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Stars and Smoke by Marie Lu




the book Stars and Smoke by Marie Lu surrounded by things that could be used by spies like pens, flashlights and flashdrives, and also cheese cubes and Twirl candy bars

Mission log. Two agents for the REDACTED Group are talking about Winter Young, the biggest pop star in the world who has just been recruited for a mission. Sounds important and dangerous, and Agent A has no confidence Winter Young will pull it off. 


Winter Young is on route to the stadium where he’ll be performing that night. His agent, Claire, is organizing his life and insisting he eat something, but Winter is listless and thinking about his dead big brother Artemis who died working for the Peace Corps and how good of a person he was. There are a crowd of fans waiting as he goes in and Winter signs what posters he can before his bodyguards usher him inside where he spends a few minutes admiring the craft services and talking to Leo and Dameon, a couple of his friends who are also his backup dancers. The performance goes off flawlessly and in a blur, and once the concert is done, Winter goes back to the green room alone to catch his breath. When he leaves, the corridor is empty, Claire and his bodyguards nowhere to be seen, but thankfully an SUV is there to take him home. Winter gets in, noticing it is swankier than the one he arrived in. Also, it's not Claire sitting next to him. Yeah, he’s being kidnapped. 


Not-Claire introduces herself as Sauda Nazari from the Panacea Group, a private company that takes in the work the CIA can’t because of all the red tape. She and her colleague Niall have come with an offer for Winter. Winter’s number one fan just so happens to be the daughter of Eli Morrison, billionaire and all around bad guy whose fortune has been built in shipping drugs, firearms and people. Eli’s daughter is going to be having a huge days-long birthday party in London and Winter will be hired to perform a private concert and attend all the parties and basically be in the right place at the right time to get key information in order to take Eli down. Winter declines. It isn’t until Sauda teases Winter about Artie’s death in the Peace Corps and how it isn’t what he thinks it is that Winter reconsiders. Sauda assures Winter he’ll be going in with a Panacea bodyguard, The Jackal, and any of the limited people he takes will be protected. This is all very strange and unusual for Winter but he agrees. Time to sign some contracts. 


Sydney Cossette, aka the Jackal, is nineteen years old, can speak multiple languages, has a thing for shoplifting, and can kick your ass. She’s been with the Panacea Group for a couple of years now, recruited by Niall when she was in high school. She wanted a one way ticket out of her small town and away from what was left of her home life and is now looking to become a full agent. She doesn’t think Winter Young, whose image is on all the billboards and whose name is gracing all the headlines, will be very good, but he is her ticket in to getting close to and taking down Eli Morrison, who is a very, very bad man and not afraid of getting his own hands dirty. He’s also her ticket to becoming a full time agent. Guess Sydney is in. 


Winter is picked up from his LA home in an unmarked black SUV and taken to the Claremont Hotel Minnesota, the unassuming but in plain sight Panacea Group headquarters. After being escorted inside, through security, down corridors, and through a walk-in freezer, Winter has brunch with Sauda, Niall, and his new partner, Sydney aka the Jackal. Sydney does not hide being unimpressed by Winter. Sauda and Niall go into more detail about Eli Morrison’s dirty dealings, specifically about shipments of a dangerous weapon called Paramecium that's more powerful than an atomic bomb, and the apple of his eye, his daughter, Penelope Morrison. Penelope is not involved in her father’s business, legal or otherwise, but her secret boyfriend Connor Doherty is very much embroiled. He is Eli’s financial advisor and will have the records the Panacea Group needs to bring down Eli’s business. Winter will use his charm and Sydney will use her special agent skills to retrieve them. Should be a piece of cake, and at this Niall comments, optimism is my hidden power, which makes Winter sit up. His brother Artie used to say that all the time. What is going on? Sauda tells Winter that Artie was a Panacea agent. WHAT?! GASP!


After Winter processes this revelation for a couple of moments, Sauda, Niall and Sydney take Winter on a little tour of the underground facilities. It’s like something from a James Bond or Marvel movie; the super secret spy gadgets are astounding! There are transforming cars and recording devices, and they’ve made replicas of his jewelry and credit cards with tweaks and changes to make him a real spy. They’ve even fashioned a ring with a meteorite jewel for him to gift to Connor Doherty which has a recording device embedded inside. After looking at all this cool tech, Sauda explains the history of the Panacea Group. It was started after the signing of the Declaration of Independence by Charlotte May Hughes to do what is right over what is diplomatic. They’ve helped the Underground Railroad, they fought the mafia during Prohibition and the Nazis during World War II, and they now work with the CIA and other agencies around the world. Artie was a field agent and he died trying to save people during a hostage situation. There is a lot of information being thrown at Winter and he’s taking it well, however, Sydney is still skeptical about him. She is transparent in her distrust, even going so far to throw a low blow of wishing his brother were still alive instead of him standing there. 


Sydney is back in her apartment in Seattle studying the thick folder filled with her new fake identity and life for the Morrison mission. She still doesn’t like Winter, a sentiment she expresses to Niall when he calls, but she also has a better understanding of him. Winter is destined to be a star, but his emotions are genuine, he’s observant, and he was able to take in all the information thrown at him. Still doesn’t make him a capable agent. 


Meanwhile, Winter has gone to visit his mother. Winter’s mom is a reluctant and emotionally absent parent. She doesn’t ask about what Winter is doing, nor does she express any interest in or remember anything about Winter and often confuses Winter’s life with Artie’s. It hurts but Winter has come to expect it. He has Claire at least, who calls him about the intense new hire at her doorstep. Great, Sydney has arrived. 


At Panacea headquarters, Sydney takes Winter to the training facility. She’s spent the last two years perfecting each room and earning her stripes. Winter, annoyingly, picks up all the maneuvers and rules she throws at him straight away thanks to the years of learning choreography which have come in handy. A couple interesting things happen though, like the way he closes down when his mother is mentioned or that he was stabbed and didn’t let it hit the papers, or that he noticed that Sydney has to breathe a little differently sometimes because of an undisclosed lung condition that would end her Panacea career. Still doesn't mean she likes him. 


Later, Dameon and Leo are giving Winter a hard time about Sydney as only best friends can. They’re too perceptive and frankly it’s annoying so it’s a relief that the conversation changes. In a Mission Log, Agent A is fretting for REDACTED safety after an orange alert, a security breach at headquarters. Agent B offers to pull agents from the field, but Agent A says it should be okay. Agent B is going to get the London field office to keep an eye on REDACTED.


Winter, Sydney (aka Ashley), Claire, Leo and Dameon land in London. While Leo and Dameon are able to forego the welcome meeting with Eli and Penelope Morrison, the others cannot. In a Kensington house, demonstrating Eli’s wealth, they meet the very bad man and his daughter. Eli asks Sydney/Ashley a lot of questions while Winter charms Penelope. Sydney assumes he is storing the information later to try and catch her in a lie. In the end, Eli concludes Sydney is sleeping with Winter and is the only reason she is there. Claire concludes that Eli is a monumental prick. 


Sydney does a circuit of the house, scanning it for bugs and finding a few in communal areas. They’ll leave them in place, but now she knows where it will be safe to have a conversation. The stairway is not, but Sydney and Winter do have a flirtatious conversation that hides the true meaning of what they are saying as well as solidifying their secret affair scenario Eli picked up on. After, Sydney leaves to collect a supply drop from the London field office, however, the envelope isn’t at its designated postbox. There is however a mysterious figure in a parked car looking at the postbox instead so she heads back to the house continuing to act totally normal.


Back at the house, Winter is taking a dip in the extravagant living room swimming pool with Dameon and Leo eating cubes of cheese and Cadbury’s Twirls on the sofa. They’re just chatting, though Dameon seems to be a bit too insightful of Winter’s nerves when Sydney comes back. The friends give Winter and Sydney room, unknowingly solidifying the secret relationships for the Eli’s bugs, and Sydney whispers to Winter that they have a problem. 


That night Sydney dreams about the night her mom died in the hospital. She’d told Sydney to leave the town and forget about her abusive alcoholic father and asshole bully brother. A few weeks later was the first time Sydney shoplifted, it made her feel good and she craved the high again. She did it after she saw a family together showing genuine affection toward each other and the want in her became too much. When Sydney suddenly wakes from the dream, she hears Winter downstairs in the Kensington house. Spying on him, she sees he’s awake and dancing by himself. His bad dreams are obviously keeping him up too. Sydney watches him until he goes to bed. 


It’s time for the birthday concert. Sydney is dressed as a very fancy and expensive deer complete with antlers embedded with swarovski crystals and listening devices. Winter is wearing a cape. They head to Alexandra Palace where about a thousand fans are waiting to scream at Winter and a gaggle of press hound the pop star as he walks the red carpet. Inside, while the style team strips Winter, Sydney heads to the bathroom for her rearranged asset drop including new phones, Winter’s new voice-recording earrings, the infrared-recording snake ring and other spy tools. As Sydney is leaving the bathroom stall, she runs into Penelope Morrison.  


Penelope has obviously been crying. Sydney talks a little to Penelope who reveals that Winter is the best part of her birthday and it was her idea that the bodyguards were also made to wear costumes. Sydney empathizes with Penelope over dodging fathers, but they are from very different worlds. The conversation has softened Penelope in Sydney’s eyes, making her think she could be the wedge to help topple her father’s empire. 


After returning to Winter, who is now in his stage costume, Sydney escorts him, Leo and Dameon to the stage but is stopped by Eli’s bodyguards who only let her go so far. Instead, Sydney must go back outside, through the main entrance and take her seat near Claire who is sitting with Penelope, Eli, and a couple of his goons. Connor Doherty is also amongst the group. As Winter performs, breaking out of chains like a magician, Eli and Connor have a conversation that Sydney lip reads and finds out something is happening that night, but not what. Looks like Sydney has some tailing to do. 


After the concert, Penelope escorts Winter and Sydney to an after party in some underground tunnels. It’s filled with adoring fans and watchful eyes. As Winter and Penelope dance, Sydney keeping an eye from the sideline, Penelope asks if Winter would like to go somewhere with fewer prying eyes, referring to all her father’s oppressive men. Winter agrees so Penelope takes him to a hidden part of the tunnels where the people are gambling and drinking without being constantly watched. Oh look, there’s Connor Doherty. 


Winter asks who Connor is, and when Penelope says her accountant and questions his interest, Winter is able to be truthful and say it’s because of the man’s beautiful collection of jewelry. Penelope introduces them and at first Connor is dismissive of the entertainment but Winter's rare meteorite ring steals Connor’s attention. Throughout the conversation, Winter notices that Penelope and Connor are only pretending to have a relationship. When Penelope announces she is bored of the party and asks Winter if he wants to leave too, as an introvert himself, Winter is more than happy to leave.


Sydney sees Winter leave with Penelope and notices that Winter no longer has the meteorite ring intended for Connor, so he must have given it to him. Heading outside herself, Sydney changes her outfit into an all black practical ensemble and waits for Eli to leave the party so she can follow. It takes a while, but the very bad crime boss eventually comes out with two men and gets into a black car. Sydney traces the car then follows on foot before “commandeering” a motorbike. Eventually they reach one of Eli’s yachts moored in Richmond. Three men get out, but one is being dragged. It’s Eli. Listening in, the heavily accented men warn Eli that he’s been short in his shipments for years and he owes them, they then threaten Eli and his loved ones before pulling out a cube of Paramecium and placing it inside Eli’s mouth before duct taping it closed. The new very bad man walks away leaving Eli to be watched by one goon which Sydney sees as her opportunity to rescue Eli for later prosecution. It doesn’t go well. The goon doesn’t go down easy and manages to punch Eli in the head causing the Paramecium cube to smash and burn Eli’s throat and mouth. It is not a pleasant death. 


Meanwhile, Penelope takes Winter back to her place at Holland Park. Penelope takes off her costume headband and hair pin that Connor bought her and something in Winter tells him to pocket the hair pin.  Over herbal tea they talk about wanting more and Winter mentions he noticed something between Penelope and Connor, Penelope says it’s only casual. Suddenly, Winter sees something in a bush outside, a gun! He dives for Penelope shouting get down! as the shot hits only inches away from them on the sofa. Who wants to kill Penelope? 


It takes a long time before Sydney and Winter reconvene back at the Kensington house. Sydney sent multiple texts, and thankfully her tracker on him told her he was at Penelope’s house but then on the move. As she reaches the Kensington house first, Sydney goes room-to-room checking for goons. She also had a snoop in Winter’s notebook at the songs and interesting things he writes down, ostensibly it’s to check it’s not been bugged, really she just seems nosy. When Winter arrives, they make a call to Sauda and Niall.  


Together they explain Eli is dead and an attempt was made on Penelope’s life. Sauda and Niall are pulling them out since their reason for being there is dead and the Corcasians are making deadly moves. This does not sit right with Sydney and when they hang up the call, Sydney tells Winter she’s not done, Winter says he is staying too. At Sydney’s protest, Winter tells her that Penelope and Connor’s relationship is a fake and pulls out the hairpin he stole. Turns out there is a mini-drive embedded in it. Looks like they’re both going rogue.


The next day there is a huge crowd of fans on the street concerned about Winter Young after the shooting. Darn that anonymous post in the fan site outing the incident and making it so Winter and Sydney can’t fly back to America yet. [sarcasm] Winter does order Leo, Dameon and Claire back stateside, though. They want to stay for Winter, but he’s the boss. As the three are leaving the Kensington house, Leo hugs Winter and whispers to not touch the whiskey he’s just poured. Too late, Sydney has just taken a sip. Poison! Dum dum dum!! 


Heat instantly pours down Sydney’s throat and into her belly. Winter carries her into the indoor pool to help cool her down before following her instructions to get an antidote from her bag. It feels like a lifetime while Winter runs upstairs and Sydney remembers when Sauda and Niall caught her in a lie about stealing from Panacea Headquarters, how she felt she’d let them down. Instead of kicking her out, they encouraged her to understand the trauma that caused it and to work at stopping. When Winter returns he jumps into the pool and pours antidote into Sydney’s mouth. It takes a long time but it works and Sydney feels more like herself, however, she wishes the poison would work again as she embarrassingly asks Winter about the latest song lyrics she read in his notebook. He freely admits they are about her. Sydney leans in and kisses him.


They let their mutual passion take them for a few moments but Winter pulls back and stops it going any further, rightly pointing out that Sydney was just poisoned and isn’t in her right mind. Sydney’s foggy mind and unclear memory is very slow to come back but she does remember Winter trying to stop her from taking a drink. Winter admits Leo told him not to drink, and thinking about it, Leo did pour all the drinks and would have known who got which glass so Leo was being purposeful. 


Winter is reluctant to believe his friend tried to poison them, he’s loyal to a fault and squeaky clean. There was a moment though when Winter, Dameon, and Leo were being escorted onto the stage area at Penelope’s birthday concert where Leo was also with one of Eli’s bodyguard goons and they could have threatened Leo and his extensive family. Leo seems to still be loyal to Winter, he did warn him after all, but what about Dameon? Or Claire? Doubt fills Winter. Adding to this Sydney now wants to pull Winter out of London and send him home, leaving to sneak into the Victoria and Albert Museum where they watched Connor from the snake ring camera enter a super secret bad guy lair and suspect all the juicy and best incriminating evidence is being held. Winter is unwilling to leave so he secures his place by taking off his tracker, calling Penelope, and setting up a meeting at the palace pavilion. 


On the way to the Victoria and Albert Museum, Sydney checks Winter’s tracker and sees he is still in the Kensington house. Using her super spy gadgets, Sydney is able to set off a fire alarm distraction to sneak into the super secret bad guy lair, only having to take out one lonely guard on the way. Inside a storage room, Sydney looks through boxes finding the latest records and scans them. Just as she’s about to upload the files to Sauda, Connor comes in. She tries to kick him in the face but he dodges, reaches out and plucks her phone before locking her in the pitch black room.


When Winter meets with Penelope it’s obvious she’s been crying. He tells her she needs to hide her emotions as he has news for her. Her father is dead, murdered last night while they were being shot at. To her credit, Penelope shows no outward emotion but she does vehemently deny what Winter is telling her (but not how he knows?!). Winter goes on to say they can’t trust anyone, he can’t prove he wasn’t part of it, but he wants to protect her and asks Penelope to leave with him tonight. Reluctantly and only after the toasts are given at her party does Penelope agree. Connor will be expecting her attendance and if she doesn’t show, they won’t get halfway through airport security. As Penelope takes Winter to greet some of her guests, Winter sends a quick text to Sydney saying she’ll leave with us.


The celebrations have already begun and Penelope is pouring champagne into a flute tower when Winter gets a text from Sydney asking where he is. Initially, he’s relieved but then confused. She can check his tracker, though it would show him at the Kensington house, but also the message was perfectly spelt out and not abbreviated to death as is Sydney’s preferred style. Winter responds with birthday reception and when the reply comes with okay spelt O-K-A-Y instead of just k he knows something is wrong and Sydney is in trouble and likely caught. Penelope drags a dazed Winter up for a speech and he gets shot in the shoulder. Everything is very hazy and surreal. 


Winter wakes up, not in an ambulance or a hospital, but in a cargo ship heading for Cape Town filled with Paramecium and Penelope Morrison is calmly sitting next to him. Winter realizes Penelope is really the real villain, and as all really good real villains do, Penelope monologues. She agreed to work with the Corcasians to kill her father for his money and as revenge for her dead mother. Penelope was not willing to give up her inheritance when he would finally have been arrested after the government had sufficient evidence against him. She also wanted her father dead for years of abuse and for killing her mother. As she finishes telling him her reasons, and demanding the hairpin Winter stole from her, two goons and Connor come in, bringing an unconscious Sydney. 


Penelope demands to know where the hairpin is from Sydney, but she claims she lost it. Penelope then turns her sights on Winter, making the same demand. Winter says absolutely nothing until Penelope picks up one of the Paramecium cubes and threatens to put it in Sydney’s mouth. Winter relents, saying he never gave it to Sydney and hid it in his luggage. Thanks, Winter, that’s great, here, have a Paramecium cube in your mouth for your troubles. Winter freezes. Meanwhile, Sydney is watching Winter's hands twisting. Looks awfully like the dance he did at the birthday concert where he was bound and seems to break free like magic. Communicating with their eyes, Sydney and Winter lunge together, Winter spitting out the Paramecium cube and Sydney taking out a guard. As an effective threat, Sydney puts her foot over one of the Paramecium cubes ready to take everyone out. Winter darts from the room, Connor lunges for Sydney, Sydney covers her mouth with her shirt and kicks the delicate and very deadly Paramecium cube, shattering it.


Winter is a little way down the ship when he hears Connor scream from inside the container then sees Sydney run out. The bullet wound in his shoulder is hurting and Sydney’s lung condition is making breathing difficult for her, but they need to get to the bridge. Winter will take the high road and climb up the grid. It hurts, but muscle memory and sheer determination get him to the top, though all the way he’s followed by a goon with a trigger happy finger. At the top, Winter stops, unable to carry on. Just as the goon leans over pointing the gun at him, Winter remembers one of the super secret spy gadgets Sydney gave him, a pin with a switchblade, which he stabs the goon with. 


Sydney has made it to the bridge despite two goons' best attempts at stopping her. Penelope is there with more goons with guns. Great. Dropping to the ground, Sydney uses another super secret spy gadget to blind everyone in the room, then, using her super secret spy training, kicks goons’ butts. Unfortunately during the melee Sydney sees that the phone has been disconnected so there is no calling for help, her only option is to get to the flares. It’s not easy especially when Penelope gets in on the action and more goons appear, but Sydney dramatically crashes through the bridge window, goes up and over and down to where the flares should be. Unfortunately for Sydney, her lung problem is kicking her harder than the goons she’s fighting and she can’t breathe. Penelope is also fast and knocks her down and starts to strangle her, which, good luck, her lungs are empty, but then more goons point more guns at her. No one else spots a very tired and bloody Winter pull a flare from the box and fire it into the evening sky.


Once the flare gun is spent, Winter starts toward Sydney, but Connor, who is looking rather worse for wear with Paramecium burns over his face and body, comes charging into the fray, gun drawn. Everything that happens next is a blur. Helicopters arrive, agents in black start moving around taking down goons and shouting in Winter’s face, they arrest Penelope, and Niall tells Sydney to start breathing as she’s hooked up to oxygen. 


Winter wakes in a hospital bed goodness knows where with two of his usual security team seated on either side of the bed. After a few moments, Leo and Dameon come into the room, both looking rumpled, Leo with an ankle monitor. Leo explains a goon cornered him at the concert, knew all about his family and their addresses and threatened them if he didn’t put a sleeping agent in Winter’s drink so they could rob him. Scared, Leo agreed. Winter tells him not to worry, they’ll figure it out. Dameon tells Winter he knows something big is going on, and he doesn’t have to say anything right now or at all, but reassures Winter he isn’t alone. Leo and Dameon leave to return to the States when Claire comes in with news.


Winter’s mother is here! Yes, she has actually come to see how he is. The conversation is difficult and awkward, but at least she admits that she hasn’t been a good mother though she doesn't make any promises to change, but does say she is trying her best. Winter is just glad she came if only for a few minutes. After she leaves, with her usual impeccable timing, Claire comes into his room, sits on the bed, holds Winter’s hand and lets him cry. 


Sydney and Sauda sit in a car outside Winter’s hospital surrounded by his fans. Sauda gives Sydney a (mild) dressing down for going rogue, but she got the job done. Sydney has also earned Sauda and Niall’s recommendation to be made a full agent. But what about her lung condition? Yeah, they knew all about that the whole time and built breathing techniques and strategies into her training to compensate. Sauda also cautions Sydney about Winter, offering to schedule her flight home the following day so she can say a proper goodbye, but Sydney wants to leave with Sauda that night, so she’ll make her goodbye quick. Sydney goes through a side door into the hospital to Winter’s room where he's packed up and ready to leave. They both want to stay and they both want to go, but both know they need to walk different paths. In their own way they convey all their emotions and say goodbye. 


Mission log. Two agents for the REDACTED Group are talking about REDACTED and REDACTED and how they made good partners. He has to go back to his life though, but she does need a partner now that she’s a full agent…


ONE YEAR LATER. After a particularly rigorous rehearsal, Claire calls Winter with fantastic news: he’s broken world sales records with his new album and every city wants to host his new tour. After hanging up the phone, Winter gathers his things but notices someone in the mirror. Sydney. She has a mission for him, and, oh shucks, it means working with her again. Winter takes a step back into Sydney's world.  


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