Tag: Spy Novels

Books, Reading

Special Feature: THE PARIS SPY (Maggie Hope Mystery #7) by Susan Elia MacNeal

by The Lit BitchLeave a Comment on Special Feature: THE PARIS SPY (Maggie Hope Mystery #7) by Susan Elia MacNeal

Earlier this year I read the latest Maggie Hope mystery, THE PARIS SPY and was once again hooked on our favorite secretary turned spy!

I happened to find this series via the cover. I saw the cover on one of my social media platforms back in 2012 and just knew that I had to read this book…..I was fortunate enough to get my hands on an ARC when it came up and was hooked!

I have since read all of the Maggie books and was thrilled to learn that more are planned—I am not ready to say goodbye to my favorite red head just yet.

This series has always been solid….each book rates around a 4 or a 5 for me. Sometimes I don’t always like the direction that Maggie goes but I love that she is consistent and a different kind of heroine. Today the wonderful creator of Maggie, Susan Elia MacNeal, celebrates the release of her latest novel in paperback!

If you have yet to discover this series, start with the first book, MR CHURCHILL’S SECRETARY, but if you are a long time fan of this series like me, then be on the look out for the paperback version of this book available 4/17!  Continue reading “Special Feature: THE PARIS SPY (Maggie Hope Mystery #7) by Susan Elia MacNeal” →

Book Critic, Book Review, Books, Literary Criticism, Reading

Review: The Italian Party by Christina Lynch

by The Lit BitchLeave a Comment on Review: The Italian Party by Christina Lynch

Sometimes I feel adventurous and I read books outside of my traditional review genres. I do this for a couple of reasons……sometimes its for my own pleasure, meaning something sounded interesting.

Other times it’s for my readers (and me too) so they are exposed to other books besides the normal preference. Then there are times when I’ve been deep in my usual review genre that I just need a break.

That’s what happened with this book. I had been reading so many historical mysteries and cozies that I felt like I needed something different with a little more meat.

Newly married, Scottie and Michael are seduced by Tuscany’s famous beauty. But the secrets they are keeping from each other force them beneath the splendid surface to a more complex view of ltaly, America and each other. Continue reading “Review: The Italian Party by Christina Lynch” →

Book Critic, Book Review, Books, Literary Criticism, Reading

Review: Agent in Place (Gray Man #7) by Mark Greaney

by The Lit BitchLeave a Comment on Review: Agent in Place (Gray Man #7) by Mark Greaney

I’m one of those people that really really really loves government thrillers, military operatives, spy novels, and conspiracy stories. Admittedly I haven’t read a lot of classic ‘spy novels’ but secretly my dream job would be international spy master or CIA operative.

Travel the world with unlimited resources and loose rules with no one to report to….it all sounds horribly romantic to me, which I am sure in real life it is anything but. However a girl can dream.

In addition to my rose colored view of the world, I also have all the latest spy movies queued up ready to watch at any time. I love espionage and seeing how the darker side of government and politics works. It’s my guilty pleasure.  Continue reading “Review: Agent in Place (Gray Man #7) by Mark Greaney” →

Book Critic, Book Review, Books, Literary Criticism, Reading

Review: The Lure of the Moonflower (Pink Carnation #12) by Lauren Willig

by The Lit BitchLeave a Comment on Review: The Lure of the Moonflower (Pink Carnation #12) by Lauren Willig

So this is the book that everyone has been waiting for in this series…..Jane’s romance with maybe the exception of me.

I have never really been a fan of Jane in this entire series. Maybe in the beginning she had intrigue and promise but as the series has gone on I just have liked her less and less.

But I had to finish the series all the same and Willig is always so good at making me fall in love with her heroines, I tried to keep an open mind.

Portugal, December 1807. Jack Reid, the British agent known as the Moonflower (formerly the French agent known as the Moonflower), has been stationed in Portugal and is awaiting his new contact. He does not expect to be paired with a woman—especially not the legendary Pink Carnation.
Continue reading “Review: The Lure of the Moonflower (Pink Carnation #12) by Lauren Willig” →

Book Critic, Book Review, Books, Literary Criticism, Reading

Review: The Mark of the Midnight Manzanilla (Pink Carnation #11) by Lauren Willig

by The Lit Bitch2 Comments on Review: The Mark of the Midnight Manzanilla (Pink Carnation #11) by Lauren Willig

This was the book  I was least excited about reading in the series. It sounded completely out of Willig’s usual formula….like so far removed from her usual style that I just wasn’t thrilled about it.

Vampires? In this series. No, no, and just no.

Plus the heroine, Sally Fitzhugh, is not one that has even been on the fringes of the series up until like the last book and even then it was minimal.

However, as I have said before, I am continually impressed with her ability to hook me into a believable romance and prove all my misconceptions wrong. So I tried to keep an open mind when I started reading.

In October of 1806, the Little Season is in full swing, and Sally Fitzhugh has had enough of the endless parties and balls. With a rampant vampire craze sparked by the novel The Convent of Orsino, it seems no one can speak of anything else. But when Sally hears a rumor that the reclusive Duke of Belliston is an actual vampire, she cannot resist the challenge of proving such nonsense false. At a ball in Belliston Square, she ventures across the gardens and encounters the mysterious Duke.

Continue reading “Review: The Mark of the Midnight Manzanilla (Pink Carnation #11) by Lauren Willig” →