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The Blog of Toledo Lucas County Public Library
15 Intriguing Spy Novels Written by Women Featuring Female Spies
Posted 9 months ago by April S
In celebration of Women's History Month, we pulled together a wonderful sampling of spy novels written by women featuring female spies. The stories are full of intrigue, espionage and thrilling edge of your seat storytelling at its best. Enjoy!
Women Spies in Fiction
The Moscow Sleepers by Stella RimingtonSeries: Liz Carlyle, book 10. Liz Carlyle and Peggy Kinsolving uncover a Russian plot to undermine the German government and travel from Montreal to Moscow in order to stop them. Descriptors: Atmospheric, plot-driven and richly detailed |
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Fox Hunter by Zoe SharpSeries: Charlie Fox, book 11. Unable to forget the men who brutally ended her military career, former special forces soldier Charlie Fox finds herself on a mission to the Iraqi countryside amid suspicions that her boss may be pursuing a twisted vendetta on her behalf. Descriptors: Action-packed, compelling, fast-paced, intricately plotted and richly detailed |
The Intelligencer by Leslie SilbertNovice private investigator Kate Morgan teams up with a European financier who is investigating a centuries-old manuscript that documents the final days of an Elizabethan-era murder victim. Descriptors: Parallel narratives and Adult books for young adults |
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An Eye for Murder by Libby Fischer HellmannSeries: Ellie Foreman mysteries, book 1. "When her name and telephone number are found in the pocket of an elderly man who died in a small Chicago boarding house, single mother Ellie Foreman tries to find out what her connection is with the deceased, an investigation that leads deep into the heart of a mystery with roots more than fifty years in the past and to secrets hidden in the heart of Chicago's Jewish community." ~ Description from Novelist Descriptors: Suspenseful and compelling |
Who is Vera Kelly? by Rosalie KnechtAfter being recruited by the CIA to work undercover in Argentina, radio host Vera Kelly becomes close to a group of student activists, but, after a betrayal, she is left stranded and must take extreme measures to escape. Descriptors: Suspenseful and compelling |
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The Chemist by Stephenie MeyerAn ex-agent on the run from her former employers must take one more case to clear her name and save her life. Descriptors: Suspenseful and Intriguing |
The Prisoner in the Castle by Susan Elia MacNealSeries: Maggie Hope mysteries, book 8. Exiled on a remote Scottish island with other SOE agents, World War II codebreaker Maggie Hope searches for a killer among her fellow spies when they begin to drop off one by one. Descriptors: Historical mysteries, atmospheric, fast-paced, richly detailed and suspenseful |
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The Alice Network by Kate QuinnIn 1947, pregnant Charlie St. Clair, an American college girl banished from her family, arrives in London to find out what happened to her beloved cousin Rose, who disappeared in Nazi-occupied France during the war, and meets a former spy who, torn apart by betrayal, agrees to help her on her mission. Descriptors: Parallel narratives, authentic/flawed characters, compelling, descriptive and witty |
The Lost Girls of Paris by Pam JenoffA remarkable story of friendship and courage centered around three women and a ring of female secret agents during World War II. Descriptors: Fast-paced, gripping and suspenseful |
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Intelligence: A Novel of the CIA by Susan HaslerIntelligence agent Maddie James and her colleagues unsuccessfully convey an impending terrorist threat to an election-minded administration focused on stressing its victories and wrongly blaming an adversarial nation. Descriptors: Fast-paced, darkly humorous, plot-driven and suspenseful |
The Spymistress : a novel by Jennifer ChiaveriniPledging her loyalty to the North at the risk of her life when her native Virginia secedes, Quaker-educated aristocrat Elizabeth Van Lew uses her innate skills for gathering military intelligence to help construct the Richmond underground and orchestrate escapes from the infamous Confederate Libby Prison. Descriptors: Atmospheric, dramatic and richly detailed |
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A Hope Divided : A Novel of the Civil War by Alyssa ColeThe Civil War has turned neighbor against neighbor--but for one scientist spy and her philosopher soldier, war could bind them together. Descriptors: Historical romance, compelling, richly detailed and steamy |
Crowned and Dangerous : A Royal Spyness Mystery by Rhys BowenSeries: Royal Spyness mysteries, book 10. Nothing is simple when you're thirty-fifth in line for the British crown, least of all marriage. But with love on their side, and plans to elope, Lady Georgiana Rannoch and her beau Darcy O'Mara hope to bypass a few royal rules. Descriptors: Historical mysteries, first person narratives and richly detailed |
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Gun Metal Heart by Dana HaynesHiding out in rural Italy while recuperating from a violent case, freelance agent Daria Gibron helps a former colleague who is being targeted by a Serbian mercenary group only to find her efforts complicated by a vengeful band of disgraced CIA agents. Descriptors: Action-packed, compelling fast-paced and suspenseful |
Red Joan by Jennie RooneyA historical novel questions the black-and-white morality of wartime society and is inspired by the true story of Melita Norwood, an 87-year-old woman who was unmasked in 1999 as the KGB's longest serving spy in Britain. Descriptors: Character-driven and suspenseful |
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This is part of a series of blog posts designed to help our readers find that next great read.
Looking for More Great Reads?
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Or check out our other great blog posts featuring spies.
Further Reading
Spy Fiction: Where Are All The Women Authors?
About The Author
April is a Librarian who has worked for TLCPL for over 25 years. She enjoys reading children's books, mysteries, general fiction and nonfiction. She's also a classic film buff with a special appreciation for film noir.
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