Will I love The Unexpected Mrs. Pollifax?

In short: wonderful characters!

The plots have twists and turns, and often interesting settings around the world, but it's really the characters that make this series. Some of the books may have a dated feel at times, but it’s still wonderful to revisit old friends and have adventures in interesting places.

Plus, Mrs. Pollifax is wonderfully open-minded and generous, finding beauty and friends everywhere.

What could be more unexpected than for a New Jersey widow in her sixties to become a CIA agent? Especially during the Cold War era?

Perhaps it is this unexpected nature of the circumstances that helps this incurable optimist to turn every near disaster into a triumph of good over evil. I love Mrs. P.’s indomitable spirit and seeing all the far-flung places her adventures take her through her eyes. Having lived through the 1960’s, I can relate to the authentic attitudes of the time.

While this wasn’t written as a historical, it was published in the 1960s, so it qualifies as one.

Mrs. Pollifax is another unlikely spunky heroine who’s one of my favorites. A suburban housewife and widow with grown children and an empty nest, Pollifax is so bored with gardening and yoga that she volunteers to help the CIA! What was supposed to be a short and safe trip to Mexico City turns into something far more sinister, and she ends up in an Albanian prison.

It could be a wild and unbelievable read, but in this author’s skillful hands, the plot… show more.

“A little old lady from New Jersey becomes more trouble than the CIA, or anyone else, bargained for.” I loved Mrs. Pollifax from the first few pages and followed her from this introductory book through several books. Who wouldn’t like a sixty-something gardening lady, who knows karate, and manages to join the CIA in the middle of the Cold War? She’s always wanted to be a spy and she does it with panache, humor, and great success. Her adventures, her unique solutions, and her absolute good cheer and survival kept me coming back for more. This first book covers her… show more.

Emily Pollifax is struggling with her quiet life when she decides to take the train from New Brunswick, New Jersey, and her prize-winning geraniums, to Washington, D.C. where, like any ordinary retiree, she calls upon the CIA, volunteering her services as a spy. One case of slightly mistaken identity later, the higher-ups realize [horrified] she’s not their operative, and they’ve sent her to Mexico on a dangerous mission. The other books take her all over the world… to Turkey, Albania, China, Switzerland, Zambia, anywhere and everywhere her unique, grandmotherly brand of charm, nerve, wit, verve, and intrigue are needed. Mrs.… show more.

Mrs. Pollifax had a busy life until her children became adults and moved into their own lives. So she tried community work and joined a gardening club but when those became totally boring Mrs. Pollifax decided to fulfill her lifelong dream of becoming a spy. The minute she wangled an introduction from her Congress Member to a liaison at the CIA, I practically stood and saluted. And when she talked her way into a small assignment, which turned out to be quite complicated indeed, well, I was on the Mrs. Pollifax train and in the next thirteen books we traveled… show more.

What happens when a widow from New Jersey decides she’s had enough of the safe, yet predictable life of a retirement community? She offers her services to the CIA, of course! As a teenager, I had no idea just how much this courageous senior citizen would capture my interest. Mrs. Pollifax sucked me right into her crazy adventures as a secret agent in Mexico City and the mountains of Albania during the Cold War of the 1960s. Mrs. Pollifax’s enthusiasm for new experiences rarely flagged, despite unsavory characters, awkward sleeping arrangements — and lice. She gave me hope that I’d… show more.