Spies. Though in reality they are supposed to blend into their surroundings and call no attention to themselves, in literature and film they are often too dashing, beautiful and extraordinarily stylish, not to mention clever and resourceful, to hide in the shadows. In ORIGINAL SIN, the first Sally Sin Adventure by Beth McMullen, the image of the spy is turned on its head in the titular character. Though many debonair and classic spy-types are present here, McMullen's Sally Sin is an undercover agent like no other.

"ORIGINAL SIN is a great first outing for this debut author and a fine introduction to a fun, mysterious and likable character."

This is the story of Lucy Hamilton, aka Sally Sin, a former spy for the USAWMD. Handpicked right out of college for service, Lucy traveled the world securing intelligence and offing bad guys. A bit bumbling perhaps, and occasionally lacking the expected confidence and grace, she nevertheless is a very good spy. After nine years of untiring work, Lucy retires from her job, marries the man of her dreams, and settles down to raise their son, Theo, in San Francisco. But leaving behind a job, even one where her co-workers were always being killed and villains were constantly kidnapping her, turns out to be more difficult than she thought it would be.

Lucy's cultivated paranoia is justified when her old boss, the enigmatic Simon Still, shows up and tells her he has a job for her to do. Try as she might, she cannot say no, especially when she learns it involves her nemesis, Ian Blackwell, thought dead for years.

With Simon's appearance and the fact that Blackwell is nearby, Lucy begins to recall what brought her to the USAWMD and all the adventures and dangers she experienced. At the center of her career was Blackwell, often her captor but never taking the chance to kill her when he had it. What is it that brought them together so often? Was it desire or revulsion they felt for each other? Even as Lucy contemplates the path she chose, the reasons she diverged from it and her professional successes and failures, she is once again in the maelstrom of the spy game. Stakes are even higher this time as she is confronted with the reality that her true identity may be discovered by her husband and, worse, the possibility that her son could be harmed.

Apart from this compelling back story and interesting twist on the spy novel, much of what you expect from the genre remains intact. Blackwell is charming and tormented, and Simon is cold and emotionless. And Lucy is lovely, brave and smart. There is plenty of intrigue and dastardly bad guys, plus action galore. There are also meals to prepare, play dates to schedule and yoga classes to attend as Lucy attempts to live a normal life with her family.

Readers are set up nicely for more Sally Sin books to follow as McMullen leaves plenty of unanswered questions. ORIGINAL SIN is a great first outing for this debut author and a fine introduction to a fun, mysterious and likable character.