to disclose his sexual orientation, and forced him to join their covert unit, just as the Marines had done to him. Every time he looks at Trey, he feels both an unwavering commitment to their mission and a deep, unfamiliar urge to . . . do something to the muscular young man. Protect him? Seduce him? Love him?
After the fall of the Soviet Union, Ivan Dimitri is on the verge of selling secrets to the highest bidder. The CIA is tasked with containing Ivan and activates their protocol to prey on the engineer’s secret desire for young men. With Rick by his side, Trey prepares for a life-or-death mission, but there are mounting doubts if he can pull it off, and if a civilian can survive the Demaris Protocol.
Based on true events.
**See this title's page on RiptidePublishing.com for content warnings.**
Lesetiger's review:
This suspense thriller comes in at over 650 pages and despite its length, it captivated me. It took me a while to get into the story at first, but after that I was enthralled.
The story is based on a true story and it's incredible when you think about it.
Trey is a young gay civilian who is not out and is forcibly recruited by the CIA by being kidnapped. He is more or less blackmailed into taking part, otherwise he will be outed.
The writing style is fluid and the story is wonderfully written. It is told in the first-person perspective from the point of view of different protagonists. The pace is rather slow and there are lots of details. It's all the more surprising that I still couldn't put the book down.
There are a few time skips at the beginning, which require some concentration, but after that the story mainly takes place in the 1990s.
The CIA, specifically his instructor Rick, has 45 days to prepare Trey for a mission. It's not easy, but it helps that there is an attraction between Rick and Trey.
The emotions were brought across very realistically - I could feel the fear and anxiety right away. The story is exciting and suspenseful and it lingers - so make sure you have tissues ready!
There is a lot of interaction and I liked the development of the characters. Even if it's slow going at times, everything somehow makes sense.
If you think there's a lot of spice in the story, you're wrong. Yes, of course there are a few scenes, but the main focus of the story is elsewhere.
The way to the end was intense and not for the faint-hearted, the danger was immediately palpable. The ending was ... shocking.
Despite its length, the story was incredibly gripping. I absolutely recommend reading this page-turner!
Demaris: Protocol is currently available as an e-book and paperback
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