The Librarian and the Spy

March 13, 2017
A spy novel collides awkwardly with a romance in this insipid debut. Quinn Ellington is an ordinary librarian with an overstoked imagination, thanks to her spy-novel-loving grandfather. She’s beside herself when an actual British spy who calls himself James (Anderson, not Bond) waltzes into her library looking for research assistance. He sweeps her off her feet, throws thousands of dollars at the library to secure her exclusive assistance, and shoots her with a tranquilizer dart and kidnaps her at the first sign of trouble. James is clearly the worst secret agent ever, but fortunately Quinn can hold her own in a fight, shoot like a Marine, and decode cryptic clues at the drop of a hat. The absurd plot might be forgivable if the writing were stronger, but the tedious prose makes this story utterly unappealing. Agent: Rena Rossner, Deborah Harris Agency.

Starred review from April 15, 2017
Reference librarian Quinn Ellington's life changes forever when a too-handsome British stranger, James Lockwood, shows up at her desk one day and asks for help identifying an antique brooch. But James is not actually from England, nor does he work for an insurance company as he claims. He's actually James Anderson, an American spy, and his mission is to take down an arms dealer. The adventurous life Quinn has dreamed of for so long arrives suddenly as she gets caught up in James' assignment. She loves that he appreciates how she uses her intellect as well as her librarian skills to decipher clues and solve riddles. Over the course of their investigation, mutual attraction turns to love, which makes the danger personal. An intrepid hero and heroine, fast-paced action, witty repartee, lots of suspense, and a very neat twist at the end will make this funny roller- coaster of a tale popular with a broad spectrum of readers. It's hard to believe this is Mann's first novel. It is also the first volume in a planned and promising series.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)