Review: Mr. Nice Spy by Tiana Smith

I received this book via the publisher Berkley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of this review.

Mr. Nice Spy by Tiana Smith
Series: My Spy #2
Published by Berkley on 2024-11-05
Length: 368 pages
Reviewing eARC from the publisher Berkley
Rating:
Reading Challenges: #NGEW2024, 2024 COYER Unwind

When a pyrotechnic engineer discovers her biological father is an international criminal, she must work with a sexy CIA agent to take him down in this thrilling adventure rom-com.

Andee Paxton knows she’s good at her job as a fireworks designer. What she doesn’t know is that her biological father is Holt, a dangerous arms dealer who has escaped prison. And now he’s searching for his long-lost daughter-dearest.

After the CIA surprises her with this news, they drop another bombshell: they want to use Andee as bait to capture Holt once and for all. But before the CIA can even attempt to spring their trap, she’s kidnapped along with the very hot Officer Adam Chan—all because they were too busy flirting to worry about silly things like “safety protocol.”

A fake relationship—for their protection, of course—and just a few explosions bring Andee and Chan closer, but there’s more than their growing connection at stake. If Holt’s plan succeeds, the world will be brought to its knees. Andee and Chan must rely on each other to stop him…or else everything (including their feelings for each other) might just blow up in their faces.

Mr. Nice Spy by Tiana Smith is a romantic comedy about Andee, the daughter of an international arm’s dealer, and Chan, a CIA agent. Andee has spent her life believing her father is a famous actor, and it isn’t until some in-office bullying pushes her to do a DNA test that she finds out the awful truth of who her father really is. Within hours of learning the truth, Andee is taken by one of her father’s henchmen and, not wanting to go alone, convinces him that the CIA agent currently in her home is actually her boyfriend. Now trapped in the underground tunnels of France, Andee and Chan have to find a way out that doesn’t get them killed.

This was such a fun read! I found myself completely engaged from start to finish. The story is told exclusively from Andee’s POV as she navigates an unknown world with the goal of keeping Chan alive. I loved how the author portrayed Andee as just a regular adult woman in her first big job. She’s doing what anyone would do when her life implodes, and then she has to pivot. Andee handles it with more grace and cunning than I would have for sure!

Chan is adorable. He is a strategist for the CIA and brought in to help Andee plan. Those plans go out the window with their abduction, but he keeps his cool and thinks on his feet. His calm is what keeps Andee calm and centered through the whole book. Despite no longer being an active field agent because of an injury, Chan jumps in and handles the situation well.

I love how the author integrated Chan’s disability (he is partially deaf due to an explosion on the job). The author represents this very well, showing how it becomes second nature for Andee to be on his right side which is his good ear, how she makes sure he can see her mouth moving when she talks or that she has his attention before she does. Little things like this make it feel natural and not added just for the sake of diversity. It is so well done that I had to wonder if she had real life experience with it. I appreciated her talking about this in the acknowledgments at the end of the book. So well done!

Overall, I really enjoyed Mr. Nice Spy. This is the second in the series and can be read out of order, though I plan to go back and read book one because I enjoyed this one so much. The banter, the excitement, and the bits of steam we get are blended to perfection. Highly recommend this one to fans of romantic comedies or if you are just looking for a quick fun read.

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