This was a great debut! It was a fast-paced spy story with clever double meanings. The romance felt secondary to the exciting heists and the loyalty to found family. My favorite parts were the clever names for cons…they sparked my imagination. Readers who liked Argylle might enjoy Double Agents Never Lie.

This wasn’t drawing me in! I thought the agent thing would be fun but I couldn’t get into the storyline. Always struggle with third person pov though holding my attention.

A big thank you to NetGalley for letting me read this ARC! Although I did enjoy this book, the style
of writing wasn’t for me and I DNF’ed it at 51%. I liked the over all plot of this book with Blair Carter a CIA agent and being a high stake con artist with a hidden love interest with Max (her new partner in the CIA). I felt like the overall plot dragged on and not many twists for me to continue with this book.

I loved the start of this and was intrigued. It did lose its pace slightly and felt more of a plod to me at times. The characterization seemed a bit all over the place. too. An OK read but was hoping for a little more edge and pace in this instance.

Big thanks to NetGalley and the author for letting me read the ARC!

Rating 3/5

I went into this book a little biased because I'm such a sucker for heist books. Very rarely do I not like them. However, I had a few issues with this book. First, and perhaps the biggest reason this book wasn't rated higher for me was the back and forth between Blair and Max, and listen, I'm all for angsty banter, but this was not banter. It was two highly skilled and revered agents basically just bickering and exploding over the smallest issues, and it was not enjoyable after a few pages of this.

Before I delve into another reason why this book wasn't rated higher from me, I'd like to provide some context about our main character Blair. She is the youngest senior agent in the CIA and undoubtedly the most skilled. Not only that, but she's a double agent who has been getting away with stealing from the CIA for years! So tell me why the moment she's partnered with an attractive guy she looses all sense of her training, and frankly, her common sense? Blair was such a creative and strong character that it was genuinely disappointing to watch her loose her skill and edge just because her partner was hot. With that being said, the parts where Blair was in her right state of mind, it was incredibly addicting to watch how she came up with her heists and how she used her CIA skills to trick said company.

Overall for a debut book, I really did enjoy my time reading this book, and I am very excited to see what else Emma Forouhari releases. I think Emma has a very unique way of story telling and building lovable characters, and I can't wait to see what else she does with this world and characters!

There are still some typos in the book. An 'S' missing and a period in the middle of a sentence.
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It was a fun straightforward read, and surprisingly wholesome. Something I would pick up at the airport or translation, read on my journey, and pass on to the next person.

The Heist Society comparison intrigued me, and I can definitely see the similarities. It could very well be set in the same world, or even as an extension of the series 10 years later with some name changes. Since the comparison was made for me, it's hard not to also compare the FMCs and I just didn't like Blair as much, I remember Kat being much more witty and relatable, and fun to read about. Of course it's been over a decade since I read the series so maybe I'm just being sentimental. I understand part of her character is to not show feelings or have weakness, but I would've like her inner monologue and actions to be a bit quipier and emotional, just to make her less bland.

I feel bad for any child that's been abandoned but I didn't really care about the characters, didn't think Blair seemed haunted enough by her past or her inactions, it justcseems like there's a turning point where she realises she can't trust who she thought she could, but she moves on too easily.
And Max's whole set of ethics came down rather fast, while I understand some of his final actions the last one bewildered me, considering he gave so much to the organization, I feel it would be more in character for him to try and stay behind and fix it.

There's a certain element of make believe when reading some books, but when everything else is so clearly normal, to believe they'd let a 6yo work and live at the cia seems impossible, coming from someone who used to devour the naturals series.

The flashbacks to missing scenes to explain stuff doesn't work quite as well as it does in film in my opinion.

Fade to black steam but sweet if superficial romance.

Blair Carter is very well known in the CIA. Since she is a kid she was trained to be a spy so she is not only the most successful senior agent, no she is also the youngest. Yet nobody would assume that she is also a very successful thief. She is using her work as agent and the intel she has access to, to run the heists with her own crew she has created with 3 other members. They con not only the rich, no also people with secrets. Blair is using her share to donate it to the helpless.
Her next job is to secure a priceless ring for an auction. This heist would be a dream for the team which is on the edge of being broke. For the first time Blair is getting a partner for this job. Max wants to be also a senior agent and is following the rules by the book.
So can she escape this watchful eye of her partner to plan the big heist with her team?
I really enjoyed this book. I like good stories about con artists and I must say I really like this group. The banter between them is funny and nice to read. Right from the start I really like them. It is a modern version of Robin Hood when we read how the owner, seller of the goods are in reality not the good nice people they appear to be. I really like to read how they plan the heist, what problems they face and how it is done.
Also that she gets a partner here hence has to make sure that he is not aware of her being a double agent is a really good twist her. I really enjoyed reading how he does everything by the book hence he and Blair clash.
OK the idea that her parents handed her over as a kid to a colleague to train her as agent is a bit strange for me also that she is so trusting to him and he is really controlling her live for so many years. The reason why she stared to be a con artist I really like. I liked her character and what she is doing here, what she is standing for and even so she is a thief she is on the right side of what is right and wrong.
Max wants to be a good agent so follows the rules by the book. He could not be any different to Blair. I really like how they approach the situation so differently and how they learn to work together. I really liked the thin line between hate and love we read here, how the chemistry between them is changing.
This is a story not needing lots of action or cruelty. Instead a good plan and a wonderful team of con artists use their brain to find the perfect plan.
Who likes the Ocean movies should check this book as this could be the perfect book. Also who likes to read about con artist, heist and a good plan to be always ahead of law enforcement should check this book.

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

This book had so much potential. It's about spies and crime! It's got enemies to lovers (I bet)! But as I was reading I just felt really bored. There was more detail and not enough action to keep me captivated throughout the book. I thought it was a really compelling premise but some of the backstory just seemed crazy and that made it hard for me to accept the rest of the plot. I wanted flashbacks to her crew working and it to feel more like a heist story, but like Max it got bogged down in the admin.

Everyone’s heard of Blair Carter. She’s the most successful senior agent at the CIA—not to mention the youngest. She’s more than slightly cold and cunning, even if she regrets half the nasty words that come out of her mouth. Yet no one knows that Blair is a thief. A liar. A double agent using the government’s intel to run heists with her crew of college-aged thieves as they con the rich and donate to the helpless.
It’s music to Blair’s ears when she’s given a job involving a priceless ring. She’s instantly dreaming about her next charity donation—and bringing her crew back from the edge of being broke—until Max Yates, an irritatingly handsome and downright rule follower, is assigned as her partner. Max threatens to blow Blair’s calculated cover as pesky feelings develop in her heart that are impossible to ignore. She’d rather die than have anyone find out that the Blair Carter is secretly as soft and sappy as an ice cream cone. But as Max makes her job a thousand times more difficult, Blair soon realizes that there’s a blurry distinction between love and hate—or maybe none at all.

I unfortunately just couldn't get into this one - it didn't grip me the way I would have liked and it made trying to read it a chore

Requested because the idea of it was giving Mr and Mrs Smith 🔥with the action, the banter, the romance.

I had a hard time getting into this story and had to dnd it about 40% through. I will not leave an unfair or unfinished review on Goodreads. Sending this only as feedback to the publisher.

This was fun. Twisty and turny kept me guessing. The title attracted me and the cover like a playing card is attractive.
Blair always seems to be one step ahead and there are funny bits and thrilling bits. A bit of a rollercoaster with interesting characters. Kind of found family looking out for each other.
Thanks Netgallery

Thank you to Net Galley and The Raspberry Concept for providing me with this arc in exchange for an honest review.

I love me a good old spy romance. It needs to be the perfect concoction of mystery, romance, and action. Emma Forouhari really delivered with this book.

Some things I really enjoyed:

- I really love the title of this book. I love when book titles are smart, witty, and actually have something meaningful in connection with the plot. This title is exactly that.

- There is a found family/friendship situation that I found very wholesome. I loved reading about Blair Carter's crew of maybe friends and how they have her back.

- Blair is an extremely intelligent character who undergoes a lot of growth and seems to be aware of her own flaws. Even if she may not seem intelligent in the moment, she is always a step ahead.

- This book gets into the upbringings of both Blaire and Max and Forouhari does an excellent job of creating this character depth. Without getting into spoilers, reading about the dynamic between Blair and the man who raised her was my favorite part of the book.

Read this book if you like mystery, jewel thieves, disguises, and traveling to Zurich. Read this book if you like a fmc who is always a step ahead of both the other characters and the reader. Read this book if you enjoyed the Arobynn Hamel and Celaena Sardothien relationship in Throne of Glass. Read this book if you like a little bit of a twist. Read this book if you like a real world enemies to lovers. These characters actually start out as enemies who get to know each other over time.

You might realize that I didn't talk too much on the romance. It was cute, but it fell a little flat for me personally. There is a lot of banter, but it didn't personally have me giggling and kicking my feet. And, considering, they start as enemies and actually have a true dislike for each other at the start, it is understandable. I would say give it a try. This banter might be what you are looking for and it was by no means bad, it just wasn't the strongest part of the book for me.

A note that this is a closed door romance for anyone who prefers that.

Another note that this book, while having a clear and concise ending, does leave the door open for a sequel. Overall, I was really impressed with Forouhari's work as a debut author and I think her work will only get better from here! I would be excited to read a sequel.

Thank you to NetGalley and The Raspberry Concept for providing this book, with my honest review below.

Double Agents Never Lie was a well written and entertaining book that perfectly fulfilled my love of heist and romantic action literature. I completely understand why other readers have equated it to the Oceans Eleven series because it is playful with the same ‘what you didn’t see’ flashback concept in play that gives the reader the feeling they’re in on the twists that then follow.

From a high level plot perspective we have Blair, who has been trained to be a CIA agent since a young age when her parents largely abandoned her to the CIA. She has a weird relationship with the head of her department, a father figure but a conflicting one given he’s corrupt and has isolated her, making her largely unlikable to her peers. She gets her revenge by forming a quirky crew who run cons to steal the assets in her missions. While Blair is meant to come off as cold and unlikable to her coworkers, she’s introduced to the reader as caring and trying to overcome her unfeeling boss’s training. When she gets paired up with Max, a very by the book agent who has a chip on his shoulder about her, it felt like we would find a classic enemies to lovers story that would skew boring - BUT - thanks to the writing and the aforementioned oceans 11 style twists and plot device, this story ended up being highly amusing and entertaining.

If you enjoy heist books or truly clever twists to your stories you must read this as it’s supremely well done. I look forward to re-reading it again to recapture the feeling of an unconventional fun adventure.

Double Agents Never Lie was a thriller that was filled with plenty of witty banter, plot, twist, and lots of excitement.

Blair Carter must keep her double life as a con artist a secret while she’s assigned to work with an annoyingly-hot partner to protect a priceless diamond ring, all while stealing it right from under his nose! Good book! This book was a bit like oceans 11 I definitely enjoyed reading this one! It had suspense, action packed, murder, mystery, high end theft, double crossing, and a few crazy moments! The story was very interesting! I definitely recommend reading this book! Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for sharing this book with me!