"Lord and Lady Spy" and "The Spy Who Kissed Me"

"Lord and Lady Spy" by Shana Galen and "The Spy Who Kissed Me" by Pauline Baird Jones are two spy novels I recently read back to back.  Both were entertaining but completely different.  "Lord and Lady Spy" is set in England at the end of the Napoleonic Wars  while "The Spy Who Kissed Me" is set in modern times.

Although I enjoyed "Lord and Lady Spy," I have to admit I skimmed over most of the bedroom scenes.  Lady Sophia Smythe married Lord Adrian Smythe as a cover that would allow her to spy for the Barbican organization.  She is known as "Saint" in the spy world while her husband (who is also working for the Barbican organization) is known as Agent Wolf.  The real trick is that neither knows the other one is working for Barbican and they're so intent on keeping their secrets that neither seems to notice the others frequent absences from home.  However, the Napoleonic Wars have come to an end and the Barbican organization needs less spies.  They're both been told their services are no longer needed but a murder needs to be solved and the Barbican organization allows their identities to be revealed to one another but then pits them against one another to solve the murder.  The prize -- the one remaining opening in the Barbican organization!  What will the secrets they've kept from one another as well as this competition do to their marriage?  Who wins the contest and where do they go from here?!  Future books in the series might have some of those answers.

"The Spy Who Kissed Me" has Isabel "Stan" Stanley moving into a garage apartment at her twin sister's home to help her sister through the aftermath of a rough divorce and also help her deal with their mother who has moved in with her sister!  Isabel's mom is also very interested in getting Isabel married and spends much of her time coming up with suitable men for her to date.  Isabel is a successful author of children's books and works from home.  She'd been working from home in New Orleans but caved in to her sister's pleas for help.  What she didn't expect was to have a spy literally drop through the roof of her sister's car one night when she was returning alone from a meeting.  Now her life will never be the same again as she becomes embroiled in a spy case unwillingly but the man himself might make it all worthwhile if she can just stay alive.  There is humor throughout that is slightly reminiscent of a Janet Evanovich novel so I'm hooked and ready to read more of Baird's books.  pazt