First appearing in 1927 and still popular today, Frank and Joe Hardy are classic, household names whose seniority and seeming immortality have earned the duo a spot on every top spy list.
9. Spy vs. Spy
Although the two feuding sleuths have never uttered a word, the vindictive, wily comic book characters never fail to amuse even the most serious of literary espionage fans.
8. Nancy Drew
One of the most famous female private eyes is, of course, Nancy Drew. Created in 1930, Nancy may not have all the high-tech gear and gadgets today’s super sleuths are equipped with, but her brilliance and deductive reasoning skills are timeless forces to be reckoned with.
7. Scorpion
An American orphan raised in the vicious deserts of the Middle East and described by Mystery News as “the best secret agent in the Middle East and the greatest master of the close escape since James Bond,” Scorpion is a master of deadly spy games as lethal as the insect he’s named after.
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6. Jack Ryan
When you’ve been played by Hollywood heavyweights like Alec Baldwin and Chris Pine, you know you’ve made it as a top fictional secret agent. Plus, Jack Ryan went to college. Smart and a celebrity? That’s top six material.
5. Tess McCallum
Potentially the least known character on this list, Tess has, regardless, proven one of the most intriguing, interesting, and savvy. McCallum was a dedicated FBI agent whose life was tormented by a twisted serial killer . . . until two years later, when the tables turn. She relinquishes her role as a victim and vows to put an end to a murderer’s rampage. Yeah . . . she’s pretty cool.
{buybutton id=13342/}4. Jason Bourne
Jason Bourne’s adventures have spawned 12 books, four movies, and a whole lot of fanfare. After he awakens from a coma to find he’s suffering from memory loss, Bourne’s story of piecing together his assassin past is an endless thrill ride.
3. Harriet
You can’t make a list of top-notch spies and not include Harriet the Spy. Like the Hardies and Nancies who came before her, Harriet has set the bar high when it comes to serious adolescent sleuthing. One can imagine Jason Bourne and Jack Ryan as young children, reading The Hardy Boys and Harriet the Spy, dreaming of one day joining their ranks. At only 11 years old, Harriet is a classic, serious spymaster.
2. James BondHe’s Bond. James Bond. He’s inarguably one of the coolest, slyest secret agents out there. 007 is a well-deserved 002 on our list of top 10 secret agents, coming in second to the one and only . . .
1. Sherlock Holmes
Well, of course Sherlock Holmes is at the top of this list. I’m sure you didn’t need to use any super sleuthing skills to see this one coming. Sherlock is the sleuth to end all sleuths—the mastermind at the center of endless books, films, and television series, adored by all ages and generation. He’s timeless, he’s brilliant, and, at least in our eyes, he’s number one.
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