A spy thriller with a rip-roaring rollercoaster ride through the streets of London.

Alias Emma is a thrilling spy novel based in London. From the start, Miss Makepiece finds herself trying to bring in a Russian doctor to MI6 Headquarters at Vauxhall Cross. Those who know London well will recognise the locations in the novel. The only problem with the task is that a Russian hit team are not only on their trail, but have hacked into every available security system - nowhere is safe! Emma has to use every trick inside and outside the book of tradecraft to accomplish her mission. Every dark corner, cctv, even every figure they encounter is a potential enemy to her and her asset. The novel has its fair share of chases, shoot-outs and hand to hand combat situations which Emma has to exercise all her available skills to overcome. The geography of the city has been well-researched by Glass, but as this was a proofing copy, I’m hoping that a street map is included in the cover of the hardback edition to allow readers unfamiliar to London to enjoy it as much as those already knowledgeable. This excellent gripping thriller will have you almost falling off the front of your seat even before Emma picks up Micheal Primolov, right up to the Secret Service’s front door and beyond. I’m hoping that Emma Makepiece will be back for a sequel. The story also has the right ingredients for a TV series.

A most satisfying story of a feisty heroine that the story builds up to be a most likeable character. A government secret department is charged with the safety of a Russian defector family with reason to think they are a target for assignation, unfortunately the son of the family refuses to abandon his job as a doctor. Emma being charged with getting him to safety has to use all her wiles to get him to go. Thereafter is how she had to use all her training and cunning to escape assassination and ambush to survive and win though. In between, flash back events are given to show her background and formation in the army followed by training as an agent with detail of her family background all of which explains her as a person.

I have found a new series to follow. Love the character of Emma Makepeace and her colleagues at MI5.
Roller coaster of a story but believable.
Would love to see this on TV or the cinema screen.

A super spy, fast paced thriller, is the only way to describe this blinder of a ‘007’ type of novel.
Makepeace is a hugely likeable leading character with a detailed back story that sets the tone for this great debut book!
Characters and storyline is, at times, a little predictable but a fab full on spy thriller nonetheless! Would recommend highly!

This is a really quick, fun read. Emma must get Michael across London without being killed by Russian agents. The only problem I had is that there’s only so many times they can run round a street corner, or hold their breath as an SUV drives past before it becomes a little predictable and dare I say it, boring? It was all a bit cliched and although it was a fun read, I’m not sure I’ll race back for a second instalment.

I have started to fasion these blog posts to what I thought about the book and how I found it. I feel that me reeling of chunks of what has happend in the book as a detraction from others who need or want to read it. It needs to keep its mysteque and secrets inside its covers for the reader to find for themselves.

Well what to say… this book transported me back around a quater of a century. Harking back to the books containg page after page of S.I.S. goings on with Harry Tweed and Paula Grey. From the greatmind of Colin Forbes.

I don’t mean anything bad by the comment above. I loved those books, and I found this to be just as good with a more relevant timeline and some if not all of the old foes of past involved.

Who would have thought that a short trip across London could be quite so eventful. And, I also learnt some new things along the way. Like the fact that some rivers are subterrainean, flowing almost entirely underground, divierted as a part of the building of the capital in the later 19th century.

Fast paced and furious, the pages almost turn themselves as you are drawn further into the world of espionage counter terrorism and state sponsered assination.

Not sure how many of you are aware of a TV program called 24. But, this could set grounds for a British spin off, albeit slightly shorter as it charters a period of 12 hours.

I would very easily recommend this if you are a fan of crime thrillers, or espionage at a mre than readable level.

Status: Completed

Rating: 4.3/5.0

Michael is being targeted by the Russians and Emma an operative for MI5/MI6 has been assigned to bring him in for him & his families safety. But despite the obvious risks to his life Michael is reluctant to cooperate. However the threat is closer than they think. When Emma intercepts Michael out on a jog, it triggers a cat and mouse chase through London, and Emma only has her wits about her to try to keep them both alive.

I'm not keen on reading spy books, probably because it feels like I've been bombarded by James Bond movies et al every year in the UK, however this book has changed my mind. Fast paced with lots of action, I loved all the characters good & bad especially Emma, and felt the book was very well written. It kept my attention throughout, and it was nice that I knew all the areas of London mentioned in the book which brought the story to life in real time, as it were. I'm definitely sold on this book, really enjoyed it, and would welcome a sequel or even a series.

Super spy thriller - fast-paced and believable.
The premise of the book centres around getting a civilian to safety, which meant in effect crossing London without getting spotted/stopped. A simple plot but executed thoroughly well. I'm sure there's a means whereby they could have got to their destination with minimal fuss but I tried not to let that distract from the story.
It felt like a Bond movie, was written a bit like a Bond movie and definitely hit the mark.

Many thanks for the ARC.

⭐️ 5 ⭐️

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC, in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

I can’t say I’m usually the biggest fan of spy thrillers, but Alias Emma has completely changed my mind.

Brilliantly written by Ava Glass (an ingenious alias for another well-known author); Glass’s writing is sharp and highly entertaining throughout.

I was hooked from beginning to end in this interesting, immersive, unputdownable read. The pacing is fast and exhilarating; the tense, tightly-plotted story is highly-charged and action-packed and I found myself turning the pages at lightning speed just to find out what was going to happen next.

The characters are perfectly drawn, well-developed and believable. Emma Makepeace (alias) is a strong, likeable, female lead character and one I’m looking forward to experiencing more adventures with.

Alias Emma ticked every single box for me — I thoroughly enjoyed my exciting journey around the streets, tunnels and waterways of London. I thought it was truly brilliant and well worthy of five stars.

Move over James Bond! Well that was a whole lot of fun! I do like a spy/action thriller occasionally. Emma Makepeace is a spy for a very covert British organisation (I.e. not MI5 or MI6). Her father was a Russian spy for the Brits and when things got too hot for him he sent his pregnant wife to the West saying he would join her when he could but he never made it out alive. Emma decided from a young age that she wanted to be a spy to make the Russians pay for his death.

Recruited from a young age after a stint in the army by the enigmatic Charles Ripley she was trained in the art of spy craft. Now Ripley has a mission for her. A number of former Russian scientists that had defected to the West have been killed by the GRU. The British ones were all close associates of Dimitri and Elena Primalov who have already been placed in protective custody. But their son, Michael, a paediatric oncology specialist refuses to join them. He will not leave his patients. Emma is to convince him to leave.

She tries a couple of times but he steadfastly refuses until they are attacked and Emma takes on two Russian heavies herself to protect him. Finally he sees the danger and they go on the run. But when she calls for Ripley to organise a “hot extraction” he is not available and she she is told to make their own way to their HQ. Emma is immediately suspicious, she has never trusted Ripley’s 2IC, Ed Masterton, and she fears a coup. What follows is a thrilling cat and mouse chase across London as Emma and Michael try to evade capture in the most ‘watched’ city in the world. There is CCTV everywhere. But Ripley has left her a very helpful clue in a secret dead letter drop.

Whew, that was quite nerve-wracking! Emma is such a warm hearted likeable young woman and crazy brave. The pace was relentless as the two fugitives tried to avoid as many cameras as possible but the Russians were never far behind. This was pure action and so much fun, I couldn’t put it down. Apparently there are to be more Emma books and I will be very keen to read them! Many thanks to Netgalley and Random House UK, Cornerstone for the much appreciated arc which I reviewed voluntarily and honestly.

A female spy, classic British London setting, Russians, traitors all should make the ultimate reading pleasure but it sadly fell short. Worth reading still but the characters felt stereotypical and two dimensional. Still- an enjoyable read despite that

3,5
A bit predictable maybe, but great fun, this female version of James Bond. It would make a great film as well.
Thank you Penguin Random House UK and Netgalley UK for the ARC.

A female version of James Bond. A fast paced book which keeps you engaged even though at times it may seem a bit far fetched. But it was a good read and I did feel that I was watching a movie in my head!

Emma is a relatively new recruit to a shadowy UK agency working somewhere alongside MI5 and MI6. She speaks several languages (including Russian) and has combat and intelligence training from her time in the army. In her first major assignment she is asked to escort the adult son (Michael / Mikhail) of two Russian dissidents to safety, but soon realises that the mission is compromised and they are on their own. They have several miles to travel, with enemy agents somehow having hacked into London's vast network of CCTV cameras. Emma must use all her cunning, strength and training to get them to a safe haven on the other side of the Thames.

I found this book to be a quick, uncomplicated and immersive read with a strong female lead and a hint of romance. There were backflashes to explain Emma's history, and the relatively small cast of characters meant it was very easy to keep track of who was who. The author must know London well as the descriptions and layouts were very good. There were some points where belief must be suspended (which is fine for a spy thriller). Swearing, guns and other violence were not gratuitous; only engaged where necessary for the plot.

The opening sentence was excellent: "The sun was setting over one of the most expensive streets in the world when the assassins arrived". Draws you right in - hard to believe this is a first-time author.

This is billed as the first in a series and I'd happily read the next as this was fun, fast, and effortless.

I really enjoyed this spy thriller, set in London, where our main character, Emma, ends up doing a job for her agency that involves a dangerous crossing across London.
It was great to read a book where the main spy character was a female, and I enjoyed learning about her backstory.
Some fun twists and turns, and I would love to read more novels featuring Emma.

Emma Makepeace. Female spy on her first operation for The Agency organisation across London.
Fastest book I have read this year! It was good, VERY good!

A fast paced spy thriller a dash across London with out being seen by the Russians. A very enjoyable thriller highly recommended.
I received this book from Random House UK via Netgalley for a review.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, particularly the race/chase across London. It perhaps helped that I have previously lived in London and knew the sights, but I suspect even those who haven't lived in London would find themselves drawn into the plot ... will Michael and Emma make it safe and sound across London or will they be caught by the Russian GRU agents determined to capture Michael? Not one to include a spoiler in a review it's hard to say much more about the plot. Fans of James Bond should consider reading Alias Emma. I note that this is the first in a series of books, and it has to be said that the end section of the book did feel a bit like it had been written to encourage the reader to read the next in the series - rather than it perhaps being integral to this book. There were a few points where I felt that I had to suspend disbelief (much like you would in many spy thrillers on film or TV) but overall I thought this a cracking story, and one which I raced through. Thank you to Netgalley for giving me the chance to read this book.

If you like a fast paced chase then this is the novel for you. At least three quarters of the book is devoted to a hunter and hunted persuit across London and very thrilling it is too. However, I didn't find it very realistic. The ability of the GRU to 'hack' in to all the cameras in London and then monitor the many thousands in real time would not have been remotely possible. So to give it some possibility, the use of facial recognition was the tool of choice. It's really not that great, especially at night. Gait recognition would probably have been better. Alas Emma doesn't seem to be fulfilling her dream of being a spy. The Army was where she got to do some real spying but now she seems to be a mixture of undercover officer and personal protection operative.
It was a fun read but lacked depth and gravitas.

Absolutely fantastic read, loved every minute - a real page turner.

When I started reading Alias Emma I wasn't quite sure how Ava Glass would keep this overnight adventure moving along but boy did she succeed. I can't remember a dull moment! Great characterisation with Emma the leading lady. She sure taught London a few things that night! Loved her interaction with Michael and also Ripley.

Great ending and I for one can't wait to see where this adventure goes next - assuming a second book in in the works! Bravo!