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Alex Martin Cozy Mystery #3
The Noughty Spy
…TWO FINDING MACHINES …A FACELESS ENEMY …CAN ALEX SAVE HER FATHER’S LEGACY?
August 2000, and the summer’s an absolute scorcher. All Alex Martin wants is ice cream and a proper job, but things are about to get hotter.
The Turing-Tesla League needs Alex’s help. The League’s Director, Jonathan, has been kidnapped and the clone Finding Machine is missing. To make matters worse, Alex’s machine can’t find him. Jonathan has disappeared off the face of the earth.
Alex travels to League HQ - Red Croft Lodge - and dives headfirst into the dangerous world of espionage, aided by an ex-secret service agent, a teen hacker, and a mineralogist with close ties to her late father. Turns out, the building holds many secrets of its own.
The clues point to a faceless mastermind intent on exploiting the stolen Finding Machine for his own ends. Alex must uncover the truth, before her father’s legacy and the League are destroyed. Forever.
August 2000, and the summer’s an absolute scorcher. All Alex Martin wants is ice cream and a proper job, but things are about to get hotter.
The Turing-Tesla League needs Alex’s help. The League’s Director, Jonathan, has been kidnapped and the clone Finding Machine is missing. To make matters worse, Alex’s machine can’t find him. Jonathan has disappeared off the face of the earth.
Alex travels to League HQ - Red Croft Lodge - and dives headfirst into the dangerous world of espionage, aided by an ex-secret service agent, a teen hacker, and a mineralogist with close ties to her late father. Turns out, the building holds many secrets of its own.
The clues point to a faceless mastermind intent on exploiting the stolen Finding Machine for his own ends. Alex must uncover the truth, before her father’s legacy and the League are destroyed. Forever.
353 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 4, 2025
2 people are currently reading
6 people want to read
About the author
Lucy Lyons
4 books34 followersLucy Lyons worked in London as an editorial illustrator before realising she loved writing novels so much, she wanted to do that full-time.
She writes the nostalgic nineties Alex Martin Cozy Mystery series as Lucy Lyons, and her epic fantasy series - the Chronicles of Mealduth - as L. Lyons.
She now lives in leafy Surrey with her illustrator husband, two grown-up boys and a bearded dragon called Pancake. When she’s not at her desk writing, she loves to escape into the garden and other worlds.
She writes the nostalgic nineties Alex Martin Cozy Mystery series as Lucy Lyons, and her epic fantasy series - the Chronicles of Mealduth - as L. Lyons.
She now lives in leafy Surrey with her illustrator husband, two grown-up boys and a bearded dragon called Pancake. When she’s not at her desk writing, she loves to escape into the garden and other worlds.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
January 3, 2026
This amazing cozy crime mystery is the 3rd volume of the incredibly likeable "Alex Martin" series, from this remarkable author, Lucy Lyons.
At the end of the book within the Acknowledgements you'll find some useful info concerning certain subjects and places which will play an important in this exciting mystery.
Storytelling is excellent, all characters come vividly to life in this wonderful crime novel, with great interaction between all figures featuring, while also the atmosphere of early 21st Century comes splendidly off the pages.
The story is set in August 2000, and it starts off in Birmingham, England with a dog rescue operation by Alex Martin and her partner Antony Eastwood, before Alex is called in by Marshall, Head of Security of "The League", to help in the search of their leader Jonathan who's gone missing, together with mineralogist Carmen and tech genius "TJ", and using Alex's Finding Machine in an attempt to try to locate Jonathan.
More and more it will become clear that a dark force is behind the abduction of Jonathan, a dark force that has its sight on the Finding Machine and is in search for certain substances to make it work, and all this for power and greed, two very hungry ingredients of late for certain individuals, and so for Alex and her team of "The League" the task to stop that dark force into developing that Finding Machine and somehow rescue the rest of the world, and in the process the Finding Machine itself.
What is to to follow is an action-packed cozy crime mystery, with a great storyline accompanied with a superbly worked out plot, and all this is brought to us in a most brilliant fashion by the author.
Very much recommended, for this is another splendid addition to this sparkling series, and that's why I like to call this latest episode: : "A Sublime Thrilling Spy Sequel"!
At the end of the book within the Acknowledgements you'll find some useful info concerning certain subjects and places which will play an important in this exciting mystery.
Storytelling is excellent, all characters come vividly to life in this wonderful crime novel, with great interaction between all figures featuring, while also the atmosphere of early 21st Century comes splendidly off the pages.
The story is set in August 2000, and it starts off in Birmingham, England with a dog rescue operation by Alex Martin and her partner Antony Eastwood, before Alex is called in by Marshall, Head of Security of "The League", to help in the search of their leader Jonathan who's gone missing, together with mineralogist Carmen and tech genius "TJ", and using Alex's Finding Machine in an attempt to try to locate Jonathan.
More and more it will become clear that a dark force is behind the abduction of Jonathan, a dark force that has its sight on the Finding Machine and is in search for certain substances to make it work, and all this for power and greed, two very hungry ingredients of late for certain individuals, and so for Alex and her team of "The League" the task to stop that dark force into developing that Finding Machine and somehow rescue the rest of the world, and in the process the Finding Machine itself.
What is to to follow is an action-packed cozy crime mystery, with a great storyline accompanied with a superbly worked out plot, and all this is brought to us in a most brilliant fashion by the author.
Very much recommended, for this is another splendid addition to this sparkling series, and that's why I like to call this latest episode: : "A Sublime Thrilling Spy Sequel"!
April 6, 2025
An enjoyable read for sure!
Due to other commitments in my life that took precedence it took me a while to get into this book. Despite that, I always felt welcomed and enveloped into the authors world albeit briefly and intermittently. I never felt like I had to have a refresher and be like “okay so where are we again?” as the author has a way of easing us into the story so fluidly at almost every turn.
I personally really enjoyed the side-plot of Alex’s mum’s situation as it felt like brief interludes and didn’t detract from the main storyline at all in my opinion. It was nice to actually get some use out of the Finding Machine with that side-plot, as due to aspects that I won’t explain (as I don’t wish to spoil anything) there wasn’t much use throughout the main storyline of the Finding Machine itself, and when it was used to be honest it didn’t really feel necessary except as a reminder that the item in question was one of the main instigating factors of this series.
If, for similar reasons to me or other reasons entirely, you may find yourself taking a while to get into this book, please don’t give up, and do be prepared for things to pick up in both speed and intrigue after about a third of the way through this book. At which point I didn’t want to put the book down.
That is something that Lucy seems to be truly great at. Creating such momentum in the 3rd and final act that the last few chapters fly by and we find ourselves at the end of the book desperate for more!!
Lucy’s commitment to research and her passion for this era gone throughout this book, including some nostalgia from an even older era which was nice and added to the cosy mystery vibe.
Overall, another excellent book with all the good qualities that a cosy mystery author should be praised for!
Due to other commitments in my life that took precedence it took me a while to get into this book. Despite that, I always felt welcomed and enveloped into the authors world albeit briefly and intermittently. I never felt like I had to have a refresher and be like “okay so where are we again?” as the author has a way of easing us into the story so fluidly at almost every turn.
I personally really enjoyed the side-plot of Alex’s mum’s situation as it felt like brief interludes and didn’t detract from the main storyline at all in my opinion. It was nice to actually get some use out of the Finding Machine with that side-plot, as due to aspects that I won’t explain (as I don’t wish to spoil anything) there wasn’t much use throughout the main storyline of the Finding Machine itself, and when it was used to be honest it didn’t really feel necessary except as a reminder that the item in question was one of the main instigating factors of this series.
If, for similar reasons to me or other reasons entirely, you may find yourself taking a while to get into this book, please don’t give up, and do be prepared for things to pick up in both speed and intrigue after about a third of the way through this book. At which point I didn’t want to put the book down.
That is something that Lucy seems to be truly great at. Creating such momentum in the 3rd and final act that the last few chapters fly by and we find ourselves at the end of the book desperate for more!!
Lucy’s commitment to research and her passion for this era gone throughout this book, including some nostalgia from an even older era which was nice and added to the cosy mystery vibe.
Overall, another excellent book with all the good qualities that a cosy mystery author should be praised for!
May 26, 2025
Summer 2000, Alex Martin is using her father's finding machine to help others even if it puts her in danger. But then she is asked to find someone who has been kidnapped and the machine can't find him...
The Noughty Spy is the third book in the excellent Alex Martin series of mystery books set at the turn of the millennium.
I was soooo happy to return to the year 2000 and catch up with Alex who has a new quest. There is a little drama at the beginning as she searched for a stolen dog but then the main action takes off. One of the mysterious League has been kidnapped and for the first time ever the finding machine fails. He can't be dead as the machine finds bodies too, so where can he be?
Alex has always wanted to be taken seriously and work with the League, and now she has her chance. But the stakes are high and she is in even more danger than usual.
I felt right back in the past as 2000 was brought authentically back to life within the pages. I particularly loved the memories of tamagotchis! There is plenty of mystery, drama and action, but I did find the science a bit complicated.
The Noughty Spy is a compelling read (hope Antony features more next time as I love his character!) and I look forward to more in the future (please please please Lucy!)
The Noughty Spy is the third book in the excellent Alex Martin series of mystery books set at the turn of the millennium.
I was soooo happy to return to the year 2000 and catch up with Alex who has a new quest. There is a little drama at the beginning as she searched for a stolen dog but then the main action takes off. One of the mysterious League has been kidnapped and for the first time ever the finding machine fails. He can't be dead as the machine finds bodies too, so where can he be?
Alex has always wanted to be taken seriously and work with the League, and now she has her chance. But the stakes are high and she is in even more danger than usual.
I felt right back in the past as 2000 was brought authentically back to life within the pages. I particularly loved the memories of tamagotchis! There is plenty of mystery, drama and action, but I did find the science a bit complicated.
The Noughty Spy is a compelling read (hope Antony features more next time as I love his character!) and I look forward to more in the future (please please please Lucy!)
March 14, 2025
Another fun installment in the cosy mystery series
When the head of the League disappears, Alex has to join the tiny core of people who can be trusted to find him - but was he kidnapped, or is he a bad 'un? The main thread of the book is a twisty hunt for strange objects (can't say more without spoilers) and the people who want them, including a chase through the Natural History Museum and Bletchley Park. There's a satisfying resolution, priming us for the next in the series.
There were a couple of things that I wasn't so keen on: first, a separate story about what Alex's mum is getting up to, all handled via phone calls and text messages - yes, it's an amusing aside, but I felt it was a bit distracting. Second, as I mentioned in reviews of the earlier books, some of the science and tech is a bit 'iffy' - but the approach to take is to ignore how and why things work, just accept that they do.
When the head of the League disappears, Alex has to join the tiny core of people who can be trusted to find him - but was he kidnapped, or is he a bad 'un? The main thread of the book is a twisty hunt for strange objects (can't say more without spoilers) and the people who want them, including a chase through the Natural History Museum and Bletchley Park. There's a satisfying resolution, priming us for the next in the series.
There were a couple of things that I wasn't so keen on: first, a separate story about what Alex's mum is getting up to, all handled via phone calls and text messages - yes, it's an amusing aside, but I felt it was a bit distracting. Second, as I mentioned in reviews of the earlier books, some of the science and tech is a bit 'iffy' - but the approach to take is to ignore how and why things work, just accept that they do.
September 18, 2025
The first two books in this series were enjoyable, engaging mysteries, but Lyons really hits her stride with The Noughty Spy. She balances two subplots along with the main story that features enough twists, turns, and surprises kept me guessing until the spectacular climax. She also adds a new quasi-scientific device, the Stone Tapes, that kept the story fresh. Lyons is a master at imbuing her story with a sense of place, and I've already put a visit to Bletchley Park and a ride in a World War II ambulance.
April 24, 2025
A fantastic read. Love the description. Completely gripped by the book.
March 7, 2025
This book is far from “cozy.” It’s a techy spy thriller with some real nail-biting scenes. I also enjoyed the whiff of mystery introduced through some ancient standing stones. Lucy has obviously done her research to make this book compelling, and she knows her vintage tech! I look forward to digging into the next book in the series.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews