“Against All Odds” by Jennifer Carr

Against All Odds

Jennifer Carr
JCarr Writes (2026)
ISBN: 978-1969792113
Reviewed by Denise Donaldson for Reader Views (09/2026)

Jennifer Carr has all the elements covered when it comes to spy adventures in Against All Odds.  There’s a beautiful but nerdy and deadly rookie female CIA agent, partnered with an experienced risk-taker of a male agent who operates on instinct.  Lindsey Sinclair graduated at the top of her class in all training courses and has the confidence of someone who knows how good she is, coupled with her unfailingly logical, practical approach.  Rhys Carter has survived missions around the world for over a decade and realizes that success doesn’t always depend on the numbers.  Their pairing makes sparks fly and makes their repartee smart and entertaining.  The tension is expertly sustained throughout the story, especially via the trade-offs in the two agents’ points of view. 

Immediately after coming onboard at the Agency, Lindsey is put into the field with Rhys on a mission with international players and ramifications.  Her skills and his experience are brought to bear against an adversary with a worldwide network and the will and knowledge to pose an incalculable threat.  Through successive plot twists and events that don’t always conform to the probabilities, Lindsey and Rhys must defeat that adversary to prevent disaster.  We can feel the darkness and cold of Moscow as the action rockets from opulent mansions to basement hideouts, with the clock literally ticking every moment.  The action requires close attention to tease out its intricacies, but the chase is worth it.

Carr’s writing shows superb attention to detail.  It flows easily, but contains the hooks that the suspense hangs from:  Lindsey’s analyses and the data she discovers.  In the end, it’s her refusal to accept the numbers as they appear that forms the crux of the story.  She learns thinking outside the box from Rhys, while he learns that survival may lie in interpreting the text on a screen.

Bio-terrorism, the center of the plot, is both a timely and frightening theme.  Carr treats it absolutely believably, in terms of both the scope of the threat and its plausibility.  While Russians are the perennial villains, there’s more to the cast of bad guys here than meets the eye, which adds to the level of uncertainty.  That is, there are multiple factors in play, and not just the typical spy-versus-spy gambit.

Against All Odds is representative of its genre, with the standard male/female relationship arc, the utterly evil antagonist, and the fate of the world at stake.  Jennifer Carr distinguishes her story by adding relatable, engaging dialogue; a multi-faceted twisted genius; layers of plot complications; and a dog.