This series launch from the pseudonymous Glass, author of the Harper McClain mysteries (written as Christi Daugherty), is all about speed. British intelligence officer Emma Makepeace lands her first in-the-field case, under the direction of her mentor, Charles Ripley. Her assignment is to bring Michael Primatov, the son of Russian scientists who defected to the West, to safety. Russian agents, in clear violation of post--Cold War protocols, are assassinating defectors living in England, and snatching Primatov appears to be the best way to get to his parents. So begins a race across London that recalls the similarly harried sprints through Paris undertaken by CIA agent Kate Moore in Chris Pavonne's The Paris Diversion (2019). But this one comes with a pulse-accelerating wrinkle: the Russians have hacked Britain's CCTV surveillance system and are able to track Emma and Michael's movements across the city, using the system's near-ubiquitous cameras. The nonstop action is superbly choreographed, including a harrowing trek through the Fleet River, one of 20 streams that flow beneath London. Buttressing the unrelenting pace, there's also plenty of character-building backstory, as we learn why Emma chose to become a spy and how Ripley's grudge match with a Russian superspy connects to Emma's and Primatov's histories. The race to the finish line is more than enough to fuel a great thriller, but this one also gives us a superb, multidimensional protagonist whom readers will be eager to follow anywhere.

In the pseudonymous Glass's superb debut, a series launch, British intelligence agent Emma Makepeace undertakes her first truly important assignment from her boss, Charles Ripley. Spies for the Russian military have been killing former Russian scientists now living in the U.K. Ripley wants Emma to protect Michael Primalov, the son of Russian physicists who spied for England. Michael acquiesces to Emma's help after a close call with two assassins. When Emma phones her boss for help, Ripley is suspiciously unavailable; she and Michael are on the run from the Russians--and maybe someone from within the Secret Service. As they cross London in an effort to reach the safety of MI6, they have to avoid the city's ubiquitous security cameras, electronic surveillance, and roving teams of Russians. Along the way, Glass (the Harper McClain mysteries as Christi Daugherty) smoothly works in Emma's backstory, which includes her selection and training for the Service and the highly personal reasons that made becoming a spy "everything she'd dreamed of." Intense, cinematic action propels this terrific old-fashioned thriller neatly brought up to date. Glass is off to an impressive start. Agent: Madeleine Milburn, Madeleine Milburn Literary. (U.K.).

Glass (the pseudonym for an already internationally best-selling novelist) introduces Emma Makepeace, a new-era British spy whose quintessentially English alias facilitates blending into London, the most surveilled city in Europe. In the last two weeks, four government-protected Russian scientists were publicly assassinated with the efficiency and audacity of the Russian military spy agency GRU. The message: GRU knows the locations of dissidents in London and can strike with impunity. Unless the Agency intervenes, GRU will attack another set of scientists, planning to kidnap their son, Michael, to draw them out of hiding. Emma must make contact with Michael, convince him to accept protection, and deliver him to Agency headquarters--no easy task. Once on the run, this duo must cross London unseen by the Ring of Steel of CCTV cameras, now in the hands of GRU hackers. For 12 hours, Emma leads Michael through alleys, sewer tunnels, and back channels that don't appear in any guide book. The 12-hour time line propels the narrative. VERDICT Perfect for a single-sitting read, Glass's thriller (the first in a planned series) is an adrenaline-fueled tour of clandestine London. What's next for Emma Makepeace? More, please.--Laura A.B. Cifelli