| Genre | Gay / Contemporary / Agents/Spies / Artists/Actors/Musicians/Authors / Romance / Mystery/Suspense/Thriller |
| Reviewed by | Serena Yates on 02-October-2018 |
For a singer and a spy, love might be mission impossible.
Jaxon Powers has what most only dream of. Fame. Fortune. Gold records and Grammy awards. Lavish hotel suites and an endless parade of eager bedmates. He’s adored all over the world—even in the remote, repressive country of Vasnytsia, where the tyrannical dictator is a big fan. The State Department hopes a performance might improve US relations with a dangerous enemy. But it means Jaxon’s going in alone… with one exception.
Secret agent Reid Stanfill has a covert agenda with global ramifications. Duty means everything to him, even when it involves protecting a jaded rock star. Jaxon and Reid’s mutual attraction is dangerous under Vasnytsia’s harsh laws—and matters get even worse when they’re trapped inside the borders. Romance will have to wait… assuming they make it out alive.
In a delightful mix of humor, exciting international spy adventure, and secretive romance, ‘The Spy’s Love Song’ is a subtle mix of The Bodyguard (the 1992 version with Kevin Costner and Whitney Houston), a James Bond movie, and its very own, fresh look at today’s politics. I mean the part where the US tries to make friends with dictators any which way they can. Jaxon is a jaded rock star who has it all yet can’t find happiness, and Reid is a secret agent posing as Jaxon’s bodyguard while on a mission that might just get both of them killed if they are discovered. It’s an explosive mix (pun intended) that certainly kept my attention and had me wondering how the heck these two guys were going to make it.
Jaxon is a singer, quite famous, and knows how to party. He is growing a little tired of it though, and his career so far certainly hasn’t made him happy. When he gets the opportunity to visit a tiny Eastern European country (totally fictional, but the tyrannical regime felt awfully familiar), Jaxon doesn’t quite know what to think at first. His reaction to “all the spy stuff”, once it starts happening, is very amusing:
“I’m hoping the running water camouflages our voices. And the steam fogs up any cameras.”
Alarmed, Jaxon looked around. “They have cameras in my bathroom?”
“Probably not. But just to be safe.”
Great. Some Vasnytsian bureaucrat had the job of watching Jaxon take a shit.
Reid is just about the stereotypical spy: loyal to his country, determined to complete his mission, and ready to die for his country. Once he gets to know Jaxon and begins to see the real man underneath the rock-star veneer, Reid begins to thaw a little and becomes more human. But the mission is all-important and he can’t afford a distraction – or can he? Well, once they are no longer running for their lives, he might be able to take a breather and make some changes.
While there is lots of action and violence around a very topical plot, some of this story reads like a fairy tale. A scary one at times, that’s for sure, but still. Jaxon and Reid’s interactions, how they stick together despite the odds, the way local Vasnytsians support them in their efforts to escape capture, and certainly the ending are not quite realistic – not that I minded one bit! I think these details are a great contrast to some of the brutality and gave me a break from all the suspense.
If you like action/adventures with stakes and multiple twists and turns, if you want to watch an unlikely pair of men thrown together by Fate grow into a couple, and if you’re looking for a highly entertaining read that will have you laughing and biting your nails in turn, then you might like this novel. I am certainly happy this will be a series – here’s to hoping there are many more men from Peril, Nebraska, who are ready to venture out into the world!
DISCLAIMER: Books reviewed on this site were usually provided at no cost by the publisher or author. This book has been provided by Dreamspinner Press for the purpose of a review.
| Format | ebook, print and audio |
| Length | Novel, 214 pages/52201 words |
| Heat Level | |
| Publication Date | 02-October-2018 |
| Price | $4.99 ebook, $9.99 paperback, $9.99 bundle, $14.95 audiobook, $10.47 Audible |
| Buy Link | https://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/books/the-spys-love-song-by-kim-fielding-9882-b |
