Top 5 books of 2025, without a doubt. I felt the rush of ALL the feelings: butterflies in my stomach, edge of my seat nail biting, pit in my stomach worry, happy tears of joy, relatable feelings of sorrow and grief…all the feels.

The chemistry and banter will have you kicking your feet. The action will have you imagining scenes from Bond and Mission Impossible with a little Mr and Mrs Smith thrown into the mix. The writing will have you constantly saying “just one more page”.

This is the definition of a must read.

I received an ARC of this ebook from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review. This book was action packed and also hilarious. I was hooked from the first chapter. The alternating timeline could be confusing but I think it was necessary to tell the backstory properly. Overall, a great sequel to The Blonde Identity and I’ll be first in line for her next book.!

This was the perfect spy version on second chance, enemies to lovers story! I loved the mixed time frame and kept me guessing. I thought I knew who the baddy was but I was actually wrong! It was a good twist and I love the characters. If she wants to make a third book, she totally should.

Ally Carter is quickly becoming an ‘auto-read’ author for me!

Her main characters in this book are sharp, smart, and have great banter. I loved the dynamic between Alex and King.

The pacing with the flashbacks worked well for me, they gave you the context for the next ‘present’ chapters and made it easy to remember details.

So thankful I was able to read this ARC!

Normally, I like a dual timeline. The back and forth is a fun way to reveal the story. But here, with the high stakes and lives on the line, I think it slowed the momentum, especially in the first half of the book. Their time on the island then, cut with Vegas and the island now, felt like I was abruptly pulled in different directions just when each story became intense. However, I think the dual timeline worked really well in the second half of the book, where more feelings are involved.

Now with all that said, I still freaking loved this book. The dialogue is so, so sharp and funny (and I want a Future Spy hoodie). And how the previous book got tied in was perfection.

A spy that wakes up without any memory of what happened. What's worse is that shes tied up next to her rival/ obviously guy she's had a past with and they must figure out what happened and how to move forward
Lots of fun!

Thanks so much to NetGalley, Avon, and Ally Carter for the e-ARC!

So, I thought The Blonde Identity was adventurous, cute and a great concept! After reading, I was so ready for Alex's story, and here it is and I thought it was fantastic! This second book was soooo much better than the first and I really did enjoy the first one. (I also really really really enjoyed The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year). In this everything was just better imo...the banter, the adventure, the mystery and the romance. I LOVED King's character (swoon). So fun and cozy!!! Loved it! Ally is now a go to author for me for sure!

My first NetGalley book!! I love the cover and I love the Gallagher Girl vibes I got.

I thought I’d like the first book better but I liked this one more!! I liked the first one, but Zoe was a bit too childlike with her lack of memory, so it just wasn’t as compelling as slow-burn rivals to lovers.

It was a little tricky to follow the timeline when reading in multiple sessions tho, since it jumped around so much. Would love a schedule of some sort at the beginning or end. Having the ‘one year ago — Russia’, etc in the table of contents with the chapters would be SUPER helpful.

The end felt a little rushed but was so interesting.

Also crossing my fingers they catch that ‘—eel’ that’s supposed to be ‘—feel’

Thank you so much netgalley for the opportunity to read this as an arc
I have a soft spot for books with spies, I just always find them so fun to read about. I just wish this was a little bit shorter cause it lost be a little bit in the middle
I would say I like this one better than the first one. And if you liked the first in this interconnected standalone, I’m sure you will enjoy this very much and the little connections
The epilogue was so sweet as well

This story is amazing!
Ally Carter as usual put us through the gorgeous spy story and I’m irrevocably in love with Michael Kingsley!
When I though that I’ve got the whole picture it was absolutely NOT THAT! I love it!


The book has dual time lines that creates another angle of the story and keep you trying to put all the puzzle pieces together. Also there is a dual POV which I totally adore. Main plot is great but you for sure should read the first book - The blonde identity to get everything and enjoy the story even more.
I love this vibe of international travels, various spots, countries and adventures along the way. It gives the vibes of Knight of the day, MR & Mrs Smith but it is so, so much more!

Love story between two spies was so tender, so heartbreaking, it has got all the feelings and more! I’ve cried several chapters because my heart was breaking for Michael.

The epilogue intrigue!! I hope we’ll see what it will be. And I’m hoping for the next book! I need this story to continue.

So to sum up: I’m totally smitten and hooked by the Blond who came in from the cold and her handsome King.

The only expectation I came into reading The Blonde Who Came In From the Cold was that it would be good and enjoyable. This book was not that. It was EXTRAORDINARY.

As I've been an Ally Carter fan for the past decade now, her books are an automatic read for me. She got me into the contemporary spy romance, with a female lead genre, and I genuinely cannot find any other author who has written this genre or writes in this niche as well as she does. So, when The Blonde Identity came out (the first book in this duology), and I read it, I was slightly disappointed when I realized it was a romantic comedy. Now, did she tell me it would be a romantic comedy? Yes. Did I just think it would be another Ally Carter book that wasn't a romcom? Also yes. Did I still enjoy The Blonde Identity? Absolutely.

But this book, GUYS. This book? IT WAS EVERYTHING, everything I expected and wanted out of an Ally Carter spy romance novel and I loved every inch of. Honestly, as of 2 days ago, as soon as I read the epigraph, I knew that this is my new favorite Ally Carter book. I honestly can't think of one thing I disliked about this book. I spent the entire 5 hours it took me to read this book squealing and kicking my feet.

If you've been a fan and read some of her other works, this book feels like cross between United We Spy and Not If I Save You First with the international aspect of her Embassy Row Series, while also being adult and more mature. The dual timeline gives a backstory into Alex and Michael's romance, while also paralleling their second-chance with one another.. The transitions between timelines were also just *chef's kiss*.The dual POV gives insight into Michael Kingsley's thoughts and actions and how utterly OBSESSED this man is with her. And he hates that he's in love with her and it shows in his actions, basically making me feel like it's an enemies/rivals to lovers, which is one of my absolute favorite tropes, when done well; and Ms. Ally Carter has done it SPECTACULARLY.

I have literally no notes. If you're on the fence about this book, please read it. Even if you haven't read the first one. Truly, this book has made me appreciate The Blonde Identity more than I had previously, and I'll probably reread it again, with the new context that The Blonde Who Came In From the Cold provided for me.

Is there an Ally Carter book that I don't love? No, never. I read this book in less than 24 hours because I didn't want to put it down.

This book was everything I wanted it to be and more. I loved getting to see Alex's side after reading The Blonde Identity and the enemies to lovers in this book was perfect.

I don't always love dual timeline books as they are sometimes hard to follow but this book did a great job of giving just enough details in the flashbacks to solidify the story without going overboard in explanations.

I have been obsessed with Ally Carter and her spy novels since I was very young, so this series feels like my childhood jumping into adult form. And I am never disappointed! This book was so fun! It had all of the tension, the pining, and the action that I have come to expect from Ally Carter's adult romances. Dual timelines are hard to pull off, so I was a little worried going in, but she pulled it off seamlessly! I loved how the missions from their past fit together to help them figure out what was going on in the present and how it created their failed, almost relationship. The characters were amazing, the romance was adorable, and the action kept me on my toes. I would honestly read a to do list, if Ally Carter wrote it, so I am so sad to be finished with this book and have to wait to read whatever she decides to write next.

Thank you to Netgalley and Avon for this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

I’m so happy I was approved for this! This is the sequel to her earlier book. This is just as fun and silly and heartfelt as the other. If you liked this author’s previous work then you’ll really like this.

This was fun, but not nearly as fun as the previous book. I really did like that first book!

This book follows Alex, the sister of the main character from the previous book in this series, The Blonde Identity.

The best way I can describe what I wanted from this book (and this is likely very unhelpful information, but whatever, it's how I feel) is that it needed more oomph. I'm sure the proper and helpful way to put that is to say it needed to be fleshed out a bit more, the characters needed more development and chemistry - that sort of thing!

This book does add more context to the previous story and just their story/world as a whole, that was cool!

If you want a fun little spy adventure, I would definitely recommend checking out this series. They're super quick to read too!

Thanks to NetGalley for the e-ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review! My Goodreads review is up and my TikTok (Zoe_Lipman) review will be up at the end of the month with my monthly reading wrap-up.

Hats off to Ally Carter for another hilarious novel!

I was fortunate enough to get an advanced readers copy of The Blonde Who Came In from the Cold by Ally Carter. From start to finish, it was a fantastic read. This novel had everything that makes Ally Carter so amazing - humor, action, intrigue, and romance. It was hard to put down and when I reached the end, I was sad it was over!

Definitely worth the read if you have the opportunity!

No one tops Ally Carter for a thoroughly diverting read! Her books are just so much fun and this series was no exception. It's like watching your favorite spy series on TV, but with even better witty banter! I enjoyed the action and suspense, and loved the character development and depth. I thought this book was a great sequel to the Blonde Identity, but you don't necessarily have to read the first to understand the second (although I think your reading experience is the better for it).

Ally Carter has done it again! With laughs, action, mystery, and romance! Alex and King weave a grand tale that you will not want to put down! I read this book in one sitting! It is well worth waiting for!

This is such a fun series. After reading the first one, I very much needed to read about Alex and I was not disappointed. I loved her from moment one, but the part I didn't expect was the pure depth and growth from Alex (and King) that made my heart ache for them. Carter has managed to cram so many romance AND spy thriller tropes in but with a fun unique take that makes the book even more enjoyable. The writing makes it snappy and so delightful to read with enough layers and nuance to keep from falling into syrupy. Like the first book the formatting isn't what you expect and this book does a fantastic job of using the time jumps and flashbacks to frame the story. It kept me on the edge of my seat, smiling and thrilled the whole time. While I really liked the first one, this one really reminded me of the YA books of Carter's that I read as a child and adored. I very selfishly want many more of these so I hope that there are more on the way *fingers crossed*.

I've had so much fun reading this series! I'm recommending it to all my friends! The back and forth between the present and the past kept the tension building and building. I loved seeing the other side of the twin relationship and King and Alex were a really fun couple to follow. The spycraft scenes were action-packed, exciting, and really well-paced.