Due to a case of mistaken identity, Dove is swept up in a CIA operation with detective Mendez. She wants to keep her and her (super-secret-spy) twin sister safe.

The premise of this book is great. I love spy stories and romance. The characters had no personality except for their careers. Dove and Mendez are immediately in love with each other after literally 5 minutes. I just didn't want to read Dove worried about a relationship with someone she just met and felt like she couldn't trust. There's more to a relationship than just being hot and characters should have actual personalities.

3.5 stars
Dove is a penetration tester (insert joke here) which means she’s an honest hacker testing out business’ cyber security. She loves the work and the solitude that comes with it. Dove has a great opportunity to have a spotlight shown on her profession when a journalist interviews her. Later she is to meet her sister for dinner and arrives at the restaurant early to load up on the bread, it’s free and so yummy. While waiting for her sister, a mysterious man sits at her table and gives her a case then starts telling things she doesn’t understand. Then suddenly someone comes into the restaurant and starts shooting, killing the unknown man with her and then someone else starts shooting at the ones shooting at her. Dove escapes and in the ally is the journalist with a motorcycle, but she finds out his name is really Mendez and not Olsen. But that’s not all, Mendez is undercover CIA and needs her help with an op since her sister, who is also CIA has gone into hiding. Dove has to figure out who to trust, use all her hacking knowledge to help Mendez, and avoid getting shot, all the while trying to figure out if her sister is a traitor.

I believe this book is supposed to be a romcom but as I was reading it, it felt more like a cozy spy thriller with very little romance. The story moved pretty quickly and kept me engaged. There were times when the story it felt awkward between Dove and Mendez. Chan was a character that didn’t seem to add very much to the story. I hope that his character will grow in the next book. I really liked the idea of a female hacker that uses her skills in a positive way and that the character the stereotypical cocky egotistical hacker nor was it one that resembled a zombie sustaining on Mountain Dew and beef jerky. I view this as a cozy spy thriller since there wasn’t nail biting tension. The story was pretty level with few spikes in drama or suspense. Overall the book was good

When the CIA comes knocking, you can't say no. Especially when your sister's life and reputation hang in the balance.

I have seen other readers use the term "cozy" when describing this book, and I know you're thinking this is a spy thriller with lots of shooting, chasing, and near death scrapes, but cozy is a good way to describe it. The Spy and I was a fast-paced and engaging story that was fun and breezy. Told with lots of humor and a light hand, I had a great time trying to get to the bottom of things with Dove and Mendez.

My one disappointment was that the story was a little light on the romance. There was some early flirting and Dove's pining, but not much else to make me buy into the rom-com label associated with this book.

Overall, I enjoyed this fun and action packed tale which featured a lovely sibling relationship.

The Spy and I by Tiana Smith seems to be marketed as a romantic comedy. I feel it is more of a romantic suspense and action novel with it being heavier on the suspense and action. There is attraction and an eventual romance mixed with a little humor. While the story starts and ends in and around Washington D.C. and Northern Virginia, most of the book takes place in Prague, Czech Republic.

Dove Barkley is a cyber security analyst who is mistaken for her sister Madison, who happens to be an undercover CIA operative. Dove gets pulled into a government mission by Mendez who claims to be Madison’s partner.
Dove is confident and feels powerful when coding, but not when she’s back in reality. She’s socially awkward, competent, lonely, talented, and generally optimistic. Mendez is smart, capable, charming, and can easily switch his outward personality traits.

The narrative flows well with a twisty and absorbing plot and a story that captivated me from the first chapter to its conclusion. My main quibble is that I wish the world-building for Prague was more in-depth. It seemed like the book could have taken place in any city. Themes include secrets, mistaken identity, trust, subterfuge, relationships, power, murder, rejection, fear, and much more.

Overall, this entertaining and fast-paced novel has great characterization with likeable characters as well as solid action and thrills. Readers who appreciate romantic spy novels will likely enjoy this novel.

Berkley Publishing Group and Tiana Smith provided a complimentary digital ARC of this novel via NetGalley. All opinions expressed in this review are my own. Publication date is currently set for February 13, 2024.

this book is everything i could've wanted, and im so thankful for the opportunity to have read it in advance. the plot was fast-paced from the beginning, and had comedy, suspense, and the swooniest & dreamiest characters. the plot twists were predictable, yet still shocked me when they happened, and i adored the way smith took the plot and ran with it. it is so good, so unique, and truly such a fun read. LOVED THIS BOOK!!! SO!!! MUCH!!! and im so excited for its official release to get my hands on a physical copy!

3.5 stars.
This was a fun read, I enjoyed the pop culture references.

In the first few chapters, I was worried I would feel like “been there, done that”, as in read it or seen this before. But, a good plot twist saved the day!

I found an inconsistency. Or perhaps my brain is too logical. When Dove asked to see his official badge, why wasn’t Mendez’ first name appear on it?

I enjoyed how it ended. All the story lines are resolved. Again, fun read. I wonder if we will meet these characters again.

Thank you Berkley and Shelf Awareness for the advanced copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own. This was a cute rom-com that was more mystery than romance. It started with a mistaken identity and ended with a love interest. It was a quick read but I felt that it had toooo much detail on the "spy" action.

The Spy and I (Feb 13, 2024): Thank you to NetGalley, Berkley Romance, Tiana Smith and PRH Audio for the free ebook and audiobook, for which I have the privilege of providing an honest review below.

After reading this book, I will need all the “spy romance” genre recommendations y’all have! I inhaled this wildly entertaining mistaken identity romance-espionage-adventure book in a day.

Dove and her twin sister Madison are total opposites. While Madison circumnavigates the globe as a travel photographer, Dove is a happy introvert. Her job as a security analyst allows her to live her life behind the comfort of her laptop. While Madison is in town, they make dinner plans, but when Dove shows up early, happens to know a quote from The Princess Bride, is passed a secret briefcase, and ends up in the middle of a shootout, she finds her life is irrevocably changed. With Madison missing, Dove is launched into a complex international hunt for a rogue spy with Mendez, a dashing and mysterious man claiming to be her sister’s CIA partner. As the danger intensifies, so do Dove’s feelings for Mendez. But in a world of spies, can anything they say be trusted? And since when is her sister in the CIA?

This fun, fast-paced adventure kept you guessing until the end. It read like an action movie, with many cute and funny moments mixed in with the action. Seeing Dove and Mendez combine brawn and ingenuity to solve the mystery and save Madison was a blast. It was a fantastic time.

This was a big miss for me unfortunately. The Spy and I left much to be desired. Quite frankly, I found the story to be lackluster and it felt very immature. The number of plot holes would've caused a sinkhole for me. I don't generally feel so strongly, but I had high hopes and I thought the description had a lot of promise. It just fell flat and left me wishing I had stopped reading sooner.

Title: The Spy and I by Tiana Smith

Publication Date- 02/13/24
Publisher- Berkeley Publishing Group
Overall Rating- 4 out of 5 stars

Review: Review copy given to me by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

The Spy and I by Tiana Smith is a fresh take on the rom com that incorporates some plot devices from movies we know and love. One of my favorite things about this novel was the wit and banter between the two main characters. I was laughing and having such a good time while reading this. Going into The Spy and I you should expect a light hearted and “insta love,” story. If those are your expectations and to have a silly goofy time then you will have a good time. The spice level was perfect for me, I don’t love a ton of it and when it’s there I prefer there to be an honest connection and meaning to the intimacy. Tiana Smith nailed that.

Lately I have been having a hard time finding a good rom com with a solid plot that the main focus isn’t on how smutty it can be. This has a solid plot and you find yourself routing for the characters and their agenda. I genuinely did not expect this read to be as fun as it was.

Looking at my notes while reading some things I said about the book: “Lots of good quotes just a damn good time,” “kind of reminds me of the movie the Heat,” and “I do really like the MC and this isn’t cringey.”

I would totally reread this when I’m sick or just need a good pick me up.

📣 a hacker is recruited to be an operative so she can bring down a baddie & save her sister

📖 how’s your January reading going so far? Mine is good—I’ve read three & I’m currently reading At First Spite via ebook & The 10,000 Doors of January on audio.

Thanks to the publisher & Netgalley for the complimentary ARC. All opinions provided are my own.

It’s no secret that I love an operative/heist/let’s take down a baddie/steal something book. The Spy & I by Tiana Smith provides those thrills, in addition to some humor & some clutch neck-kissing 💁🏻‍♀️.

Dove is a hacker who stays on the legal side of things. She’s totally devoted to her sister, Madison, a supposed photographer that Dove soon realizes is *actually* a CIA agent that the CIA believes has turned bad.

Mendez, another CIA agent, reveals all of this to Dove, AFTER he stops lying to her & maybe before or during? (the details have gotten fuzzy since reading 🤣) around the time they start the neck kissing.

The chemistry between leads in moments like the neck kissing is strong but fyi, that’s about as much as it progresses on page.

Other pluses for me about this book beyond the humor & neck-kissing are the brave heroine & her devotion to her sister—her faith in her even when the signs point to something else.

But weighing down my enjoyment of this one a bit is that the plot doesn’t seem believable to me in a distracting kind of way (I wondered why things were happening like they are) & I wanted more from the relationship, emotionally.

I tried to consider this book on its own but at the same time I couldn’t help comparing it to The Blonde Identity by Ally Carter, which has a similar premise & which I gave 5 ⭐️.

Ultimately this is an enjoyable read with promise but it left me somewhat unsatisfied.

4 ⭐️. Out 2/13

CWs: abandonment of dad; parental loss; murder; reference to torture; violence.

[ID: Jess, a white woman wearing a white floral dress, stands in a field of yellow flowers. A gray sky is behind.]

If I hadn't read a very similar book previously to this, I think I would have liked this a lot more. The overall premise was fun and the characters were likable. Some of the overt innuendo was honestly unnecessary - it felt forced at times and made the scenes less enjoyable. There were parts that moved a bit slow and possibly could have been cut. There was so much technical jargon that it brought me out of the story at times. I'm all for authenticity, but I don't think quite so much was needed.

Overall, I had a good time reading this, but there were a few things that kept it from being an all-out fav.

Oh I liked this one but I think it leaned a bit too much into the spy plot and not enough into the romance. It gave classic spy rom-com hijinks. The action and background keep the story fast-paced but the romance is still great and has depth. I like that they each have different skills so they are both needed in different ways. I wish the book was more evenly balanced between the romance and suspense plots.

If you loved The Blonde Identity then you must check out The Spy and I!

Right place. Wrong person. After a case of mistaken identity, one woman must work with her sister’s sexy spy partner to save the world in this heart-pounding romantic comedy.

This is such a fun read! Dove, the female MC, is just the funniest character. I love her boss girl/hacker vibes yet she shows vulnerability too. And don’t even get me started on hunky CIA agent Mendez! He’s so dreamy. I absolutely enjoyed all the hijinks they went through to escape the bad guys all though this was closed door the tension between Dove and Mendez is top notch!

I highly recommend The Spy and I if you are looking for an adventurous rom com!

If you were a spy what would your code name be?

So I am not big on suspense romance but this one looked funny so I took a chance and received an ARC. It was funny. Dove looks very similar to her sister, who unbeknownst to Dove works for the CIA. An operative mistakes her for her sister and hands her a briefcase with documents and then someone immediately kills the operative. She runs. Mendez works for the CIA and is looking for Dove's sister. They believe she has turned on the CIA. Dove knows she would never turn her back on her country but how in the world can she prove it. Sparks immediately fly between Dove and Mendez but now they have to go to Prague to find the bad guy and hopefully Dove's sister. Dove is a penetration tester. (I had to ask my IT husband if that was a real thing or just made up for this romcom. It is really called that.) She tests company's security systems on their networks to make sure they are safe from hackers. It is very fast paced and the romance just involves flirting and kissing which I definitely would have liked more action in that department but they are running for their lives. I will definitely check out more from this author. I enjoyed the banter between the two main characters.

-"Well, I am a penetration tester. Most guys have their own theories about what that means."

Super cute spy romcom.

Reminiscent of the 2000s romcoms I love so much. (The Killers, Knight & Day, The Spy Who Dumped me)

I loved the hacker x spy dynamic between Dove and Mendez. It kept me on my toes through the book - not REALLY knowing who to trust.

Super fun, action packed read.

Huge thank you to Berkley & Berkley Romance for the ARC!

I would categorize this book as more of a crime/thriller book with a romance subplot rather than a romance novel. The romance aspect is underlying throughout, but it wouldn't be that different of a story if it was erased all together. But other than that,this book was really fun! I enjoyed reading a crime novel from a protagonist who had no idea what was happening at any given moment.

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing for this digital ARC! Dove is forced to partner up with Nick Mendez to execute an illegal operation & find Dove’s missing sister Madison. 🔍 This… sorta worked? I was pretty invested into the “fighting crime” excitement, but there really was a disconnect for me & it wasn’t as smooth romantic connection compared to other romance reads.

✔️ Mistaken Identity
✔️ Forced Proximity

This book was just ok for me. I think it's because it felt like a lot of cliches from every spy/action movie and it didn't really bring anything new to the table. The romance was also surface level and I was not invested in either of the leads. It felt like it was straddling the line between Hackers, Mr & Mrs. Smith and The Spy Who Dumped Me - I wish it leaned more into the latter and read more like a romcom as the action elements felt lackluster.

Steam 🔥
Banter 🗣️
Swoon 💕

This was a super fun romantic suspense spy thriller featuring twins, mistaken identity, espionage, a swoony male spy lead, a female expert coder and a bad guy they need to track down/apprehend. Twisty and full of romance, I absolutely loved this one. Perfect for fans of Blonde identity by Ally Carter and great on audio. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy and @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review!!