Stars and Smoke by Marie Lu

Stars and Smoke is a thrilling escapist read for anyone who likes fast paced stories about secret agents and pop stars.  Winter Young is a global star, with hits all over the world. When the Panacea Group, a covert operation, approach him to infiltrate the inner circle of Eli Morrison, suspected of criminal activities, he knows that this might just give him something worthy to aim for outside of his stardom. Winter has been asked to perform at the birthday party of Morrison's daughter, Penelope, who is a big fan, and Panacea know that this will be the best way to infiltrate the group and gather information to convict him. Sydney Cossette, a young spy, is assigned to Winter as his bodyguard, and they team up to thwart Eli Morrison and his entourage.

The combination of background about the performances and hard work of a touring pop star and the machinations of a spy group make this a riveting read. There is excitement galore as Winter and Sydney attempt to find evidence about Morrison while many twists and turns will keep the reader glued to the page. Winter is charismatic and Sydney feisty and the simmering attraction between the two adds to the allure of the novel.

Fans of Bodyguard and Mission Impossible are sure to love this easy to read thriller that I could visualise being made into a film. I was thrilled to see that there will be a sequel, Icon and Inferno.

Pat Pledger