Icon and Inferno is a strong follow-up to Marie Lu's Stars and Smoke. Teen readers will devour this cross between action, romance and spy thriller. Readers of Lu's Warcross series will appreciate the cross between the two book universes. My students loved the first book and I know this sequel will be hard to keep on the shelf!

Icon and Inferno picks up the story of Wynter and Sydney at the messiest moment possible. Wynter’s on-again-off-again ex has just rolled into town when Sydney’s one-time-fling has gone missing in another country. They have to band together once more, this time to save the president, and try not to get too caught up in the past.

A perfect conclusion to Wynter and Sydney’s story.

Another fantastic book by Marie Lu. Fans of the first book in the series, Stars and Smoke, will not want to miss this one! I love that Lu leaves the story open for the possibility of a third installment. This is a must purchase for all YA collections!

While I didn't love Icon and Inferno quite as much as I did Stars and Smoke, I still had a really good time with this story. I love Marie Lu's writing style, and this series has a maturity that isn't seen in all of her earlier work. I did find the plot twists in this book a little more predictable than in the first, and the plot didn't grab me quite the same, but the pacing was still really solid and I loved the romance. And finally, the story wrapped up quite neatly, but if Marie Lu ever adds more onto this series, I will be reading it.

International superstar Winter Young is back a year after he went undercover with Sydney Cossette and Panacea. This time, new team players are involved: Winter’s ex Gavi and Sydney’s ex, someone known only as The Arsonist. Winter and Sydney not only have to navigate their feelings for each other and with their exes, but they also have to figure out who is on the right side–and which side they want to be on. With more twists and turns than the previous book, Smoke and Stars, this one will keep readers guessing and on the edge of their seats until the very end. Highly recommended for anyone who loves a good action packed thriller.

Marie Lu returns with the second book that follows Sydney and Winter a year after the events of Stars and Smoke. I enjoyed the first book and its fast-paced and high-energy storyline and Icon and Inferno continues all of that perfectly.

Admittedly, I thought the plot twists were predictable and while it was a bit of a bummer to not have any of the three major plot points be a surprise, I still enjoyed the story overall. I think a bit more depth looking into Sydney and Winter's relationship would have been nice though there were some good moments (really hope there is a third one!).

The audiobook narrator was engaging and encapsulated the vibe of the story quite well! Great quality narration which helped in the experience of enjoying this book!

Listen, this was a freaking blast!!! I liked Stars and Smoke, but I feel like Icon and Inferno is even better. Spies and government conspiracies meet YA romance in this tech-heavy near-future thriller. And even better? This book links up with the Warcross series, setting it in the timeline of the Marie Lu universe! I love a good crossover and it's very cool seeing how this fits in.

Pop superstar Winter is back a year after the events of book one, this time being brought onto a mission in Singapore to prevent the assassination of the US President. And of course Sydney is back, posing as his bodyguard. Things between them heat up even more than a year before, despite their other obligations. And this mission is about to get much messier than expected...

I thoroughly enjoyed this and the audiobook is really well done. If you like spies and romance, or a good crossover, this one is for you. I received an audio review copy of this book via NetGalley, all opinions are my own.

What a ride! I picked up this Young Adult ARC at the bookstore because the cover looked interesting and the title caught my eye. Equally thrilled to be approved for the audiobook. I'd never read anything by Marie Lu but she's very popular so I was excited to dive in. Unbeknownst to me, this is book 2 in a series, but honestly, I didn't need it to get swept up in the story.

Sydney Cossette is a spy going undercover again. As her cover, she's pretending to be the bodyguard of pop sensation Winter Young. Again. This will be their second mission together, full of action, intrigue, and romance. There's lots of twists and turns, and some very James Bond-type moments.

The narrator of this audiobook did a fantastic job. Highly entertaining.

Thank you, NetGalley, for the audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

I haven’t read the first book, but didn’t need it to enjoy this one. I enjoyed the character development and the wrap up for each of the characters when the mission was complete. Curious if there will be others in the future.

Lu ratchets up the tension in this sequel to <i>Stars and Smoke</i>. While these books are by no means the next great American novels, they are loads of fun! The first one was a delightful romp reminiscent of 2010s spy flicks and Ally Carter’s <i>Gallagher Girls</i> series. This sequel still maintains some of that fun nostalgia (hello, spy gadgets like the pen flare and the bulletproof Alexander McQueen suit!), however, it takes itself a bit more seriously than the first installment, which ultimately was both a good thing and a bad thing.

As the stakes rose to taller and taller heights, I was absolutely glued to the book and didn’t want to put it down. However, I did find the twists that ramped up the tension to be a bit predictable and the resulting emotional weight of those moments didn't quite pack the punch I wanted them to. It felt a bit like Lu couldn’t decide between writing a campy fun time and a spy thriller. The scenes where she attempted to write emotional depth on the page fell flat for me and lacked the guts (and, perhaps, the chops) to really <i>go there.</i> Still, this was a solid read and I would absolutely recommend picking this up if you liked the first installment.


<b>OVERALL RATING:</b> 3 stars.

<i>A big thank you to Netgalley and the publisher, Macmillan Audio, for providing me with an advanced copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review!</i>

I was so excited to see that Marie Lu has Icon and Inferno coming out - the next book after Stars and Smoke. Icon and Inferno is a super fun to read, spy-kids grown up a little bit, romantic read. Sydney and Winter are back for another adventure, this time it's a rescue in Singapore. As you might expect, things go wrong and information isn't passed on in every way that risk the mission. Listening to these characters get themselves into and out of danger was highly entertaining, just know that you may have to suspend some disbelief in the best of ways.

The narrator, Becca Q. Co, was wonderful to listen to. She has great voice acting skills and I had no trouble following along and picturing the story. I listen to audio books at 2-3x speed and the story was easy to listen to and the narrator was clear no matter what speed I listened to the book at.

Icon and Inferno was a delight to listen to and I am so grateful that I was given the opportunity to review the Advance Listener Copy. Thank you Macmillan and NetGalley!

Sydney and Winter are working together again. This time there are exes, rescues, and assassination plots. This sequel to Stars and Smoke takes these characters on another adventure together filled with twists and mistrust. Readers of the first book will definitely want to see where this book goes, but this could also be read as a standalone. There are a few mentions of the first book, but mostly this is a separate mission. That being said, fans of Marie Lu will also be excited to see mention of Warcross and Emika Chen. This was a wild ride, and while the ending was a bit rushed, it ends with resolution while also leaving the door open for future missions.

The narrator’s performance adds to the tension and drama of the story. The only downside is that there isn’t much difference between Sydney and Winter’s perspective, but outside of having two narrators, there isn’t much that can be done about that.

I voluntarily read and reviewed advanced ebook and audiobook copies of this title from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

An action-packed follow-up to Stars & Smoke!

Icon & Inferno is a fast-paced, spy-thriller filled with intrigue. Sydney & Winter are up against another international threat, while also being faced with their unresolved romantic feelings towards each other. Per usual, Lu pulls no punches and no character is truly safe.

This book is labeled as Young Adult, but I do feel that it skews more towards New Adult.

#IconandInferno #StarsandSmoke #NetGalley

I've been in the process of reading all the books Marie Lu has written so I was really excited when I got accepted for the audio arc for this one! I read stars and smoke back in December of 2023 and I remember enjoying it! With that said I do think I preferred Icon and Inferno more than S&S! Since we already know the characters we were able to focus a lot more on the plot, and the relationships which I prefer usually prefer in books. Winter grew on me so much in this book! I liked him okay in bk 1 but he completely won me over in bk 2! Gabby made me so angry (which lets face it she's supposed to so A+ for writing her character) I will admit at about 35% I did have a few theories of what was going to happen and some of those were right, which is fine cause I still enjoyed the lead up to the reveals. overall great Duology and would def recommend! I recently read Warcross a few weeks ago (which quickly became my favorite Marie Lu) so I got so beyond excited when I realized this series was set in the same world as Warcross!! Sydney and Winter are just 😍 adorable.

With the audiobook I do wish it would have been 2 narrators rather than just 1 but Becca still did a fantastic job.

overall great action packed Duology that I would def recommend!

Thank you Netgalley and the publishers for an Audio Arc in exchange for an honest review!

This was a really fun sequel! I like the characters, and it was nice to revisit them. I don’t expect a third book, but I would love one. The narrator was great; she really brought the story alive. I had both book and audio and kept returning to the audio version.

Of course I loved reading this book, I loved the first and I was so excited to read this one! And oh, it was another fantastic read, a fantastic plot of spies and superstars, and I couldn't get enough! And with the way that it ended, maybe I will get more!

I'm not sure if I'm right, since this was in audio, so I couldn't go back and check, but I think this is set in the same world as Warcross, which was so great, and that we had a cameo from Emika, which I loved. If I'm right, which I hope that I am.

This book had a fantastic mission, and also fantastic developments in their relationship, with an added bonus of his ex, and her ex both coming along. And with some pretty high stakes to the case, yeah, I couldn't get enough of this book!

The way that it ended, yeah, that was so good, and pretty satisfying with how that whole case was wrapped up. And that final chapter with the redacted conversation, it gives me hope that we might get a 3rd book, which would be so great!

I loved reading this book, and I'm really hoping for more!

Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for an advanced copy!

I have been a Marie Lu fan for a long time, so I was super excited to read this one! Icon and Inferno is the sequel to Stars and Smoke, which I really enjoyed reading last year. And this second installment did not disappoint! I loved being able to follow Winter and Sydney on their next mission. It was especially fun to see characters from one of Marie Lu's previous series, Warcross (but reading the previous series is not needed to understand this book). The audio book narrator also did a great job of bringing you into the story. Filled with action and romance, this will appeal to all Marie Lu fans and anyone who is looking for an exciting read.

Another fun adventure with Syd and Winter and what can go wrong when you a mission, exes, danger and jealousy. Lu always writes such great character driven stories and with this duology it is perfect style for the pacing of the book.

It’s just not for me.

The story is very ya leaning in the characters in writing style. A whole lot of telling instead of showing.

Narration was good however.

This was so much fun. I'd forgotten how much I enjoyed the first book, but as soon as I started reading this it all came back to me. I really like how Marie Lu doesn't ease you into the story with reminders of what already happened. You're just dropped in and bam! it goes 0-60 and the rest of the book is an adrenaline rush.

It's very clear to me, as a BTS Army, that Winter is based on various members of BTS. He felt so familiar and it made me instantly connect with him and be on his side. It's like, yes, obviously, any member of BTS -- I mean Winter -- could easily live a double life as an international pop star and also a spy. And obviously they'd be great at it.

Sydney is a great partner for Winter. She challenges him and doesn't let him get away with anything. And their chemistry is off the charts. They're both very charismatic and pop off the page. The secondary characters were good too and added a lot of drama, but I'm here for Winter and Sydney.

The political stakes are raised even higher in this one, and of course not everything about their mission is as it seems.

I really hope we get more books in this series. I will continue to happily devour them as soon as I can get my hands on them.

The audiobook was fantastic. The narrator did a great job conveying the tension and high stakes and I listened to it in one sitting and was on the edge of my seat the entire time. The voices were great and believable and distinct.

Highly recommend, especially in audio format.

*Thanks to Netgalley, Roaring Book Press, and Macmillan Audio for providing an early copy for review.