Customer Reviews

Spy Games

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I just finished Spy Games by Gina Robinson and must say all it did was frustrate me with its lost potential. She had a great plot and setting and with the bones of what should have been wonderful quirky characters. This book could have been a keeper, instead it was a wall banger. Their is a saying among amateur poets "don't tell me, show me" well Reilly told me everything and showed me nothing. Ms. Robinson's lack of ability to flesh out her characters by their actions is probably what lead her to use the first person POV. While I can't claim that I love the first person POV, when done right it can make for a great book.Unfortunately when it is used as a way for the lead character to simply recite events in a a way that never allows you close enough to the other characters(including the hero) to KNOW them in any way other then the most superficial- have a FAIL. I hated that I hated this book. I mean what a good writer could have done with the clever plot and quirky characters Ms.Robinson's imaginative mind created almost made me cry. The problem I had with this book illustrates that the ability to WRITE is as important if not MORE important then the ability to imagine.

Be careful when you start this book because you will not be able to put it down! I loved the main characters Reilly and Van. Reilly has just the right amount of spunk to hold her own against math professor hero, Van Keller. Van is a strong alpha with a heart. The story pulls you in as you worry and wonder how these two will find their happy ending when it seems as if everything and everyone is conspiring to keep them apart. When you close this book, I promise it will be with a smile on your face. Ms. Robinson is definitely an author to watch.

It's best not to take this one too seriously, and just enjoy.

Reilly's ex is a dangerous man, and she attends a `spy camp' to learn how to protect herself. Turns out all of her `classmates' are in some trouble of their own, and they all get dragged into the drama. Suddenly they have to use everything they've learnt - and fast.

The problem I had with this book was that I could see the twists from a mile off. I was hoping I'd guessed wrong with the surprises, but I hadn't.

Additionally, I love fun books, but sometimes this ventured into the realm of silly - too silly for me.

I did like the author's sense of humour though. It takes a lot for a book to make me laugh out loud, but I laughed more than once here. And I had a bit of a soft spot both for the hero and the heroine. It really helps to like both leads and it's quite a feat to create original, quirky characters.

What I did not like was that there were far too many major players in what was a short, quick read. About halfway through I gave up trying to keep track of who was who, and it didn't seem to matter. Whenever the author got too bogged down with all her characters I found myself getting a bit bored.

I think some reviewers have been extremely generous with five star reviews, but this was for the most part a fun read.

Though frightened of her former boyfriend Ket, thirty-two years old Reilly Peterson refuses to allow him to dictate how she lives. Being a former athlete and model, she is in good shape so she decides she needs to learn how to defend her self rather quickly. In Seattle she attends the Urban Ops Division's three-day training at Fantasy Spy Camp.

At camp Reilly meets math Professor Van Keller; he acts anything but like her image of an academic. When a corpse is found, Reilly fears Ket is nearby. Meanwhile as she learns hand to hand combat and weapons usage, Van vows to keep her safe although she wonders how a Pythagoras Equation expert will protect her from killer Ket.

Like its predecessor Spy Candy, the fun Spy Games is an enjoyable lighthearted romantic suspense starring a brave lead female, a math teacher who proves the whole is greater than the sum of the parts, and a villain over the top of the Space Needle. Readers will enjoy going to Fantasy Spy Camp rooting for Reilly to kick Kt's butt.

Harriet Klausner

Gina Robinson's books just keep getting better! Spy Games is a fast paced, action packed adventure. The spunky heroine is the lone woman in a camp filled with men... some of which are hot, some are not, and a few are pure evil. It's her job to figure out who she can trust... her life and her heart depend on it.

This book has been sitting on my bedside table for almost two months with a bookmark in it halfway through. Perhaps I'd get back into reading the story, I thought, but whenever I picked it up I found myself putting it down again. Nope, I'd lost all interest in this book.

So what was wrong? The blurb on the back made it sound exciting - Reilly Peterson attends Fantasy Spy Camp, a training course, finding herself attracted to fellow camper Van Keller. As you read the book there is some kind of a mystery and even a murder.

This is meant to be a sassy, witty book in the mould of Janet Evanovich, but it turned into a damp squib. Some aspects were interesting, such as the survival training, but there were so many unlikely turns of events (the most unlikely being that there's a murder in the training camp and yet it continues. Surely not!!) that I could no longer have any belief in the story.

The romance side, or at least what I read in the first half, was also rather boring. Reilly and Van are attracted to each other. Reilly's stalker appears on the scene but no-one is worried about him. I felt myself less and less interested in the story and its resolution as I read on and was relieved to eventually decide to give up. One to miss!

Originally published for Curled Up With A Good Book © Helen Hancox 2011

Reilly Peterson was a last minute addition to the Fantasy Spy Camp's Urban Ops division in her hometown of Seattle. Reilly knows she is going to be the only female in this camp but she isn't worried about that. What Reilly is most worried about is her ex-boyfriend. He is violent and has decided that Reilly is

his property and will always be, no matter what her thoughts on the subject are. Reilly's background as an athlete, model, and sportswear executive have not given her what she needs like this camp could.

Van Keller, one of the men at the camp, is a mathematician according to his application. Van is instantly attracted to the outgoing Reilly and would like nothing better than to get much closer to her. Even after he learns about the crazy ex who threatens any guy Reilly goes out with, but luckily, the ex is in jail right now. Van appears to be very thoughtful in how he approaches the camp participants and Reilly.

Things get violent fast when Reilly is dragged into the undercurrents that are going on in the camp. None of the participants are exactly what they seem and then death makes an appearance - not one that was preplanned by the organizers either. Reilly turns to Van for reassurance, help and comfort as things heat up around her, and she learns that her ex is out of jail and in Seattle. Secrets come out about all the participants as things come to a violent head at the end of the camp. Reilly has to wonder if she made the right choice in her allies as things explode around her. When the last person is captured will Van and Reilly have a future together to explore their passion or is that over with the camp?

A spy styled training camp turns out to be much more than fantasy. Reilly discovers this in Spy Games. I was totally captured by the fast paced plot, and loved Reilly from the very beginning. After meeting the other campers, it was a given to me that Van was not only the sexiest, but also the brainiest of the group and I was hoping they would end up together. The humor even in dangerous situations was a perfect counter to the suspense. I truly loved how Reilly kept her sense humor even when scared to death. Van redeemed himself for me when I would have tossed him aside for what he did to Reilly. The award that Reilly won from the camp organizers had me laughing by the time it happened and was a great way to end the camp. Spy Games is humorous, fast paced, passionate, and has just enough suspense to keep you guessing on who is doing what to whom until the very end.

Jo
Reviewed for Joyfully Reviewed

Gina's Robinson's latest spy adventure is a fast-paced, romantic read, filled with fun dialogue and a realistic heroine who's overcoming an abusive past. Empowering herself by attending spy school, Reilly won my respect from the opening scene. You can't help rooting for a heroine with such sass and an unsinkable spirit.

With humor, action and plenty of heart, Spy Games is the perfect read for a long, lazy weekend.

3 1/2 stars

First off I must say I am not a fan of Chick Lit which is the style in which this book is written. I do not like it when chracters like Reilly talk to themselves and think they are quite witty. This author reminds me of Janet Evonovich, of which I read "One for the Money", "Two for the Dough"...and that was enough for me although a lot of my friends just LOVED that series. Evonovich in my opinion spent way too much time having her main character describe foods that were not in her refrigerator and what she fed her hamster, and not enough story. This is where Gina Robinson differed. Althought the subject matter was not a light one, an ex-boyfriend who physically abused and was stalking Reilly, Robinson wrote it in a lighthearted manner and kept the action going. There was a likely cast of evil characters and you never knew when the lights went out who would die.

All things being considered, it was an enjoyable ride to the finish. I think Evanovich fans would probably really enjoy this book.

The book was okay. It's a VERY LIGHT silly novel about an oversexed woman with a bad ex and everyone in the world after her. After page 20 you know the entire plot and how it's going to end. I'd if it wasn't for the sex laced throughout the book it would be a great teens book.