Book Review: Otello’s Oil

Reviewed by Warren Maxwell

A sprawling story of espionage, international intrigue, and family ties

Unfurling in the year 2031, Otello’s Oil tells the story of Elliot Jones, a senior agent with the US Diplomatic Security Service tasked with protecting diplomats, foreign dignitaries, and the Secretary of State. 

His world descends into chaos when the oil minister of Kuwait is assassinated in the heart of Washington D.C. while seated beside the Secretary of State at an opera. The beginnings of a landmark oil deal between Kuwait and the United States are disrupted, and Elliot begins investigating threads that lead from Middle Eastern political leaders to Russian oligarchs and all the way to U.S. officials. Meanwhile, he stumbles onto a plot to blow up a major Seattle ferry and, through heroic action, draws further unwanted attention onto himself and his college-age daughter Rachel. 

“Elliot could have revealed more. He could have shared with them the photos and recording of Abramovich’s meeting in Jakarta with the SVR agent, but that would have to wait.”

In sketching political governments, power hierarchies, and global business dealings, the narrative sparkles with real world knowledge and an ability to create histories that blend fact with fiction. The infamous Enron Corporation collapse becomes an element of the story, as do figures like Madeleine Albright and past U.S. presidents.

The attention given to practical matters—how characters landed in their current careers; what foreign political and business negotiations look like—gives the novel credibility and veracity. Yet, this level of background detail can become ponderous. Action sequences can be dragged down by exposition-filled dialogue that makes events move slower. Sometimes, when facing imminent danger, characters even take their time to introduce themselves and unload exposition instead of deal with the situation at hand. A similar pattern plays out in some narrative descriptions, like the use of geographic details. These moments can feel out of place and break with the suspenseful nature of the book.

The book has an impressive ability to develop and maintain an enormous universe, not merely of characters but also of political forces and underlying intentions. As the perspective freely shifts between Elliot and other characters, from the Secretary of State herself to members of the president’s cabinet, we’re also given insight into the myriad perspectives that, together, form the book’s plot. Along with its clear erudition, this makes the power machinations of, say, a Russian SVR agent and an American businessman thrilling to follow.

Espionage, politics, and intimate relationships become intertwined inOtello’s Oil, a richly imagined novel about a government agent facing off against the corruptions of a not-so-distant future. 

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