Not Exactly Dead

The MI5 1/2 adventures start here, in London, in the wee hours, in thickish fog, back in the days when mobile phones were becoming common enough, but a phone with a video display was still something that could draw more attention than a spy might want to have from the general public - not that either the leading man or the leading lady of this story much wanted a videophone, both of them being technophobes, not to mention not being fond of being monitored too closely by headquarters. Richard Hugh, aka Triple-O Five of the unsung British agency nicknamed MI5 1/2, is happily making life miserable for bad guys and, when he has time, cultivating a reputation as a lady's man. But then the Americans get the notion that he's been marked for death by a notorious spy killer who has been bumping off spies belonging to an odd mix of nations. This would almost be business as usual, except that the Americans send Emma Chapman over to keep an eye on Hugh, in the hopes of catching the assassin (preferably before he bumps off 0005). Chapman is short, plain, and respectable, and couldn't care less that Hugh is suave and handsome. This is not at all the sort of female he's used to working with. Before long, the Hugh-as-rat-bait hunt for Mighty Planetary Master involves the French, represented most notably by the fearless and philosophical Leandre Durand, who doesn't mind in the least keeping his own counsel. Meanwhile, gangster Frank Hoddel would like Triple-O Five either kidnapped or dead. Are we having fun yet? First book in a series. The next book is Not Exactly Innocent, followed by Not Exactly Allies, Decidedly Not Official, and Not Quite Home. This revised edition matches the ebook edition.