Enemies of the State (Executive Office Series Book 1)
Tal Bauer
2017
444 pages
Overall Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
MM Thriller/Suspense Romance
Plot: Ethan Reichenbach is the job. There’s a reason he’s known around the White House as the IceMan: he never gets chummy with the person he’s supposed to protect and he always follows the rules. A Secret Service agent with over a decade of experience, Ethan is the perfect person to lead the newly elected President’s security detail. But he quickly discovers that President Jack Spiers is unlike any man he’s ever met.
Jack Spiers is young, charismatic, and achingly human, unlike the Presidents of old. He’s the kind of man who could change the world if he wanted to. And before he knows it, Ethan is helplessly drawn into friendship with Jack, who is determined to hang out with Ethan, even though they both know better. Suddenly, rules that seemed important a day ago feel pointless and antiquated in the glow of Jack’s sweet smile. And Ethan knows he’s in big trouble.
But getting involved with the President would only end in catastrophe, and Ethan knows he has to find a way to swallow his feelings before it’s too late. There’s no way his gorgeous, very heterosexual boss could ever want a man like him. Besides, he’s supposed to be invisible.
First Take: Gak! This is one of my favorite series of all time. I love Jack and Ethan so much and I want to read a million more books about their adventures together. Ethan is one of the best book boyfriends– so patient and understanding and loyal. This series has everything: a once-in-a-lifetime forbidden love, life-or-death action & adventure, and a stellar cast of characters. I legit cried at the end of the final story– and then I went back to the beginning and read the whole thing again. Please, if you do anything in this life, read this Executive Office series. You won’t be disappointed.
Characters: Ethan Reichenbach is a consummate professional. He’s smart, dedicated, talented with a weapon and built like a beast. In short, he’s the perfect bodyguard. Ethan is loyal to his men and the job, and he’d willingly give his life to protect them all. He’s never had a problem keeping his distance from a protectee, so what is it about Jack that has him swooning? Jack Spiers is a man on a mission. Ever since his wife was killed in action fifteen years ago, Jack has been working to rid the world of evildoers, one general election at a time. But being the president is a totally different ballgame: the never-ending scrutiny is stifling and the work stress is real. He’s surrounded by people all the time and yet still so alone, until Ethan decides to bend the rules a little to be his friend.
Praises: Here, the storyline is as strong as the romance. And that’s what makes it so satisfying. The action and romance are blended so well together, and it’s so much more than two dudes falling in love (though, honestly, I’d also be satisfied if it were just that). Speaking of romance, Tal Bauer is uniquely gifted in his ability to make his characters read and feel like real humans– they are fully fleshed out and three dimensional, and NO ONE pines like the characters in his books. You just get sucked right into all the feelings. It’s like a cozy blanket in front of a fire. I just want to burrow in and never come up for air.
Critiques: Ok, I’ll admit the action in this book is a little over the top, but it’s just so good and painstakingly researched and Bauer writes it in a way that is convincing. Yeah, I doubt a real human could survive half the scrapes Jack & Ethan get into over their 3.5 book series, and I dunno about you, but I don’t read books so I can spend more time in the real world. I read to spend my time in someone else’s. And Jack & Ethan’s world is fun. So, suspend your reality a bit, and try not to dwell on whether or not you think a real person could dodge that bullet and just allow yourself to be carried away on their wild & crazy adventure. Also, you should know there is quite a bit of political intrigue in this series, but it’s fun politics, I promise.
Themes: Faith v Doubt, Good v Evil, Hubris, Identity, Justice, Loneliness, Man v Society, Man v Self, Survival, Power & Corruption
Overall Tone: When you fall in love with your boss, and your boss is the President, suddenly the job gets a lot more dangerous.
Prose: 3rd person dual POV from Ethan and Jack. The words are beautifully written and there is serious attention to detail. It’s the little touches and knowing glances that make this book so swoony. I love, love, love the dialogue between them, they say the sweetest, most wonderful things to each other. Tal Bauer really knows how to get my heart racing– if it’s not because the world is ending, it’s because Ethan & Jack are just #relationshipgoals.
Steam: 💜💜💜💜 No one writes a love scene better. It gets a 4 because I wish there were more of them.
Swear Jar: 🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬 These two encounter enough life-or-death experiences that heavy swearing is warranted.
Cliffhanger: HFN, soft cliffhanger
Memorable quotes:
He tried to focus on China, on Taiwan, on the dangers of invasion and the complications of icing out a global player in the world’s economy, but all he could see in his mind’s eye was the curve of Jack’s lips and the dimple in his cheek when he grinned lopsidedly at Ethan.
He wanted Jack. And not just in the physical sense. Not a one-night stand. For the first time, he wanted everything. The American Dream, the apple pie life. He wanted the morning after, and seeing Jack slowly wake up in his arms.
The colors weren’t as bright, the lighting was dim. The pomp and circumstance had frayed edges. He was now in a post-Ethan White House, and the light, the wonder, had gone out of his world.
Worthy of a reread? A thousand times, YES.
Stand-Alones, Prequels, Sequels, & Tangents: Book one in the Executive Office series. Each book follows the same cast of characters and must be read in order. Tal Bauer came out with a Novella to accompany this series called Interlude: First Noel, which takes place in between book one and two, so I definitely recommend you read First Noel next. Then move on to book two, Enemy of My Enemy.
Check out more reviews at the Hopeless Romanticist blog.
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