Read if you like:
♥️ Romantic Suspense
🕵🏻 Spy Plots
👯‍♀️ Mistaken Identity
😆 Banter
🥵 Bad Boy Vibes

This book is marketed as a romance, but it truly is more of a romantic suspense with the romance playing a backseat to the suspense plot and spy aspects.

If you like books with an underlying romance but truly focused on other aspects of plot, I would recommend this one for those vibes!

All in all, the spy aspects were entertaining and made this a fast paced and bingeable read, but going in anticipating more romance and chemistry it was a bit lacking for me in that aspect.

Thank you Berkley Romance for my ARC in exchange for my honest thoughts!

Thank you so much for an advanced copy of The Spy and I by Tiana Smith!

I went into this book expecting a romance, but it was really more of a romantic suspense with some action mixed in. It was slanted more towards the suspense and action, though; I still enjoyed it, but I felt like the marketing was bit off for the book! I did enjoy the romance aspects that were there, and there was a lot of good banter, too!

I really enjoyed the characters in this book. They were fun and quirky, and I really liked that I could see elements of people I knew in the book characters (minus the super spy part, of course!). I thought the book was well-written, and the narrative was well-done. Overall, it is a good book with a lot of fun elements!

A fast paced and entertaining- and wholly unrealistic- romantic suspense thriller. Dove finds herself unexpectedly coopted by Mendez, a CIA officer, who initially mistakes her for her twin. She's an ace with computers but not with love. This move quickly from the US to Prague where the two- well no spoilers. Thanks to the publisher for the ARC. This is a comic book version of CIA so if you're ok with that, go with the budding relationship between Dove and Mendez.

Thank you netgalley for the ARC of The SPY and I, Dove and Mendez come off strong and I really wanted to see more about their dynamics. I love how it is about being spy and everything. But I will give it only 3.5 stars. I love how badass Dove is and how Mendez is a cool spy but maybe on the middle of the story I ask for more.
Overall it is a good read.

As much as I love spy thrillers, it has turned out that spy romance might be even better? There is a nice balance of humor for levity and intense situations in this one, with interesting characters who have great backstory and are well developed despite the action packed story. This is a thoroughly enjoyable story.

Prepare yourself for an electrifying adventure with The Spy and I, a captivating romantic comedy penned by the talented Tiana Smith. This fast-paced and immensely pleasurable novel is bound to enchant all aficionados of spy-infused romance. Brace yourself for an abundance of side-splitting and highly entertaining moments, as well as a plethora of heart-stopping surprises that will keep you hooked until the final page. Buckle up for an exhilarating ride, as this book promises an absolutely fantastic experience.

This looked good, but the more I read the less I liked it. The main character is too naive and comes across a little airheaded even though she's supposedly a whiz hacker. The name Dove isn't doing her any favors there. The romance is based entirely on instalust and Dove cannot stop thinking about how hot Mendez is, even while she's supposedly worried about her sister being in danger and being shot at etc. She just blindly follows him around, has no clue what's going on, and definitely doesn't come off as geeky or smart. She's also really annoying and I liked her less and less as the story went on. Mendez was kind of a jerk and the fact that he was hot, while pointed out in every other sentence at least, really didn't make up for that. Overall it was unbelievable and annoying and the plot absolutely does not hold up to any scrutiny whatsoever.

*Thanks to NetGalley and Berkley for providing an early copy for review.

2.5 ⭐️ idk something about this book gave me the ick …

I’m personally not a fan of insta-love in books. I also kept reading so many cheesy lines that were supposed to be jokes and just not finding them funny. It was a pretty quick read, maybe because I often found myself bored and would speed read or skim over some pages.

*my review is borderline spoiler-y with regards to the romance*

This was fun. The action and the mystery had me more interested than the romance. I thought that Dove was cool, loved that she is a coder. Mendez was just fine I guess. I liked him when he was first introduced but then was confused about his motivations the further into the story we got. You don’t get his POV in this, but I get why it wasn’t included cause it would take away most of the tension.

The book takes place over a week or so leading to it feeling like insta love, well I should say lust instead cause they never really were together in my opinion until the very end. (No spice in this one, just a few kisses.) So technically no third act breakup, but you can’t have a breakup if they aren’t actually together. Cause of this I kinda view this story to be a happy for now rather than a happily ever after.

The mystery element was fun and there were some twists and turns along the way. I did enjoy the writing style as well. It felt witty and just fun. I do plan to read whatever the author writes in the future.

😊 strangers to lovers
💕 insta love (but they never say I love you…)
👥 close proximity
💻 woman in stem
🔎 a bit of mystery and action

single POV
3.5/5 stars ⭐️
0/5 spice level 🌶️

Laugh-out-loud funny and full of intrigue, The Spy & I delivers one heck of a fun read.

I absolutely loved this book. It is just so enjoyable, cover to cover. It’s the kind of book you can pick up and get lost in for a few hours. Romance and mysteries are my favourite genres, so I’m always a happy bookworm when the two get combined with such a wonderful result. All the spy action will keep you turning the pages, wanting to know what will happen. I warn you, you won’t be able to put it down!

Dove is such a wonderful character. I loved everything about her. Super smart, she’s a “penetration specialist” and yes, you read that right. Basically it means she’s a hacker that uses her powers to help companies improve their security. One of the good guys. She has her own business and is doing well for herself from a professional standpoint. It’s just her personal life that could use a boost. Dove is more comfortable at home than she is putting herself out there so when she shows up to meet her sister for dinner and a man sits at her table, she thinks her sister has set her up on another blind date. Until the men with guns show up and hijinks ensue. Before long, Dove learns her sister is a super spy and now the bad guys think she is her sister.

There are lots of twists and turns to keep the story moving. One of the biggest things that will have you guessing is whether Mendez can be trusted or not. Is he friend as he claims to be, or foe? I loved this take on a romance story. Mendez is obviously the love interest here, and although there seems to be an attraction immediately between the two of them, neither of them can really trust each other. It was an absolute delight to watch them fight their feelings for each other while trying to guess what is real and what isn’t. Things do heat up between them, but this is mostly a closed door romance.

If you are looking for a light-hearted, entertaining read, The Spy & I is a perfect choice.

Thank you to the publisher for inviting me to read an advance copy of this title! Unfortunately, I'm dropping it about 20% of the way in--I'm just not vibing with it. The writing isn't bad or anything and it's fast moving, so if I pushed through I'm sure it'd be an easy read!

Hopefully this finds its true audience! When I have more time, I may give it another go, but for now it's a pass. My star rating is solely bc NetGalley requires it!!!!

I really enjoyed the sister dynamic. This book started off with a lot of promise with banter between characters and an interesting male lead. However, I think my time working for the government hindered how much I enjoyed the relationship between Dove and Mendez. This was a fun read, but I'm not sure I loved it enough to recommend other places.

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing for this arc in exchange for an honest review!

Was definitely a little disappointed with this one. I really like the premise and it actually started out pretty good. I liked Dove's character, socially awkward homebody introvert but who was a badass with computers. And then we got into the meat of the story and she was incredibly naive and couldn't operate daily without swooning once every hour for a man she didn't even know she could trust.

I also thought Mendez came on really strong at the beginning, despite him saying he wasn't trying to seduce her for the operation and his past experience with a civilian. So why tf was he all over her as soon as they were alone? Weird.

Some of this was absolutely entertaining, but I think the execution was off.

This was a really fun read that I think a lot of readers will enjoy! Fans of the Finlay Donovan series will love this spunky and humorous story.

I’d describe this as a romantic comedy with a humorous but suspenseful storyline! It’s not a romantic suspense in the sense that it’s usually referred to, but more of a comedy and humor centered love story that still gets your heart racing.

Even though it required a bit more suspending disbelief than I usually prefer, I had so much fun it didn’t bother me too much - the fact that she’s thinking about kissing the MMC when they’re being chased by a murderous bad guy just had to be swept under the rug. 😂

I read this via audiobook and enjoyed the performance! I’d definitely recommend this format. Thank you @prhaudio for the advanced review copy. I definitely recommend adding this one to your TBR!

Perfect for you if you like:
Secret agent MMC + homebody FMC
Close sister relationship 💞
Foster care system representation
Heart-racing scenes
Laugh out loud humor

2.75 stars

this book was very meh. I love spy romance books but this one fell a bit flat and was a bit boring (and very predictable). the pacing and romance was off so I didn’t really feel the connection between the main characters.

*Goodreads review posted 2/1/24, see link below

3.75✨
0.25 🌶️ (no spice, but alluded to adult language and multiple kissing/make out scenes. I would’ve called this upper YA, and you can if you want, but the characters are all upper 20s/early 30s, so I’d call this NA even without open door or even any spice at all)

So, I know this book isn’t technically the author’s debut but rather their third book (at least according to Goodreads!), but…

🚨AUTHOR TO WATCH ALERT🚨

A few flaws and missteps notwithstanding, THIS is how you do a New Adult romance!

Smith came out swinging right out of the gate with a strong start that both introduced you to the main FMC Dove, our “penetration tester” hacker by immediately solidifying her personality in the reader’s head, as well as presenting the action and setting up the plot fairly early.

While the spy and government coverup overarching theme is a nice touch to spice up a contemporary NA romance, don’t go in expecting a 24 level of attention to detail. This plot is more so used as a vehicle to facilitate the meeting and carry the romance between Dove and our MMC, the CIA spy Nick Mendez.

Speaking of the romance, I enjoyed the chemistry between our leads. My only gripe is that they acknowledged and acted on their lust a little too fast; I wish the tension between their push and pull was teased out longer. There is the page count here to do it, to turn it a little slower burn, and maximize all you can from the reader in terms of the unresolved sexual tension. The dynamics are all there for a perfect and agonizing slow burn – spy and civilian trope, bodyguard-ish trope… it’s all there!

But overall, this was seriously fun. This is what new adult can be when it leans into its tropes and sometimes campiness, like the awkward middle child between YA and adult. When your NA is fun, I can almost guarantee you’ve already won half the battle, at least for me. There was a good balance of pop culture or modern references without going overboard. The use of song name dropping was particularly masterful, because it got them playing in my head during key scenes that almost made the experience feel like a movie playing out in my head.

If you feel like a NA romance that brings in a fun spy romp plotline, I would wholeheartedly recommend checking this out.

However, I will leave one last piece of reader-to-author advice: Did we really have to know that Holt, the bad guy, killed a dog, even in a throw-off piece of dialogue? Never kill the dog!

I enjoyed the plot and overall concept of this book. However I felt as though the relationship was juvenile and should have been developed more for how old they were. The insta love didn’t work for me and I wish there was more development and depth to it. I also wish there had been more of Dove’s sister and background explanation.

I was pitched this book in comparison to The Blonde Identity and that's pretty much all I needed to know. I was low key obsessed with TBI and was ready to jump back into a spy story.

I liked Dove and Mendez well enough. They both have some past hurts in the relationship area and have an instant interest in the other. For Dove, everything about Mendez and her attraction to him take over her thoughts. Yes, there is some concern about the spy stuff, but she always comes back to his shoulders, his hair, his kisses, etc. Everything felt superficial between them (perhaps it's just the slice of time); however, Mendez does seem to be as obsessed as she is, so I guess there's that.

Plot wise, it was okay. There's a good amount computer/hacking talk that felt way over my head and while that is the only time Dove's inner monologue is confident, it did make me skim sections. The story does seem to be fast paced (while also seeming to have nothing happen) and I was disappointed that it didn't have the tension or air of mystery that I was expecting. There are no real fight scenes, no spicy scenes, and even the explosion is off the page.

Overall, it was a quick read and I was interested in how it ended, but I probably could have set it down without finishing.

**Huge thanks to the publisher for providing the arc free of charge**

Thank you to Berkley Publishing Group for the advanced reader copy and to PRH Audio for the complimentary audiobook. These opinions are my own.

Dove Barkley is an amazing ethical hacker (yay for women who rock with computers!). But when she is confused for her sister, she gets pulled into a CIA case against a dangerous arms trafficker.

This was one of my most anticipated books of 2024. The beginning kept me on the edge of my seat, but middle portions felt slower and less action-packed than I had expected given the title and premise. The ending was again engrossing and my favorite part.

While I loved the character of Dove, I didn't feel much chemistry between her and Mendez. Indeed, it seemed we didn't get to know him at all. I think the book would have benefitted from a second point of view or at least greater insight into his character. Without that, the book feels much more a mystery/suspense than a strong romance with a believable happy ever after for the two of them.

I was impressed by the great audio performance from Jaime Lamchick and look forward to listening to more from her.

Okay this was such a fun read! I really enjoyed the spy aspect of the story and the romance was adorable.

Dove Barkley works in cybersecurity. When a group of bad guys mistake her for her twin sister who just so happens to be an undercover CIA agent (which is news to her by the way), she’s roped into a dangerous mission and has to team up with her sisters hot partner. What could go wrong?

I loved everything about this book! I haven’t read many romcoms with a spy aspect but I will be now. It made for such a fun reading experience and the characters were phenomenal and hilarious!

If you’re looking for a super cute and fun romcom then I highly recommend picking this beauty up on February 13th! Perfect time for Valentine’s Day 🥰

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Berkley for the e-arc!