Alias Emma by Ava Glass

​I don’t care for the spy genre. I do try, I don’t like to put limits on my reading, but time and again, spy stories just don’t do it for me. Too overdone, too convoluted with intrigue, too action-driven.
This one is no exception, except that it’s pretty streamlined. Maybe because it’s short, maybe because it’s meant to have a wider appeal, but either way this is the popcorn edition of spy fiction. A movie-adaptation ready one night/real time sort of adventure across London as an intrepid spy known as Emma is trying to bring her designated protectee to safety.
Of course, he is handsome and of course, sparks do that thing sparks do, and of course, the evil guys are oh so evil and have tapped into London’s extensive CCTV network so they see all and of course, Emma is tough as nails and nothing, not even bullets, can stop her, and of course, she’s had some super training by her boss which will be flashed onto in flashbacks and made her the superspy that she is. You name a cliché and you can probably find it in here, but that’s spy genre for you.
The overall production is kind of silly, but it’s fun enough, nothing that overworks one’s brain, lots of action, some romance, a decent serving of cheese et voila, a spy thriller.
Is it going to change my mind about the spy genre? No, definitely not. But it’s obvious the effort was made. Wherein normally spy fiction can get too cerebral, this book strategically went the opposite way, straight into the cheeseboard.
That name alone…seriously, a spy with an alias Emma Makepeace. Can we be more obvious? Nothing more creative for a woman on a lifelong revenge mission?
What about the romance? Does it have to be quite so cheddary? Not an ounce of subtlety. At least, the ending didn’t go too cheesy. But who knows, maybe it’s just gearing up for a sequel. Seems to be the thing to do these days.
But it’s readable, it’s entertaining. It’s like spy fiction for people who don’t care about spy fiction. Very much an action movie of a book. If you’re into that sort of thing. Reads quickly too. Thanks Netgalley.