Ally Carter’s adult spy romantic comedy, “The Blonde Identity,” opens with a woman waking up in Paris with no memory of herself or how she got there. It’s only fitting, then, that the follow-up, “The Blonde Who Came In From the Cold,” starts similarly — only this time, her twin sister wakes up with no memories, and she’s handcuffed to someone she hasn’t seen or spoken to in years. But this isn’t too out of the ordinary, since Alex Sterling is a spy.
Despite being a side character in “The Blonde Identity,” Alex Sterling stole the page — and our hearts — during her few scenes in the book. The ending of “The Blonde Identity” hinted at a continued story for Alex, meaning readers (myself included) have been eagerly waiting to see how Alex’s story might unfold. I’m glad to say, Carter hasn’t let us down.
The sequel follows Alex and her ex-spy partner, Michael “King” Kingsley, as they try to figure out who kidnapped them (and handcuffed them together) and why. While doing so, the pair, of course, battle their feelings for each other. Carter employs a dual timeline structure, following both the past and present. We read about Alex and King meeting as young operatives entering the CIA and watch the trust and feelings that grow between them over the course of a decade’s worth of history. Simultaneously, the characters’ present-day storyline involves them untangling the complicated web they now find themselves in. While keeping the timelines straight gets confusing at times, especially since the present-day Alex and King retrace their own steps and return to previous mission locations, it all adds to the effect Carter works to create — the characters are confused and need to reorient themselves, and we need to work alongside them to piece everything together.
In terms of romance, Carter keeps us waiting for gratification. Alex and King have a will-they-won’t-they dynamic in the past timeline, made all the more fun with the tropes Carter uses. They constantly engage in enemies-to-lovers banter and pose as a couple on numerous occasions — all things any romance fan will love. In the present-day timeline, though, the characters talk about their issues and estrangement. Readers eagerly await the climactic point of figuring out what caused them to part ways all those years ago, and what it will take for them to be on the same page once more.
Just as Carter does an amazing job of balancing the past and present timelines, she expertly employs a dual-perspective narrative, allowing her to evenly highlight Alex and King’s characters. This is particularly apparent when it comes to King’s feelings for Alex; in her chapters, we see how she works hard to seem composed and confident, the kind of spy you see on TV — despite insecurities about her abilities. She’s a hard-edged, older sister spy, someone who won’t let herself show weakness — the very definition of a tough girl. But King’s perspective shows us her softer sides, which Alex tries to hide. It’s one thing to read about a person through her own eyes, but we get so much depth from reading about Alex and King from each other’s eyes.
In a lot of ways, “The Blonde Identity” was about how soft girls can also be tough girls. Its sequel reminds us that the opposite is true: tough girls can also be soft girls. Carter shows us that Alex’s more vulnerable side never detracts from her strength. It’s just the contrary, in fact; Alex becomes a more nuanced person when she understands that spies (and tough older sisters) don’t need to carry the weight of the world on their shoulders. It’s okay to share the burden.
As for King, let’s just say that Carter continues her streak of never failing to write an amazing male love interest (who else remembers Zach Goode?). King is strong and smart, and objectively, everything you could ever want in a spy. Even better, though, he’s patient and caring, wanting nothing more than Alex’s safety and happiness. And he’s willing to put in the work to make sure she gets that.
Between the action and the romance, the dizzying tales of missions-gone-wrong and rescues-gone-right and the spy movie ending (complete with ballgowns and tuxedos), Carter has once again proven she’s the queen of the spy romance genre. And like the book’s dedication reminds us, it’s never too late to be a spy, whether you’re a soft girl, a tough girl or some beautiful thing in between.
Daily Arts Contributor Sabriya Imami can be reached at simami@umich.edu.
