I, Spy, an impressive debut by L. M. Kemp

Kendal Carter is at a playground on the outskirts of Zurich with her four-year-old, Rosie, when she notices two men in suits lurking nearby. She is instantly wary, especially because if the men are a threat, they are between her and the apartment where she has a “go bag.”

When the men disappear, she returns home cautiously and her next-door neighbor says the men were there, looking for a Kara but showing a photo of a woman resembling Kendal. Kendal can’t decide whether to run or not, and her hesitation is almost fatal – the men return and she hears them killing her neighbor through the wall. Kendal has time to make one emergency phone call, and moments later a car is waiting for her as she and Rosie flee from the building.

As fields gave way to suburban sprawl, Kendal felt the pull of her old life. She reviewed her memory of the city. She had contacts here, including Fini Meridian, her first and maybe only friend. It was a city she had spent lots of time in, but always under an alias and never for longer than a few months. Good for raising a child? How could she possibly know when she’d only ever traveled alone, with bottomless expenses and no anchors?

Kendal has been in hiding since her last assignment blew up in her face and she found out she was pregnant. Now that she’s asked an old colleague to rescue her and Rosie, she owes him a favor – and he has job for her in London. Kendal is back in the game with a new identity but now that she has a child, her priorities are different. Yet she is pleased to realize her espionage skills have never left her, and she enjoys being involved in a covert operation again. But are the secrets in Kendal’s past catching up with her? Are she and Rosie in danger? What can she do to mitigate threats coming from multiple directions?

I thought this was a great debut novel that effectively blends tension and humor, and Kendal is an appealing protagonist among well-crafted characters. She is honest about her shortcomings but determined to be a good mother because her own was the opposite of nurturing. The last thing she wants is to take on an important mission but once she is rescued from Zurich she needs somewhere to live and one thing leads to another. Her observations about those around her are both amusing and astute as she slowly realizes she is not the only one with secrets. This book was original and entertaining, and I look forward to more from this author.

Title: I, Spy
Author: L.M. Kemp
Publication: Minotaur Books, hardcover, 2026
Genre: Suspense
Source: Library

Reading I, Spy contributed to this challenge:

• Cloak and Dagger 2026