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hex_meghead's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Outing, Kidnapping, Biphobia, Homophobia, Sexual content, Violence, and Torture
Moderate: Gun violence, Car accident, War, and Injury/Injury detail
therainbowshelf's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Not my favorite simply because this action genre CIA-agent-protects-and-accidentally-falls-for-presidents didn’t work for me, but not a so-so book. I thought the characters were interesting and their conflict was explored well. For action fans, I think the action scenes will definitely appeal but I kept finding everything a bit over the top (which this genre often is!).
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Car accident, Violence, Grief, Sexual content, Homophobia, and Gun violence
fresholivebread's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
A Secret Secret agent and the President fall for each other amidst political mayhem. I loved Jack - he's charismatic, smart, sensitive and very real. Ethan is dedicated, protective and pines like the best of them (oh the pining). I adored their relationship buildup - the connection, the friendship and the love...Bauer is a master. Their moments together are so so good - funny, sweet, emotional, angsty, steamy, all of it!
The barriers/angst of forbidden love and the swirling danger only made their love stronger, and they fight so fiercely to protect each other. It's a very packed book, with a lot of side characters and a solid, layered political plot, but the Jack/Ethan romance stands out as a beautiful love story. Loved the read, and Bauer never disappoints. Also,Colonel Song and Prince Faisal ftw, basically saved everyone's asses. CW: homophobia
The barriers/angst of forbidden love and the swirling danger only made their love stronger, and they fight so fiercely to protect each other. It's a very packed book, with a lot of side characters and a solid, layered political plot, but the Jack/Ethan romance stands out as a beautiful love story. Loved the read, and Bauer never disappoints. Also,
Content Warnings
Moderate: Homophobia
so_many_books's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
Tell me, why haven't I picked this up sooner?
Enemies of the Stare is a high stakes, action-packed romantic suspense. The president of the US and the head of his secret service security detail falls in love. You couldn't come up with a messier combination.
The story was romantic and heartwarming while at the same time full action and politics and military operations. There's a dash of treason, conspiracies, and international relations just to make it even messier.
I absolutely adore Jack and Ethan. Their tentative friendship and love are soooooo wonderful. And Tal has a way to show that love and break your heart at the same time. I was rooting for these two the whole time.
The storyline with all the action and politics was actually pretty engaging. I wanted to keep reading and reading just to see how this all turns out. The actual twists were not unpredictable, but that didn't take away from the enjoyment.
There were some pretty hilarious moments when I laughed out loud. But there were also moments when I was nervous, sad, and devastated. The balance between all these emotions is a pretty big pro in the book. It makes you happy while at the same time keeps you on your toes.
I can't wait to see how this story moves forward.
Enemies of the Stare is a high stakes, action-packed romantic suspense. The president of the US and the head of his secret service security detail falls in love. You couldn't come up with a messier combination.
The story was romantic and heartwarming while at the same time full action and politics and military operations. There's a dash of treason, conspiracies, and international relations just to make it even messier.
I absolutely adore Jack and Ethan. Their tentative friendship and love are soooooo wonderful. And Tal has a way to show that love and break your heart at the same time. I was rooting for these two the whole time.
The storyline with all the action and politics was actually pretty engaging. I wanted to keep reading and reading just to see how this all turns out. The actual twists were not unpredictable, but that didn't take away from the enjoyment.
There were some pretty hilarious moments when I laughed out loud. But there were also moments when I was nervous, sad, and devastated. The balance between all these emotions is a pretty big pro in the book. It makes you happy while at the same time keeps you on your toes.
I can't wait to see how this story moves forward.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Cursing, Violence, War, Death, Sexual content, and Blood
Moderate: Kidnapping
Minor: Suicidal thoughts and Homophobia
20sidedbi's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Blood, Genocide, Grief, Violence, Death, Sexual content, Kidnapping, Gun violence, War, Mass/school shootings, Torture, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Outing and Homophobia
pawtory's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This book will had me going "nooooooooooooooooo!" from secondhand embarrassment with some frequency. It's not terribly deep (maybe over the top? But understandable with the subject matter) compared to other stuff I've read from Tal but it's fun and sexy.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Xenophobia, Gun violence, and Violence
Moderate: Racial slurs, Sexual content, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Murder, and Mental illness
Minor: Torture, Suicidal thoughts, and Medical trauma
peppermint_pink's review
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Gun violence, and Sexual content
Moderate: Homophobia and Violence
anintrovertrambles's review
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Racial slurs, War, and Murder
espiargrant's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I really wanted to love this book because it's been rated quite highly and had some glowing reviews, plus, it had so many elements that I love—they were just done terribly. That said, there actually were some moments in the story that I actually quite liked, just not enough to save this book for me.
Now, I tried to suspend all belief, but there were so many things that weren't even close to plausible that it felt like a sit-com at times. I also found that our MCs themselves weren't very believable, nor was their relationship development. Ethan is supposed to be one of the best secret service agents in the biz, yet he's bending/breaking rules in ch. 1. The same goes for Jack, who asks his bodyguard to have a drink with him, and questions about foreign policy, andsneaks him up to his room after hours to hang out. After which, we're supposed to believe that Jack thinks this is all in the name of friendship. Now, this is a bodyguard romance, so I did not expect for their relationship to stay 100% professional forever, but the fact that they didn't even try annoyed me and took all the tension out of the romance.
Once the two actually became a couple, I liked the story a lot better, but things were still unrealistic in many ways. There were several scenes that I found cute/sweet or heavily emotional, but they didn't hold much weight due to the lack of build-up from the aforementioned reasons.
I liked the writing style well enough, there were some great descriptions, but some things got repetitive. I won't say much about the ending, but I felt that one or two chapters should have been cut from it.
Not sure if I'll read anything else from this author, but I'm not going to continue with this trilogy. :(
Positional Dynamic:
Jack: Top, Ethan: Bottom (changes in later books I believe)
Now, I tried to suspend all belief, but there were so many things that weren't even close to plausible that it felt like a sit-com at times. I also found that our MCs themselves weren't very believable, nor was their relationship development. Ethan is supposed to be one of the best secret service agents in the biz, yet he's bending/breaking rules in ch. 1. The same goes for Jack, who asks his bodyguard to have a drink with him, and questions about foreign policy, and
Once the two actually became a couple, I liked the story a lot better, but things were still unrealistic in many ways. There were several scenes that I found cute/sweet or heavily emotional, but they didn't hold much weight due to the lack of build-up from the aforementioned reasons.
I liked the writing style well enough, there were some great descriptions, but some things got repetitive. I won't say much about the ending, but I felt that one or two chapters should have been cut from it.
Not sure if I'll read anything else from this author, but I'm not going to continue with this trilogy. :(
Positional Dynamic:
Content Warnings
Graphic: Kidnapping, Sexual content, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Homophobia and Injury/Injury detail
jengiraffe5's review
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Death, Homophobia, Blood, Car accident, Cursing, Violence, and War
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