Tag: spy

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Book Reviews Book Series Books

The Blonde Identity Duology: A Spy Romance That Doesn’t Take Itself Too Seriously

Estimated Reading Time: 6min

If Jason Bourne were actually a blonde woman that didn’t quite know what was going on, would the story have been different? When another spy who does know who he is shows up, the answers become pretty clear.

The Blonde Identity

It’s the middle of the night in the middle of Paris and a woman just woke up with no memory. She only knows three things for certain:

1. She has a splitting headache.

2. The hottest guy she has (probably) ever seen is standing over her, telling her to run.

And oh yeah…

3. People keep trying to kill her.

She doesn’t know who. Or why. But when she sees footage of herself fighting off a dozen men there’s only one explanation: obviously. . . she’s a spy!  Except, according to Mr. Hot Guy, she’s not. She’s a spy’s identical twin sister. Too bad the only person who knows she’s not the woman they’re looking for is this very grouchy, very sexy, very secret agent who (reluctantly) agrees to help her disappear. Which is easier said than done when a criminal organization wants you dead and every intelligence service in the world wants you caught. 

Luckily, no one is looking for a pair of lovesick newlyweds on their honeymoon. And soon they’re lying their way across Europe—dodging bullets and faking kisses as they race to unravel a deadly conspiracy and clear her sister’s name. But with every secret they uncover, the truth shifts, until she no longer knows who to trust: the twin she can’t remember or the mysterious man she can’t let herself forget…

Grab the book Here

Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Gun Violence, Injury
Moderate: Blood, Sexual Content, Murder
Minor: Death of Parent, Cursing, Death

My Review

Hilarious, clever and very well done.
Enjoyed the story and characters a lot. Used to her YA novels and this one had the humour of those, but adult concepts that pushed it to a different level. I’m still deciding if I liked that or not.
Content warning: moderate sexual content, swearing and violence.

The Blonde Who Came In From The Cold

An action-packed, second-chance rom-com about two rival spies who must join forces in order to stay alive, from New York Times bestselling author Ally Carter. Ten years ago, they joined the CIA.  Six years ago, he left the game.  Five years ago, they fell in love.  One year ago, she ran out into the cold with absolutely no intention of ever coming back. And two minutes ago, they woke up, bloody and bruised and handcuffed together in the dark.

They don’t know where they are. They don’t know how they got there. And they have absolutely no idea who is after them or what this nameless, faceless villain wants.  The only thing that’s clear is that, after ten years of covers and chemistry, secrets and lies, these two rival spies have been sucked into their greatest mission yet, and now they’re going to have to team up to stay alive. (If they don’t kill each other first.)

Grab the book Here

Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Gun Violence, Injury
Moderate: Death, Death of Parent, Sexual Content
Minor: Pregnancy, Alcohol, Kidnapping

My Review

I enjoyed seeing The spy journey of Alex and King. It has been a long time since since the first book came out, so I basically forgotten everything. For some reason I thought they were the same twin that I was reading about, so I was a bit confused until about halfway when I realised the opposite was true. I didn’t mind The twisty spy type plot. I liked the dynamic between the two main characters, however it did feel a little bit disingenuous. I don’t quite see how they made it from point A to point B. I know what they were like in A, but I didn’t feel like there was enough character work done in the middle for it to get to point B. I understand what was happening where we were going and how they ended up there, but something just felt a little bit… Off. I still love them, I still love where they ended up, don’t get me wrong. It was really fun.

Would I Recommend This Book?

Yes! This was so fun, and for me, better than the original Bourne stories!

Similar Books You Might Like

If you are thinking what kind of books would have similar feel, themes or content, here is a list that you can consider:

  • The Rom-Commers (Katherine Center)
  • The Fixer (Jennifer Lynn-Barnes)
  • Not if I Save You First (Ally Carter)

See You in the Adventures!
Christy Grace

Categories
Book Reviews Book Series Books

Gallagher Girl Series Review | Ally Carter

Estimated Reading Time: 7min

Another week, another series review! This time, it’s one that I stumbled across without any knowledge, and fell in love with after book one! The Gallagher Girls – teenage spies in training…

Yes, I know how that sounds – and looks when you type it out – but there’s something about this series that even as an adult I still love. It’s about a group of girls who are in a special and elite private school, that secretly is a training ground for female spies! So, let me share a bit about the books and why I think they’re worth reading (and as with some of these reviews, it’s been a while since I read them so I’m going totally off memory!)

I’d Tell You I Love You, But Then I’d Have To Kill You

Cammie is a spy in training at the Gallagher Academy – supposedly a school for genius level young ladies, but not everything is as it seems. So when she meets a regular boy, who thinks she is a regular girl, and falls for him, she’s in trouble. It’s difficult to start a relationship by hiding who you really are, and add to that fact that you’re able to hack into his life and you’ve got a complicated situation!

This was a pretty soft start into the series. It was about what you’d expect from the above description, spy in training goes to school and defuses bombs, talking in French, then gets her first boyfriend in her spare time. The series really takes off into some fun places, and even though this was a very soft start it was just enough introduction into Cammie’s spy world that kept me interested to see where it would all go.

Grab the book Here

Cross My Heart and Hope To Spy

There are intruders in the Gallagher Academy… and they are tougher (and hotter) than ever before. A boys spy school are guests at Gallagher and while Cammie tries to figure out if she can give away her heart again, things are happening that could endanger everyone.

The addition of Blackthorne boys was amazing. I LOVED this side of the series, where we get to face off girls against boys and see who makes the better spies. There also brings another romantic element which Ally uses through the series in an exciting way.

Grab the book Here

Don’t Judge A Girl By Her Cover

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Cammie is back and this time, she’s a Junior. When her best friend is targeted for kidnapping or worse, she will do anything to protect her. When the hot Blackthorne boy, Zach, shows up again she isn’t sure what to think about it – or him. Figuring out what the bad guys want, and who they really are leads to dangerous adventure.

We start really getting into the arching story in this book. There have been things going on in the background that are starting to be revealed, and it’s fun to see it all unfold. Spies (in books at least) have trouble knowing who to trust and what to do in the face of betrayal and friendship. I loved seeing Cammie balance duty with friendship, and trying to have it all.

Grab the book Here

Only The Good Spy Young

The organisation that’s been working in the background is after Cammie and she’s going to have to decide who to trust. Someone has been labelled a traitor, and as she and her friends try to make sense of it all, she’s trying to hold her heart close to her chest.

Things are really heating up in this book. We get more information about the bigger threat, and start seeing cracks in everyone’s facade. The relationship with Zach and Cammie has been back and forth, and I loved seeing them continue with added complications.

Grab the book Here

Out of Sight, Out of Time

Cammie Morgan – spy in training – meets Jason Bourne. Cammie has woken up in an Alpine convent with no memory of what happened during the summer… just the bruises. As she and her spy-in-training friends try to piece it all together, the Circle of Cavan (an evil organisation after Cammie) is trying to stop her from remembering.

I’ve read a Bourne book – well, half of one – and this was nothing like that. I loved this story as we try to work backwards with Cammie and figure out what devastating secret led to her memory loss. With only one book left, things really come to an exciting point in this book!

Grab the book Here

United We Spy

Cammie is close to graduating, but she has to try and balance that with her fight against the evil organisation Circle of Cavan. They’re planning something that would devastate the world, and she and her friends have to try and figure out how to stop it all.

Okay, I know the idea that a teenage spy in training could save the world from a big terror threat is a little thin, but this series made you believe it could be possible (sorta)! The final part to the story, all answers revealed and an ending that I had conflicting feelings about… But it was a wild ride!

Grab the book Here

There they are, in all their glory. And with a new book coming out of Ally’s that’s similar vibes but an adult fiction, not YA maybe this is the perfect time to read or re-read the series!

See You in the Adventures!
Christy Grace

Categories
Book vs Movie Books Movie/Pop Culture

The Bourne Identity Book vs Movie: Two Different Versions of Identity and Memory

Estimated Reading Time 3min

Jason Bourne is a spy with amnesia. I wrote about a spy once and can’t remember where I put my keys half the time, so clearly we’re practically the same person. After revisiting The Bourne Identity movie and finally picking up the novel it was based on, I discovered something surprising: For once, the movie won. Easily.

As always, spoilers ahead.

The Movie Version of Bourne Is Much More Likeable

This seems to be becoming a recurring theme in these Book vs Movie reviews. Hollywood tends to make characters more likeable. Books, on the other hand, often seem determined to make them frustrating. I genuinely enjoy Matt Damon’s portrayal of Jason Bourne. He’s capable, sympathetic, and easy to root for. 

Book Bourne? Not so much. I found him abrasive, irritating, and surprisingly difficult to care about. For someone suffering from amnesia, I felt remarkably little sympathy for him.

The Story Is Almost Completely Different

There were so many changes between the book and movie that it felt like the filmmakers picked a few ideas from the novel and then built an entirely different story around them. Yes, Bourne is found in a boat. But after that, many of the events, relationships, and plot developments head in completely different directions.

It felt less like an adaptation and more like someone took a handful of concepts from the book and decided to tell a new story. Personally, I prefer adaptations that stay closer to the source material and only make small changes when necessary. When you’ve read the book and recognise the original story, it can be frustrating to see everything turned upside down.

The Book Handles Bourne’s Injuries Better

One area where the book definitely stood out was the severity of Bourne’s injuries. Movies often have a habit of giving characters life-threatening wounds and then letting them continue fighting ten minutes later as though nothing happened.

The book doesn’t do that. It makes it very clear how badly injured Bourne is, particularly in the opening chapters. The physical consequences of those injuries are given far more attention, which made the danger feel much more real. I appreciated that aspect of the novel.

Bourne Never Stops Complaining

My biggest issue with the book wasn’t the plot. It was Bourne himself. He spends a huge amount of time frustrated that he can’t remember who he is. Now, that sounds reasonable at first. The problem is that it never stops. 

Every few pages I felt like I was being reminded that Bourne was annoyed, angry, or frustrated with his memory loss. Not because people were hunting him. Not because his life was in danger. Just because he couldn’t remember things. After a while it became exhausting. Instead of feeling sympathy, I found myself becoming irritated.

I Didn’t Finish the Book

This doesn’t happen very often. I usually push through and finish books, even if I’m not enjoying them. The Bourne Identity became the exception. I stopped reading. I wasn’t enjoying the experience, I wasn’t interested in continuing, and I didn’t feel like spending more of my reading time forcing myself through a story I actively disliked. Life is too short, and there are too many books waiting on my shelves.

Book vs Movie: Which Was Better?

For me, the movie wins without question. I enjoyed Matt Damon’s version of Bourne. I liked the streamlined story. I appreciated the action and pacing. The book had a few interesting ideas, particularly when it came to the realism of Bourne’s injuries, but that wasn’t enough to overcome how much I disliked the main character. In fact, I disliked him so much that I never finished the novel. That’s probably the clearest verdict I’ve given in a Book vs Movie review so far.

Grab the book Here

Have you read The Bourne Identity, seen the movie, or both? Did you prefer the book or the film?

See You in The Adventures!
Christy Grace

Categories
Life

KIM POSSIBLE | Where’d They End Up?

Did you ever what would have happened to characters we knew and loved as kids (and let’s face it, mostly from Disney cartoons)? Where’d they end up anyways?

Well, I’m taking that guess work out for you and telling you EXACTLY where they ended up, and what their lives look like now. At least, how I always saw things working out.

For the debut post, I’m digging into “Kim Possible” to see what happened to Kim and Ron!

 

kim possible grown up

Okay, in case you never saw it, or need a quick refresher, here’s the rundown of Kim Possible in just 5 words:

CHEERLEADER AND MASCOT SAVE WORLD.

You can always check out the Disney cartoon if you wanted to know more, but here’s the rundown of how I saw things turn out (said as if you already know everything there is to know about the tv show):

  • Kim Possible and Ron Stoppable got married. They 100% ended up getting married and had two kids (a boy and a girl).
  • The Kim Possible website was expanded into a very successful privately owned company – Possible Incorporated. They use high-tech gadgets designed by Wade, and her now fully grown brothers. That tech helps them to continue saving the world!

    It may also be worth mentioning that all the characters had better offers for places to work, but they all chose Possible Incorporated instead.
  • Wade still handles all the mission details at their amazing headquarters, which hovers above the ocean close to Go City.
  • Ron is now running the Smarty Mart empire, and looks after their kids in his spare time. He’s a solid, and present working Dad.
  • Kim does her missions with amazing team members, including Monique, and Ron’s younger adopted sister Hannah (who uses her mystical abilities to help them all stay one step ahead).
  • The classic villains we all know (and love to hate) are no longer a factor for Team Possible. After years of chasing them, these villains are either dead, or in a highly secure prison (of Wade’s own design), where they can’t escape.
  • Kim faces all new threats, and continues to try and make the world a better place.
  • Kim uses the new and improved battle suit on most missions. She realised the benefits of a self healing suit, and all her employees have their own suits – all custom designed to suit their individual personalities.

>>>Grab the eBook version of my book – “KIDNAPPED Entanglement” HERE

Well, that’s where I saw these guys end up. How did you think it would be 20+ years after the finale of them graduation high school? Comment below.

See You in the Adventures!
Christy Grace

Categories
Life

I Work Here… No Really!

With all the concern about losing jobs (thanks a bunch covid… not), and my current situation of being on stand down until schools go back (school photography woes… *cries a little*) I was considering jobs.

Not just jobs, the ones that you don’t actually have. I know, insightful right? Not really.
My spy weekly series – The Hannah Carmichael – recently wrapped up ‘SEASON ONE’ and I was looking back at some of the instalments (editing them, really). I found one that caught my attention.

WHAT NOW – HCC 68

In this instalment, Hannah Carmichael is casually making it look like she works somewhere, that she really doesn’t (such a novel idea for a spy :P).

It made me think. Is there a job that you’ve always wanted? Something you’d just start doing for FREE if you had the time/chance? Here in Aus, we do a thing called ‘work for the doll’ where if you’re still on government $$ for long enough, you have to do volunteer work. Proving that you’re not just bludging on the tax dollar and not bothering to look for work.

Granted, the WFD jobs aren’t usually glamorous or exciting, but if you had the chance to work in your DREAM JOB (even for free), would you?

What IS your dream job? I’d love to know!

See You in the Adventures!
Christy Grace

Categories
Life

Secrets Exposed!

“I swear, I don’t still sleep with a teddy bear at 23!”

Hmmmm, I’m not sure if that’s something I’d admit on live television with the entire world watching. Unfortunately, for Hannah Carmichael (super spy), that could be a reality. No, not the teddy bear admission, but the existence of the super secret and corrupt spy agency CGT.

Nobody is truly aware of their existence, so exposing something like that is a big deal. Not counting letting the whole world know that you were actually a part of that organisation for several years.

TV GIF | Tv head, Object heads, Tv static

I don’t know how I’d feel about exposing my deepest, darkest secret on television. Perhaps, because I tend to be such an open book, I WOULD end up over sharing…. Scary to consider.

How would you feel about sharing your biggest secret to the whole world?
What would that secret be? Get ahead of the journalist and let us know now instead!
Maybe you put the milk back into the fridge when you know it’s empty. Or maybe you park in a pram park when you don’t have kids….
Share With Me 😀

If you want to see Hannah Carmichael dealing with this, you can check it out at the link below:

Guns To Aquire – Hannah Carmichael (67)

See You in the Adventures!
Christy Grace

Categories
Life

Screaming And Running

There’s an instinct that isn’t talked about enough… Oh wait, it’s talked about too much. That’s right!

Yes I know, I know. If it’s talked about too much, then why am I about to enthral you with another post that talks about it?
Well I’m glad you asked!

I recently had a super spy instalment of the Hannah Carmichael Chronicles series come out (the final one in SEASON ONE actually) that brought up the idea from my conscious to my conscious mind.

FIGHT or FLIGHT?

Phoebe Run GIF - Phoebe Run Running - Discover & Share GIFs ...

I ALWAYS look at a situation and see what I would have done differently. Scream at the girl on the TV to RUN!!! When she’s facing a serial killer, or conversation with her Mother about why she hasn’t got a boyfriend.

Realistically, it’s all well and good to talk about what you’d do – but until you actually get there, it’s impossible to say.

I’d like to think I’d be a ‘fight’ instead of flight when someone else’s life hangs in the balance (particularly someone I love). But it’s impossible for me to know without being in that situation.

On the whole, I tend to be of the ‘flight’ variety. What are you? Do you already know, or would you only be speculating also?

If you want to check out the Hannah Carmichael episode and see what her fight or flight response was, head to the link below:
>>>>INSTINCT (HCC 70)

See You in the Adventures!
Christy Grace

Categories
Life

Superpowers Anyone?

“To infinity, and beyond!”

“Holy guacamole, Batman!”

“I am Iron Man.”

Superheroes are IN right now. Whether you’re a Marvel movie fan, a DC TV show fan, or comic book fanatic – they are in style. They got a revamp, and I am in the category of ‘Fan’!

Superhero G GIFs - Get the best GIF on GIPHY

I love superhero movies, tv shows, and anything in between. In fact, if you’ve been keeping up with my posts and social media, you’d probably have seen a few posts over the years that confirm it.

One of the most popular questions that come out of discussing superheroes, is POWERS! What one would you want – if you could only have one? What would your superhero name be? Do you get a sidekick?

As I was writing my super spy series (Hannah Carmichael Chronicles), the thought came up again. Not because Hannah has superpowers, but because she has skills that inspired the question in my mind. She’s a SUPER spy, so why couldn’t I be a SUPER-HERO?

tk-hammonds-qJDkJRTedNw-unsplash

I need to give the question of What power some very series thought. So in the meantime, I want to know what superpower YOU would want? Flying, strength, and telekinesis are some of the most popular, but is there something else you’ve always wanted??

See You in the Adventures!
Christy Grace