The Chemist by Stephenie Meyer

On the run from the same government she once worked for, Alex (not her real name) is a human knot of neurosis, suspicion, chemical booby traps, deadly weapons and taciturn distrust. But the whole situation shifts when a lethal trap misfires and she ends up partnering with her would-be assassin to turn the tables and take down their pursuers.

Yes, I listened to 17 hours of this book. And the book was OK - probably even good because I did actually spend 17 freaking hours of my life with it - but I'll only recommend it with a shrug.

It's a government agent novel, with espionage and backstabbing and digital footprints and lots of "trust no one." Yet there's still plenty of time to ponder the luxury of the curls in his hair - my god those curls (she's obsessed). It turns into a romance of unlikely partners that smolders and stalls so long I wanted to beg them to just consummate and put us all out of our misery! (maybe I used slightly stronger words)

Do you like that kind of thing? Then you'll love this.

The Crypt Thief by Mark Pryor

I picked up the book because the first murders takes place at Jim Morrison's grave in Pere Lachaise cemetery - I kept reading it because it's good.

Through a strange twist of political positioning, the murder investigation has been hijacked from the French police by a CIA spook and the US embassy's security chief. And while they're chasing a terrorist as their lead suspect, they also secretly know he's not the murderer - so they're chasing the real killer on the side.

Throw in a sexy newspaper reporter, a substance abuse problem, and a truly deranged serial killer and you'll see why I found this book so entertaining. The investigative characters are well developed and interact in the joking, knowing way long-time friends can. While the Scarab's plan is no secret to the reader, but his full implementation is still shocking.

Death Echo

by Elizabeth Lowell

Emma is ex-CIA, but she got tired of the political machinations that make getting the job done, shall we say, sticky. She's now, officially, in the business of high end insurance repossession. Unofficially, she's pretty much still an operative. St. Kilda consulting has sent her on a mission to find a missing yacht. However, that "boat" is likely to be carrying some dangerous cargo. Emma works well with her partner, sniper, Mac Durand, to solve the puzzle and stop the plot against a world superpower.

Lowell started out as a romance writer, but she kept the sentiment to a minimum in this book. Although the entire novel spans just nine days in the characters lives, the story does not move at a breakneck pace. The characters are masters at their jobs, but we learn little about their lives away from this mission.