Winter Young, the international pop superstar-turned undercover agent, is back in Icon and Inferno, the sequel to Stars and Smoke. I admit, I was rather rusty on the plot of the first book, but the sequel is a standout in the series, strong enough to operate as a standalone. I enjoyed this book even more than the first. One year after his first mission with Panacea, Winter Young is called to reunite with his former mission partner / bodyguard, Sydney Cossette, for another undercover operation, forcing them to face their unresolved romantic tension. Their mission is twisty and complex, heightening the stakes of both their operation and their mutual pining. I love forced proximity in a star-crossed love story, and this premise delivers. I was worried about the introduction of each of their exes, but the possibility of intersecting love triangles is well-handled. I also predicted a large part of the third act twist / reveal, but the suspicion only heightened the emotional impact. I appreciated the more complex ethics that Sydney grapples with as the mission grows more convoluted. Overall, an engrossing romantic thriller and an even more satisfying story than the first book in the series.

Icon and Inferno is the second book in the Stars and Smoke series by Marie Lu. It picks up about a year after Stars and Smoke. Winter is struggling with family secrets and drama, Sydney is still a secret agent, and neither of them have been able to stop thinking about the other. Sydney and Winter are reunited for another top secret mission, full of danger, and the threat of war.

Icon and Inferno is full of drama and action, all happening at a fast and pace. To counter the fast paced action, there’s a slow burn romance, complete with jealousy and old flames. I think both Winter and Sydney had some solid character growth in this one which I loved. The political intrigue was also really engaging for me. This one definitely felt like the stakes were higher and it was more intense. Marie Lu does such a great job creating an engaging storyline, and I couldn’t put this one down.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan for the advance copies.

Marie Lu is a fantastic storyteller.
I love that she always closes the loop in The whole plot. The bantering and chemistry is top tier! Also love that she is dipping in the world of possible new adult. Gah I wish I could see her on her book tour! Maybe one day. So glad to be back in the world of War Cross.

The new adult sequel to Stars and Smoke by @marieluthewriter
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It’s been a year since famous pop star, Winter, went on his undercover mission with Sydney Cossette and he hasn’t stopped thinking about her since. When someone makes a threat on the president’s life, Sydney’s team brings Winter back for another mission. Assassination attempts, murder, exes and more have Winter and Sydney thrown together again in high stakes situations. How will it end for the two star-crossed lovers?
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I love love loved this follow up title! Please tell me there are more and it’s not a duology! Being back in the Warcross world was also so much fun! I call this a new adult romance because the characters are in their 20s and living as adults in the world so I think it would appeal more to older audiences, but that’s just my opinion. Grab this when it releases June 11! Thanks @librofm for the ALC.

CW: murder, death, gun violence, violence, kidnapping, death of a sibling (recounted), domestic violence (recounted), alcohol

I cannot express how much Winter and Sydney mean to me. This book had me on the edge of my seat, had my heart aching and my eyes tearing up. Marie Lu has never failed me before. After really enjoying Stars and Smoke I was so excited for the opportunity to read this book early and it lived up to everything I could have ever wanted and more. My heart aches leaving Sydney and Winter behind but I'm grateful for the crumbs that have been left at the end!

Great second book in this series. Loved seeing Sydney and Winter back together. This book felt like much higher stakes than the first one. The latter half had me on the edge of my seat. The action in this one is incredible. And we get a little emotion too.

Sydney and Winter are back and better than before. While they live a tragic tale I love them, their dynamic, just everything them.

I will however be devastated if they turn out living a forever long drawn out life full of regret. I am okay reading a few of these stories but will be very against them not ending up together and living a life of what ifs, constantly apart.

And because I know everyone is dying to hear my casting of Winter, Ross Butler is it. He is Winter. I can’t be convinced otherwise

I’m not sure what I was expecting going into Icon and Inferno since I didn’t love Stars and Smoke, the first book, but to be honest, it really felt like I was reading the exact same book. Icon and Inferno didn’t any add new layers or complexities into Winter’s and Sydney’s relationship; no new revelations were had, just the same we don’t have a future so we’ll just enjoy the few brief moments we do have kind of thing. The plot wasn’t overly thrilling, so I guess I’m just left wondering what the purpose of this book was. If it’s just a setup for a third book, well, I can’t say I’d be surprised since a lot of second books in series end up suffering—second-book syndrome and all that.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan’s Children Publishing Group for the advanced copy in exchange for my review!

♡𝐀𝐮𝐝𝐢𝐨𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤 & 𝐞𝐀𝐫𝐜 𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰♡
4 🌟
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𝐓𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐬 :
•second chance romance
•agent | spies vibes
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I am a sucker for a book with chapter names, which means I am a sucker for this book. Icon and Inferno is book two in the Stars and Smoke series. From the start of this book, it had me hooked. Book one did a lot of world building, while this book Icon and Inferno went straight to the point, and I was here for it. Highly recommend
♡𝐑𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞 June.11♡
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Thank you, Netgalley, MacmillanAudio for the (ALC)-Audiobook, and Macmillan Children's Publishing Group for the (eArc)-eBook for my honest review.

Winter Young is a global superstar ... and that one time, he was also a spy. Now the covert operation that recruited him is back, and they want another favour.

This was just as angst-ridden and action-packed as the first book in the series, and took me on one hell of a ride! Loved it!

Thank you to the publisher for gifting a review copy

The smoldering sequel to New York Times bestselling Stars and Smoke follows Winter and Sydney on yet another treacherous mission that grows more sinister with each twist and turn. To make it out alive, they'll have to figure out how to be partners again -- and if they can resist the burn of something more.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

“two people from two opposite worlds. he’s in the spotlight and she’s in the secret world”

Oh this is an exciting sequel that will take you for a ride with higher stakes with unexpected twists! We get to see some new and familiar faces (if you’ve read the war cross series). such an enjoyable read!

also when I said we get to see new faces, well SPOILERS INCOMING they are the exes of winter and sydney SURPRISE - Ugh the trope where the ex comes back but its two exes this time THAT DRAMMAAA

even with a whole mission and both their exes in the way, Sydney and winter are still going strong! Their chemistry is just like back in book one where its so evident in their banter and their povs like they way they just understand each other!!

overall, this was a good conclusion!! I wish we got more in the ending tho especially for winter and sydney

Before I get into the review, a quick thank you to NetGalley and the publishers over at Macmillan Children's Publishing Group for allowing me access to this ARC in exchange for an honest review. I was so excited when I got the approval email for this one. Icon and Inferno is the second book in the Stars and Smoke series which follows a spy and an international pop star. Sydney Cossette and Winter Young were thrown together for a mission last year and a lot of stuff went sideways. Which is what made it so surprising for Winter when Sydney strolled back into his life with another mission that needs his fame to get her into the game. Can they team up again and prevent an all-out war from breaking out? Icon and Inferno is set to release on June 11th and is available for pre-order now.

There is something in this world that I would keep coming back for a thousand times over. I love getting to see the world of glitz and glamor of Winter Young but I also love seeing the things that hide in the shadows with Sydney Cossette. The juxtaposition of these two worlds and seeing them overlap is wonderful and so delightful to read again and again. I think the author manages to find a way to take this world and these characters that are so fantastical and ground them in reality. The action is fast paced and keeps the story moving. The characterization draws you in to the whole, well rounded people who have such full and interesting stories. This could be such a long series and the set up being what it is would draw me in time and again. I also really love the way the romance is played out in this one. We got a small glimpse of it last time and in this one it was so swoon worthy for me. Toward the end of the novel, there's a moment between Sydney and Winter that made my heart feel like it was going to explode. It was so soft and sweet and yet the angst. My dude. Keep this shit coming. I'm so here for it.

I struggled with this one in a similar way that I struggled with the first one: in that I needed more. It's wrong (and frankly should be illegal) for this book to be under 350 pages. I think more description during the action or for settings would help ground the reader into the world better. I also just want more of this world and EVERYTHING between Sydney and Winter. The side characters in this one took a bit more of a backseat in this one just because of the scope of the plot. I understand it, that doesn't mean I have to like it. I don't know that there's anywhere to go from here as far as similar novels. I think the first two being missions for Sydney and Winter to go on made sense. I think with how this one went down it would be hard to do another one. But I could be wrong. There's still an opening there for another story with Sydney and Winter. I just think them going on a mission together wouldn't make sense.

Overall, this was so much fun to read and I loved seeing the foreshadowing throughout the novel. I think this is a great series for fans of Marie Lu or any reader who wants a little more spies in their novels.

A continuation of Winter & Sydney's story from book one. It did not disappoint - twists, turns, high tensions, and fraught romantic connections galore!

Marie sure knows how to create a fun and fast paced story! I thoroughly enjoyed another adventure with Winter and Sydney. The glitz, the glamour, the secrecy, the drama of the rich and famous! I really hope there will be a future story for them but I'm pretty happy with the ending if there won't be.

Thank you Macmillan Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC!

Just like the first one, I simply could not put this down. Winter and Sydney are both great characters, and the author can certainly craft a plot with enough twists to keep you guessing.

YA contemporary with second chance romance. This was a great sequel! I love Marie Lu’s writing style and strong characterization. The perfect blend of adventure, mystery, emotion, and romance. Also a very interesting and unique character dynamic! A pop star and a spy join forces! I definitely recommend this series!

Thank you to NetGalley and McMillan Children's Publishing Group for supplying me with an egalley of this book to read and give my honest review. The opinions expressed here are my own.
I really enjoyed the first book in this series, Stars and Smoke. And I love Marie Lu's writing. So I can say I was happy to get a copy of this book as the follow to the first, since the first leaves off on a small cliffhanger leaving you wanting more.
It's been a year since Syd and Winter parted, neither thinking they would ever be back in each other's lives. But Panacea needs Winter for another mission, and they need Syd to convince him to get on board. Of course their mission doesn't go as planned,. They find themselves being hunted by the very people who are supposed to protect them. And they find themselves fighting their attraction, once again!
Is it a silly notion that people so young would be working for a covert agency like Panacea? Yes. Do I care? No. Because I love these characters and their mission and the way they easily get out of things over and over again. It makes my Mission Impossible loving heart very happy,
Marie Lu truly knows how to write some great action. Every chapter had me wanting to turn the page to the next to see just where this mission lead these characters and how they would keep themselves safe. The pacing was great but I would have appreciated a bit of a slower pace to have some time with the characters. I do understand it would have been hard to do so with how much action happens throughout the story. But Lu's writing is addictive.
With this book, we get a bit deeper into the relationship between Winter and Syd. Their push and pull is undeniable. Their romance impossible. Syd continuously denies her attraction to Winter but Winter knows it's there and he is unabashedly honest about it. The inclusion of a few side characters who have history with these two definitely leant to the intensity of the build between Syd and Winter. I really enjoyed the background we got on Winter's character. His family dynamic is important to the man he's become. We know much about Syd from the first book, which explains how she has developed as a character with not letting anyone get close to her. So it's not surprising when she puts her walls up in regards to her and Winter's relationship. The romance was tense and angsty, perfect for YA readers.
As with book one, we see a lot of political intrigue in this one. Their mission is straight forward, to rescue another Panacea operative. But, of course, nothing goes to plan when an assassination attempt pulls them into a high stakes game where they are running for their lives. And the mission gets impossibly harder when they find out betrayal has become part of it all.
I do see how Lu incorporated another of her series into this one, Warcross. I had no idea that would happen. I have not read that series and had no idea there would be a connection so I'm not sure anything was spoiled by me reading this first.
The ending, while satisfying, still leaves me wanting a third book. I need to see a final ending for these two. Don't get me wrong, there is a conclusion, but I was a little unsatisfied with it. I need redemption! And maybe this might be the plan? I have no idea but if it is I'm sure I will devour that one as I did with this and the first book.
4 stars

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for a review.

I have been anxiously awaiting this sequel, and it did not disappoint. Sydney and Winter are such good star crossed lovers who aren't the usual teeny bopper age where they don't understand consequence or responsibilities. I loved watching them struggle through this story and the action was great. I kinda hate that feeling of once they make it through an obstacle another one is immediately in their way so this was frustrating in parts, but it felt interesting and I was definitely entertained the whole time.

A year has passed since superstar Winter Young last saw secret agent Sydney Cossette. After barely surviving their first assignment together in London -- and their intense chemistry – the two haven’t spoken at all. Though they’re never far from the other’s thoughts, or fantasies.
So when Syndey shows up at Winter’s studio one day with a new mission from Panacea, he has no choice but to accept. With the clock ticking, the duo prepares to head to Singapore to rescue an operative in danger -- only to learn he’s none other than Sydney's ex, a rogue agent known as the Arsonist.
Of course, nothing is ever simple when it comes to Winter and Sydney. Especially not with the glamorous Gavi Ginsburg, a globe-trotting socialite and Winter’s one-time girlfriend, in the mix. Is she back for Winter’s heart – or does she have her eye on another prize?

Synopsis:
It's been a year since superstar Winter found himself on a dangerous mission with undercover secret agent Sydney Cossette and he hasn't been able to stop thinking about her for a day since then. Luckily, she hasn't been able to stop thinking about him either. When family secrets and nasty rumors have Winter desperate to return to the world of secrets, the opportunity to reunite with Sydney for a mission fortuitously presents itself. A rescue gone wrong, an assassination attempt - and the return of an old flame - puts Winter right back into action . . . and into a country on the brink of chaos. And when a murder accusation has Sydney on the run, suddenly it's not just a life at stake, but all-out war.

Is it the most original or spectacular action romance I have ever read...no. But it is fun and entertaining. Our characters are easy to pull for, their chemistry is hot, and the story flows well. It will be the perfect summer read. I'm glad we get a peek of what a romance between Winter and Sydney could look like. And I look forward to the next book in this series. The pacing is good, I love the support our main characters provide each other, and the side characters carry their weight. I recommend if you want something easy and fun.