'I'm a Donkey, plain and simple. Watch, track, report and leave the why's and where-for's to the higher ups'.

It's the 1960s, London, and the cold war is still just as hot and tetchy as it ever. Maggie Flynn has been working for the MI5 as a watcher for many years. She's become a master of disguise and a silent photographer; keeping tabs and writing reports on those rogues she's been assigned to. However, when she gets home from her secret surveillance, she's just a stressed single mother, since she was widowed, living with her increasingly outlandish mother. It's a lot. But things take a bigger turn when she discovers her husband was more involved in her line of work than the salesman job he always maintained to her. It's not long before this watcher becomes involved in a full-blown covert conversion to spy.

What a fun read. A bit tongue in cheek with plenty of Bond references and nods to the era but at the heart of it, a real game of cat and mouse.

'Contrary to popular opinion - and fans of Mr Fleming - even spies get tired'.

It’s London in the Swinging Sixties. Maggie Flynn is a widowed mother of a somewhat stroppy teen, both living with her mother Gilda who is a lively character. Maggie works as a Watcher for MI5, known in her department as a Donkey, because of their doing the most menial surveillance tasks for the agency. For Maggie this entails trudging miles of pavements with a painful bunion, carrying a Mary Poppins bag full of props to transform her appearance. A perfect role due to the invisibility of most middle aged women!

Maggie meets a Russian agent who shares information that leads to her discovery of a raft of secrets that her late husband previously concealed about his life and work. She feels compelled to reveal the extent of the deception and find out exactly what happened to him. Maggie and her colleague Frank put their lives in danger, as they get into potentially serious situations while investigating their suspicions.

As the book had been recently published when I picked it up again, I listened to some of the audiobook. I thoroughly recommend this as Clare Corbett brings the characters to life, which made it much more interesting. I was finding the text slow and somewhat dreary, not really gripped by the story at all, until I tried the audiobook.

I really liked the sixties setting, the music, clothes and cafes (especially The Golden Egg cafe.) I can see the potential for a series if the author continues with more tales about Maggie’s spy adventures. Readers of The Thursday Murder Club series, Harold Fry’s Unlikely Pilgrimage and A Man Called Ove may enjoy Mrs Spy.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read an advance copy.

Mrs Spy isn't your typical spy novel, mainly because Maggie Flynn isn't your typical spy.

In fact if her husband hadn't died, she would probably still be working as a store detective, blissfully unaware of the world of espionage, and concerned only with her Mother’s identity crisis and her teenage daughter's obsession with the Beatles.

I will admit, it took me a little while to get into this novel, but once I did, I was hooked.

Maggie's spy career to date is mainly as a 'watcher', or what is more commonly known as surveillance.

She knows how to trail a suspect without being seen, how to disguise herself at the drop of a hat (sometimes literally), and how to lose someone if she herself is being tailed.

In another life, she would be prepared for anything. But a chance meeting with a mysterious foreign agent has Maggie questioning her own career choice, and that of her late husband.

It seems like he may have endangered himself in a bid to help others, and Maggie finds herself in the same boat, with a colleague, Frank to keep her company and help her out of some of the stickier situations that she finds herself in.

Can they uncover the truth before it's too late?

Or will Maggie ultimately go the same way as her husband?

I can see Mrs Spy being a Marmite book so I've ended up sitting on the fence. The writing was good and the premise of the book was interesting. However it took a long time to get to any meaningful action and it felt like I meandered a lot after that.

It is 1965 and following the death of her spy husband, Maggie Flynn now works for MI5 as a watcher, the lowest of the low. She's sent to babysit Russian defector, Yuri, but while she's there she discovers some horrifying news about her husband.

Maggie is determined to get to the bottom of the mystery and ropes in partner, Frank, along with a cast of dodgy characters. All this while she's tasked with getting Beatles tickets for her teenage daughter. She's not going to be bored at least.

The trouble with spy novels these days is that you find yourself going up against the might of Herron.

Mrs Spy is not meant to be a comic novel but there are lighthearted parts, which helped but the novel doesn't really hit either mark of serious or amusing. Frank is a great character as is Maggie's free-spirited mother, Gilda.

But, for me, the story was lacking something. It felt like no action to a flurry and back to none.

I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys a spy story with a different kind of spy at the centre. It's certainly a lot more accessible than early Le Carre and not as comedic as Herron. So if you like a spy novel with a twist then Mrs Spy might be for you.

Thankyou to Netgalley and Aria & Aries for the advance review copy.

London, 1965. Maggie Flynn is anything but the typical 1960s mum. Because Maggie is a spy working for MI5 who stalks the streets of London in her many disguises and struggling to balance her clandestine career with single motherhood now she is widowed. But when Maggie makes a surprising discovery about her late husband, things get even more out of control as she is drawn deeper into the dangerous and murky side of espionage.

Intelligent, suspenseful, witty, intriguing and thrilling, this was such a treat! A nostalgic trip to the 60s that is rich in historic detail, M. J. Robotham has created a story that is evocatively told, cleverly plotted, intricately interwoven and twisty, pulling you into the story and holding you captive until the very last page. One of my favourite parts of the writing was the gorgeous imagery and metaphors that Robotham used, bringing the story to life around me. A story filled with treachery, secrets, subterfuge, lies and grief, chapter by chapter the plot unfolds, themes of family, loss and grief are delicately woven into the narrative, allowing the reader to empathise with the characters and the situations they find themselves in. I loved the lighthearted and upbeat vibe the story had and often found myself laughing out loud. Robotham expertly merged this with the stories darker and more suspenseful moments, keeping the lighthearted vibe whilst also keeping me on tenterhooks and making my heart race.

I loved Maggie. She has an unusual job but she’s relatable and easy to root for, mixing the ordinary and extraordinary of her life as a spy and role as a mother. I loved how fierce, upbeat and light-hearted she was, her narration was so entertaining and funny, keeping me totally immersed in the story and Maggie’s world. Maggie’s mum, Gilda, was a fantastic and ebullient character, and I loved Maggie’s banter with fellow spy Frank. The background characters were also richly drawn and there was an abundance of unsavory and unlikeable characters that I loved to hate.

A dark yet delightful historical mystery, Mrs Spy is perfect for fans of Dear Mrs Bird and Lessons in Chemistry.

We are in 1960 and Maggie Flynn lost her husband. When she found out that the story she is told can´t be correct, she is offered a job at the Secret Service do to observations like her husband did.
So Maggie is now part of observations and using disguises which doesn´t make it easier living in her mum´s house with her teenage daughter who wants nothing more than to get tickets for the Beatles concert.
Her world is turned upside down when she shall have an eye on a Soviet spy in a safe house and she finds out he knew her husband which means her Davy did not do observations for the government, no he was a real spy. What is more important was this the reason he died? Maggie starts digging and is uncovering a truth she never imagines possible and that she stumble upon a secret several persons do everything to make sure it not revealed.


This book is written from Maggie´s point of view and right from the start I found easily my way into the time and the story line.
I really liked that Maggie is such an ordinary person. She is in her forties, has a daughter but also works for MI5 and they live with her mother. She struggles to get her family, the relationship with her daughter or better having time for her and doing her job combined. So we don´t have a dashing man without any family working as spy, no here we have a more realistic storyline. I like this.

I like Maggie as character. She struggles when her husband suddenly dies and when she insist to see his body and uncovers that what she is told can´t be true is pulled into the world of the Secret Service. How she adopts, how she is running surveillances is good written and for me it was easy to connect to her character, her problems.
Frank as one of her colleagues is so different to her but also has a good heart is also well written and I like how he is helping her unfolding what is going on.

I like how bit by bit secrets unfold and how Maggie and Frank stumble upon them, how the hunt starts and then the test of character starts. The question what you are willing to risk to do the right thing, how Maggie wants to save her mum and daughter is well written.
You are not sure whom to trust, what to believe any longer which made this story to a really good read for me.
Hardcore spy fans might this book be not enough action but this is the reason why I liked it so much. It is more about the characters and in my opinion not so usual take of characters here which I think is really refreshing and I enjoyed so much.
I hope this won´t be the only book as I really like Maggie and how she finds her way in this world of secrets and spies.

When Maggie Flynn's husband died she discovered that he actually worked for MI5 and she decided to put her skills to work. However, whilst the rest of London is booming, MI5 still restricts woman to basic roles. When Maggie becomes involved with a Russian defector she realises that her husband was on the brink of uncovering a scandal and she vows to continue his fight. With a motley group of supporters at her back Maggie tries to fight the Establishment as well as support her family.
I was rather surprised how much I loved this story. It's far too lightweight to be taken seriously as a spy novel but it absolutely bounds along with sheer joie de vivre that it completely captured me. It evokes the Swinging Sixties as well as post-War austerity with lots of little, knowing, comments but it also a well-crafted novel with a decent plot. A hidden gem!

If you liked 'Spooks' then you will totally love this!

Maggie Flynn is a single mother in the 60's; with a Beatles-mad daughter. She absolutely loves being a spy - it makes her feel closer to her late husband whose covert activities only came to light after his death. A chance encounter with a Russian agent sends Maggie's world into a spin; he not only knew her husband but suspects that someone on home turf betrayed him. Of course, Maggie just has to take things further and find out who and why - but is she putting her life in danger?

This is a terrific period read with so many authentic details and I adored it. Maggie is such a fine character and I would really, really love to read more about her. A very enjoyable read which I'm happy to recommend and give 4.5*.

My thanks to the publisher for my copy via NetGalley.

1965, England. Maggie Flynn is a daughter, widow, mother to a Beatles-mad teenage daughter Libby and a spy and she works as a watcher for the MI5 in London and she wears many hats!

Maggie is still mourning the loss of Davy, she has questions about how he died and using her investigative skills she will uncover her late hubby had links to a Russian agent, it makes no sense to Maggie, surly he wasn’t a double agent for the KGB or did someone betray him and was he murdered?

Maggie retraces Davy’s last movements and ventures into unknown territory, she has no idea who she can trust and the last thing she wants to put her family in danger.

I received a copy of The Spy by M. J. Robotham from Aria & Aries and NetGalley and in exchange for an honest review. A narrative about a middle aged woman trying to juggle motherhood and her high pressure job in the 1960’s and of course it mentions the music and fashion of the time and hair styles.

I really liked the following characters, Maggie, her mum Gilda, her friend and fellow agent Frank Tanner, being a mother I could relate to Maggie’s determination to make sure her daughter did well at school, was happy and protect her from harm.

Maggie is no James Bond, in this historical suspense thriller she pushes herself to the limit to uncover secrets and truth and to get justice for her husband and save his reputation, and nothing stops her from doing her utmost and not even her mum tummy and bunions.

In Mrs Spy it shows author Mandy or M. J. Robotham isn’t scared to mix things up a little and move away from her usual genre and four stars from me and I recommend.

Mrs. Spy is a sharp, suspenseful read with a compelling lead and a gripping plot. Blending espionage with real-life elements, the story is both thrilling and accessible. While a few twists are a little predictable, the characterisation, especially of the main character, is strong. A solid choice if you're in the mood for a spy tale with a unique twist.

An enjoyable read but starts off very slowly. I nearly gave up after 30% as it was mostly Flynn's ramblings. The latter half was much better but Ian Fleming ( the books not the films) has nothing to fear. Sorry, this book wasn't for me as even the humour was rather flat. The description of pain with bunions was pretty accurate! Books are a very personal taste and I am sure many readers will enjoy it.

This is a highly entertaining romp through the spy world of Swinging Sixties London. After middle-aged housewife Maggie’s husband David died, she discovered that he was a spy and insists on being retained herself. Relegated to dull donkey work, her life changes when she finds out that her beloved David died mysteriously and may even have been murdered. Together with ex-policeman Frank, she sets out to seek the cause of his death and the murky goings-on at MI5.

Meanwhile, she has an ageing but hippy-ish mother to contend with and a daughter demanding tickets to the Beatles!

I love spy stories and I found this one difficult to put down. Hopefully, we’ll see Maggie go on more adventures! This would make a great film.

I received this free ebook from NetGalley in return for an honest review.

London in the swinging 60's.  Beatlemania, Mary Quant are the rage and MI5 is still steeped in the Old Boys Network and climbing the espionage ladder depends on who you know, rather than what you know or how good you are at your job.  Oh, and being a woman in that world - well, Maggie is about to shatter some glass ceilings!

A homage to all those 60's thrillers that I've inhaled over the years - you know the ones that generally ended up being a movie with Michael Caine in it.  They're slick and gritty, with flawed heroes and the coolest gadgets.  We're not talking 007 here, we're talking the antithesis of him; gritty, world-weary and stuck with the least glamourous of jobs!  Being an MI5 "Donkey" is not for the faint of heart (or those easily bored)!

Maggie is a skilled if low-level spy, relegated to watching folk and sending her reports up the chain of command.  Her husband had been a spy and she was drawn into the world upon his death - she had to keep their teenager fed somehow.  But one fateful babysitting job and Maggie is up to her neck in traitors, Russian defectors and Whitehall power plays.

Maggie was a gem of a character.  She moans, she gets fed up, she gets angry at injustice and she actually does something about it!  The and her fellow donkeys may get overlooked by the higher-ups but they're the ones doing the work and the others grab the glory.  But when they learn what exactly is going on they set out to ensure that the bosses are held accountable. Maggie and CO. go above and beyond their jobs and I loved watching the action unfold.

The bond between Maggie and Frank especially is so nice to see, especially for the time period in which the book is set, he's a very forward thinking male is Frank and he has no problems working with a woman.

Great read and really put me in the mood for some movie marathons!

What sprightly spyly fun! A really good homage to the genre, the period, and the places (mainly London).

In fact, it’s good enough to not need as many references to the “007 elephant in the zoom” as it drops in. Although, to be fair, some do hit home when highlighting the dichotomy between cinema’s sleekest, glitziest spy and Maggie’s world of the Watchers as she tails this suspect and that spy around the streets of London to report back with pics to her superiors.

Ms. Robotham nails all the spy stuff and the characters of 1965 London but also raises the emotional stakes by making it personal. Davey, Maggie Flynn’s late husband, had been a secret spy. A fact that housewife and mother-to-a-teen-daughter Maggie never knew. When she stumbles on something that contradicts what she was told of his death, she decides the truth must be uncovered. How much of her life with Davey was a lie? How can she live and mourn him with love if she doesn’t find out? And as she uncovers more questions and suspects, who can she trust to help a middle-aged bunion-affected housewife spy?

In the end, the spy stuff is the cleverly realized vehicle onto which to hang a story of love and loss and trust, and of uncovering a truthful reality, at whatever emotional cost to the MC and her family.

This is fresh and exciting, fun and invigorating. And I loved it! Can I whisper it very quietly and ask if there might be more stories featuring this world and (some of) its characters? I’ll be keeping a sp-eye out ;).

Thanks to the author, the publisher—Aria—and to NetGalley for the opportunity to hang out with Maggie and Frank, two characters who’ll always feel like friends.

OMG how good is this book. I have been right spoiled by the last few books I have read being top notch. This one being the latest.
Set in the 60s which was a complete breath of fresh air for me, we follow widow Maggie Flynn as she goes about her days as a Watcher for MI5, whilst her mum helps her care for her daughter. She was catapulted into the spy game after the tragic death in the line of duty of her late husband who was himself a spy, this only becoming known to her after his death. She has a relatively simple set of tasks, mostly watching whilst evading discovery. All is ticking along mostly, apart from a demanding daughter, Libby, who NEEDS Beatles tickets, and a mother, Gilda, who wants her home more, until she is asked to fill in with a bit of babysitting duty. Turns out that the man she is looking after knew her late-husband. And despite not really being allowed to talk to him, Maggie learns something that turns her whole world upside down...
And so begins a cat and mouse game that has Maggie running around trying to work out the truth of her late-husband's life and, indeed, death. The rest of which I will leave for you to discover.
I loved the setting of this book - the time and place. It was refreshing not to have information at your fingertips, to have to use phone boxes and employ old school tracking capabilities. All of which Maggie was rather proficient at!
It also helped that I took to Maggie right from the off, she's been through the mill, bless her, but has right bounced back and, with her new job, got a new lease of life. Yes it's hard juggling life and work, but she really does her best. She also mostly trusts her instincts but also is wary enough to second guess her gut on occasion.
And the story was extremely well plotted and kept my attention nicely all the way through, spitting me out at the end both wholly satisfied and also wondering if this was / could be the start of a series as, to be honest, I firmly believe that Maggie et al have so much more to give...
Meanwhile I'm off to read The Scandalous Life of Ruby Devereaux, her debut book which I am shocked I missed last year...
My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

Not what I expected from the title.

Set in the 1960s Maggie Flynn is Mrs Spy. She is widowed and has a daughter and errant mother living with her. She's no Jane Bond and is far from glamourous in her role as a watcher. Something a middle aged woman is suited to, as no one gives her a second glance, especially in her many wigs.

She's fairly content with her lot apart from a nasty bunion causing her grief. Then she has to mind a Russian agent with whom she has an interesting conversation, which leads her to believe her husband was much more than a watcher himself.

I loved the social history aspects of this book. From Maggie trying to obtain Beatles tickets for her daughter to her taking her shopping on the Kings Road. It all seemed fairly low key and pedestrian when the plot took a bit of a sinister turn and my interest was piqued. There were some truly nail biting parts that followed and I would have liked more of those.

Maggie is a strong character and that shows through from her transition from a watcher to actually spying.
However, I didn't find this book laugh out loud as the blurb suggests. There were amusing scenes of domesticity with her daughter and mother and some very true to life observations of a middle aged lady's ailments.

London is practically teeming with Communist spies lurking in every nook and cranny in 1965. Maggie Flynn's job as a Watcher with M15 is fascinating and varied and she is adept at writing descriptions of the persons of interest she shadows. Disguises and espionage are part of her everyday life as she gets into scrapes and adventures. She follows people onto buses and into parks to observe their movements. She and Frank make a humorous and endearing team. Maggie returns home each day to her teen daughter and has a rather eccentric mother. They ground her yet add further splotches of colour to her full life. She is a widow and discovers the accidental death of her husband wasn't exactly straightforward. Not only is she a mother, daughter, and spy but also a sleuth! I love that she just rolls with it and gets on with her life yet can see the humour in her situations.

The idea of a nondescript middle-aged female spy in this era grabbed me by the neck and yanked me in. I like the fresh perspective on Maggie's day-to-day operations, the ordinary and extraordinary. Her descriptions and antics made me giggle. I had fun following her around and hope to see much more of her, Frank and her family in the future.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book.

This is an enjoyable book with very good characters. I thought it would be a bit like the Mrs Pollifax books but it is more down to earth. I was reading lately that a lot of spies are older women and it is nice to read about something more realistic than James Bond - I like that the book often refers to the life of a Donkey being far removed from the glamorous world of Ian Fleming.

Maggie and Frank are great characters and I warmed to them immediately. I would read another book about the two of them, there could be scope here for a series.

The story is varied and well paced, it never flags. There are unexpected twists and betrayals but there are also parts where the reader guesses things before Maggie does and I like that. One of the characters is called Hilda Grayling and I was amused to wonder if she could be the sister of that other strict and competent Miss Grayling, headmistress of Malory Towers. lol. In the notes the author said that she did a lot of research to ensure that the 60s setting was authentic. I have to say that I did not get a particular feeling of a 60s setting but it didnt mar my enjoyment.

I did wonder a bit about the Spy Shack where the Donkeys keep all their different outfits and accoutrements and also about them being known to the staff in the cafes round about. Would it not seem strange to the locals to keep seeing the same people coming out of the same door but dressed as different people? Maybe that's Soho for you!

I will round this up to a 4.

This was an excellent spy thriller with attention to detail and some great characterisation. The heroine is not a spy in the mould of James Bond, rather she is a middle aged woman with a bunion, a spreading waistline and a typically stormy teenage daughter. Maggie Flynn embarks on a quest to find out what happened to her husband, killed in mysterious circumstances three years prior. It leads her to uncover a rogue enterprise involving the top brass at MI5. She learns who to trust and who is a liability, more than that, she learns she is more capable than she thought. The plot is suitably tortuous and the book brings to life London in the swinging sixties. This, alongside a feature of espionage in the Cold War age make this a thoroughly enjoyable read.

“Mrs Spy” by M. J. Robotham is an absolute gem — a beautifully crafted espionage novel that captures the spirit of Slow Horses while carving out a voice all its own. Set against the richly atmospheric backdrop of mid-sixties London, it follows Maggie Flynn, a single mother turned MI5 operative, as she delves into the agency’s murky underworld of betrayal, secrets, and conspiracies.

Maggie is a wonderful protagonist: sharp, resourceful, and deeply human, juggling the demands of motherhood with the perils of spycraft. Part of the emotional pull of the story is her discovery that her late husband — whom she thought she knew — had been a spy himself, a revelation that adds a bittersweet depth to her mission and personal journey. Robotham’s writing balances tension and dark humour perfectly, giving the book a dry, knowing wit that never undercuts the stakes.

The plot is believable yet filled with clever twists, leading to a smart and satisfying conclusion that left me hoping we’ll see Maggie and her team again. In a genre often dominated by flashy action, Mrs Spy stands out for its nuance, heart, and authenticity. It’s a masterclass in character-driven espionage fiction — and a must-read for anyone who loves their spy stories clever, stylish, and laced with just the right amount of cynicism.