Rogue Agency: An edge-of-your-seat contemporary global spy thriller
L. D. Sharpe
Oct 2026 · Little, Brown Book Group · Narrated by Lucy Paterson
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11 hr 3 min
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Agent Sarah Black is back, and she's done asking permission.
Scarred by the events of her first official assignment, new recruit Sarah has cut all ties with the special liaison unit known as The Pelicans. Abandoning enigmatic leader Michael on the banks of the Thames and defying all orders, she vows to finish the mission he set her . . . alone.
Her dogged pursuit of the mastermind who eluded her in Georgia takes her to searing heat and civil unrest in west Africa, to a lawless land rife with war profiteering. When she hears that her mark is bankrolling a ruthless rebel leader, the only surprise is that it's her one ally, Elias, who delivers the news. How did he earn his place in the inner circle? Can she trust the intelligence he shares, that the endgame is more deadly than she could ever have imagined?
With doubt thrown on Elias and no backup from the Pelicans, Sarah must rely on raw instinct to neutralise the operation and burn the network to the ground. She needs to think three moves ahead to outmanoeuvre her ruthless opponent, and in a game without rules, every move counts.
But when the game is being played on a global stage with catastrophically high stakes for peace, for democracy, and for everything Sarah believes in, how far will she go to win?
-------
Compulsive, taut and whip-smart, Rogue Agency is the second gripping instalment of L.D. Sharpe's series of modern spy thrillers. Perfect for fans of I.S. Berry, Ava Glass and David Goodman.
Rogue Agency was previously published by Burning Chair in 2023 as The Head of the Snake by Lucy Hooft.
Praise for L.D. Sharpe's Pelican Black series:
'A terrific tale with plenty of action, set in the novel theatre of the Caucasus . . . a cracking read' - NetGalley reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'A fabulously written gripping story that was a pleasure to read. I would absolutely recommend this book, it was brilliant' - NetGalley reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'The first in a series and I will definitely be reading the others . . . the female lead is very well written. I loved it' - NetGalley reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'Sarah Black's wit and guile shines through . . a colourful, enjoyable book and the start of a promising series' - NetGalley reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'Thoroughly entertaining . . . I would pick up the next book by Sharpe without hesitation' - NetGalley reviewer
'It's just so exciting to see a powerful female character like Sarah Black . . . This is a fast-paced espionage thriller that feels fresh and exciting . . It will keep you up far too late!' - Holly Watt, author of The Casey Benedict Investigations
'Sarah Black is bold, brainy, and badass! And believable too - this story is as authentic as it is exciting, from the magnificently crafted cast of characters to the incredibly well-drawn locations. Gripping, pacy, and intelligent, I couldn't put it down' - Daniel Aubrey, author of Dark Island
'The Recruit introduces an impressive, complex, resourceful recruit to British espionage, and a world that is shabbier, darker, more ambiguous and far more compromised than the MI6 of James Bond. But it's every bit as tense and exciting . . . this is a sharply written thriller that is also sharply contemporary' - Michael Russell, author of the Stefan Gillespie thrillers
Scarred by the events of her first official assignment, new recruit Sarah has cut all ties with the special liaison unit known as The Pelicans. Abandoning enigmatic leader Michael on the banks of the Thames and defying all orders, she vows to finish the mission he set her . . . alone.
Her dogged pursuit of the mastermind who eluded her in Georgia takes her to searing heat and civil unrest in west Africa, to a lawless land rife with war profiteering. When she hears that her mark is bankrolling a ruthless rebel leader, the only surprise is that it's her one ally, Elias, who delivers the news. How did he earn his place in the inner circle? Can she trust the intelligence he shares, that the endgame is more deadly than she could ever have imagined?
With doubt thrown on Elias and no backup from the Pelicans, Sarah must rely on raw instinct to neutralise the operation and burn the network to the ground. She needs to think three moves ahead to outmanoeuvre her ruthless opponent, and in a game without rules, every move counts.
But when the game is being played on a global stage with catastrophically high stakes for peace, for democracy, and for everything Sarah believes in, how far will she go to win?
-------
Compulsive, taut and whip-smart, Rogue Agency is the second gripping instalment of L.D. Sharpe's series of modern spy thrillers. Perfect for fans of I.S. Berry, Ava Glass and David Goodman.
Rogue Agency was previously published by Burning Chair in 2023 as The Head of the Snake by Lucy Hooft.
Praise for L.D. Sharpe's Pelican Black series:
'A terrific tale with plenty of action, set in the novel theatre of the Caucasus . . . a cracking read' - NetGalley reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'A fabulously written gripping story that was a pleasure to read. I would absolutely recommend this book, it was brilliant' - NetGalley reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'The first in a series and I will definitely be reading the others . . . the female lead is very well written. I loved it' - NetGalley reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'Sarah Black's wit and guile shines through . . a colourful, enjoyable book and the start of a promising series' - NetGalley reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'Thoroughly entertaining . . . I would pick up the next book by Sharpe without hesitation' - NetGalley reviewer
'It's just so exciting to see a powerful female character like Sarah Black . . . This is a fast-paced espionage thriller that feels fresh and exciting . . It will keep you up far too late!' - Holly Watt, author of The Casey Benedict Investigations
'Sarah Black is bold, brainy, and badass! And believable too - this story is as authentic as it is exciting, from the magnificently crafted cast of characters to the incredibly well-drawn locations. Gripping, pacy, and intelligent, I couldn't put it down' - Daniel Aubrey, author of Dark Island
'The Recruit introduces an impressive, complex, resourceful recruit to British espionage, and a world that is shabbier, darker, more ambiguous and far more compromised than the MI6 of James Bond. But it's every bit as tense and exciting . . . this is a sharply written thriller that is also sharply contemporary' - Michael Russell, author of the Stefan Gillespie thrillers
Agent Sarah Black is back, and she's done asking permission.
Scarred by the events of her first official assignment, new recruit Sarah has cut all ties with the special liaison unit known as The Pelicans. Abandoning enigmatic leader Michael on the banks of the Thames and defying all orders, she ...
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About the author
L.D. Sharpe has loved books for as long as she can remember - stories of adventure, of weird and wonderful places, and seeing the world through someone else's eyes. She studied languages and philosophy at Oxford and joined the Foreign Office straight out of university. She quickly moved across to the Department for International Development (DFID), where she spent time in Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan, China and Sierra Leone. She left DFID to work for Her Majesty Queen Rania in Jordan, while spending much of her time bumping around the desert in a Land Rover.
After Jordan, she spent several years in a jungle camp in Gabon surrounded by elephants and humpback whales, which is where the Pelican Black books began. They took life as a way to record all the best bits of people she had met and places she had been, with a plot to make them much more exciting. L.D. Sharpe has always plausibly denied being a spy - but the books were written to show what that life might have been like.
She now lives with her family and two mad dogs in Namibia, growing giant kelp and running the Lüderitz Blue School.
After Jordan, she spent several years in a jungle camp in Gabon surrounded by elephants and humpback whales, which is where the Pelican Black books began. They took life as a way to record all the best bits of people she had met and places she had been, with a plot to make them much more exciting. L.D. Sharpe has always plausibly denied being a spy - but the books were written to show what that life might have been like.
She now lives with her family and two mad dogs in Namibia, growing giant kelp and running the Lüderitz Blue School.
L.D. Sharpe has loved books for as long as she can remember - stories of adventure, of weird and wonderful places, and seeing the world through someone else's eyes. She studied languages and philosophy at Oxford and joined the Foreign Office straight out of university. She quickly moved across to...
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