Sophie Lark

I’ve waited three long years for this…

Hiding. Lying. Spying.

Waiting like a spider for her to wander into my web…

Now she’s here, and I have to get even closer to her. I’ll help her. Befriend her. Seduce her, even.

The only thing I can’t do is fall in love with her.

Her father took everything from me: my money, my family, my life.

He has to pay for what he’s done. And she’s the only thing that can hurt him…


The Lark Notes:
I’ve been planting clues and Easter Eggs all the way through the first three Kingmakers books — now it’s time for the secrets to be revealed, and the mysteries to find their conclusions. The moment you finish “The Spy”, you’re going to want to go back and read the whole series all over again! – Sophie

“The Spy” is the final installment in the epic dark mafia Kingmakers series. It’s a forbidden romance, full of mystery, betrayal, and an explosive conclusion that will give you the biggest book hangover of your life!

Kingmakers, #4

The Spy

Quietly, in that low, deep voice, Ares says, “I love being out here with you. I haven’t felt this good in a long time.”

Joselyn

Everything I predicted ended up being true (subtle flex)

Ana Clara Moreno

pls me apeguei muito, vou morrer de sdd de todos os personagens

Kingmakers: Book 4

This review may contain spoilers, so fair warning, upon reading the review.

The Spy is the fourth installment in the "Kingmakers" series, and this is technically the final installment of the series as I know book five I believe doesn't feature the school, but I could be wrong. I know The Spy was intended to be the final installment originally. I pretty much went into this one completely blind, I just knew the small hints leading up to the serial plot, would be finalized in this one here so I was highly intrigued, and I really love this cover -----the sexy man NOT the weird illustrated. I did enjoy this one and I do recommend listening to these in audio formats if you can, because the narrations are well done and definitely worth the wait for them.

Hiding his identity, posing as his best friend, looking for justice for his family and seeking to get close to his father's enemies daughter to seduce and use her if necessary. His duty is to family first and foremost.

Strong and a bit of a loner, as she is the daughter of the most hated man in the mafia world, Nix is strong and passionate and has a kind heart full of desires for adventure.

Nix has always loved her father and he is overprotective but she is determined if she is to take her father's place, to attend the Kingmakers as she wants to escape the life she was raised in and to be able to stand on her own. What she doesn't expect though is to find her own courage and strength as it isn't easy to stand on her own but also to be so hated from everyone around her except her roommate who seems to be cunning and badass in her own way. Nix has her own smarts and is determined to find her own path until she falls for Ares who is a man of mystery and layers. She knows that there is so much more to him than meets the eye. Ares is a man on a mission, and he is torn between duty and his heart. He is supposed to get close to Nix to save his family, and he has also had to assume this secret identity from everyone even those closest to him, but he doesn't plan on falling hard for Nix who is the daughter of his most hated enemy.

Whew boy, this book was a roller coaster of a ride. I absolutely adored every single moment of this one and I am not sure but I think this is a close tie to "The Bully" and in fact I might even love it more than "The Bully" and I honestly thought no book from Sophie Lark could actually top that one. There was just something so much more in depth for the plot that just seemed to work way better for me. I was so intrigued by this pairing. And from the beginning, we get to see their backgrounds and their connections with their families, so instantly you are drawn in and just captivated by them as individuals.

When they meet at the Kingmakers though, its more like friends coming together. Nix is new and in her first year, but she is also so hated and she doesn't understand why. She doesn't know all the evil things that her father has done and if even in the mafia he is the most despised that is saying something. What I was intrigued about with Nix is that she was open minded and wanted to know the truth surrounding her family and not have it kept from her. Ares even though he wants to hate her, soon gains admiration for her which quickly turns into love. He doesn't want to have a heart for Nix, but he quickly sees that she is so much more than her father's daughter and he becomes torn over duty and heart. And my heart just broke for these two, because as the truth is revealed about his family (And no one was more shocked than I was on this) you start to see how drive Ares is for his family and to save them.

The romance that builds between these two is just simply wonderful. I loved their connection to each other and how protective Ares gets even though he understands why so many students are bitter against Nix. Both Nix and Ares have such fighting spirits for adventure and for those that they love. They definitely have powerful sparks between them but there is also something so much deeper that forms between them. Nix quickly reveals all of herself with Ares, but what I loved about Nix is that she knows that there is a persona that Ares is hiding from her and when everything is revealed its truly so saddening for Nix. You know that there isn't another way that this could have happened, but even through that betrayal she also still loves him so deeply. And in the third act.....this book completely captivated me and I couldn't put it down. And seeing how Ares friends just ended up standing by him when they learn the truth just fills the heart seeing that strong loyalty that they have for each other. And seeing how much in the end that his family accepts Nix through it all despite what her father has done, warms your heart and soul on such a deep level. Sophie Lark really works her magic with this one and she has captured such beautiful things in this series and I can't wait to delve into the final connected book "The Savage".

I found The Spy to be a captivating read that kept me on the edge of my seat, a plot that steals your attention, characters that endear your heart, and a romance that you will want to fight the world for.....STUNNING IN EVERY WAY!

Lover of Romance 

This review may contain spoilers, so fair warning, upon reading the review.

Introduction
The Spy is the fourth installment in the "Kingmakers" series, and this is technically the final installment of the series as I know book five I believe doesn't feature the school, but I could be wrong. I know The Spy was intended to be the final installment originally. I pretty much went into this one completely blind, I just knew the small hints leading up to the serial plot, would be finalized in this one here so I was highly intrigued, and I really love this cover -----the sexy man NOT the weird illustrated. I did enjoy this one and I do recommend listening to these in audio formats if you can, because the narrations are well done and definitely worth the wait for them.

The Main Protagonists
The Hero: Ares
Hiding his identity, posing as his best friend, looking for justice for his family and seeking to get close to his father's enemies daughter to seduce and use her if necessary. His duty is to family first and foremost.

The Heroine:Nix
Strong and a bit of a loner, as she is the daughter of the most hated man in the mafia world, Nix is strong and passionate and has a kind heart full of desires for adventure.

Summary
Nix has always loved her father and he is overprotective but she is determined if she is to take her father's place, to attend the Kingmakers as she wants to escape the life she was raised in and to be able to stand on her own. What she doesn't expect though is to find her own courage and strength as it isn't easy to stand on her own but also to be so hated from everyone around her except her roommate who seems to be cunning and badass in her own way. Nix has her own smarts and is determined to find her own path until she falls for Ares who is a man of mystery and layers. She knows that there is so much more to him than meets the eye. Ares is a man on a mission, and he is torn between duty and his heart. He is supposed to get close to Nix to save his family, and he has also had to assume this secret identity from everyone even those closest to him, but he doesn't plan on falling hard for Nix who is the daughter of his most hated enemy.

My Outlook
Whew boy, this book was a roller coaster of a ride. I absolutely adored every single moment of this one and I am not sure but I think this is a close tie to "The Bully" and in fact I might even love it more than "The Bully" and I honestly thought no book from Sophie Lark could actually top that one. There was just something so much more in depth for the plot that just seemed to work way better for me. I was so intrigued by this pairing. And from the beginning, we get to see their backgrounds and their connections with their families, so instantly you are drawn in and just captivated by them as individuals.

When they meet at the Kingmakers though, its more like friends coming together. Nix is new and in her first year, but she is also so hated and she doesn't understand why. She doesn't know all the evil things that her father has done and if even in the mafia he is the most despised that is saying something. What I was intrigued about with Nix is that she was open minded and wanted to know the truth surrounding her family and not have it kept from her. Ares even though he wants to hate her, soon gains admiration for her which quickly turns into love. He doesn't want to have a heart for Nix, but he quickly sees that she is so much more than her father's daughter and he becomes torn over duty and heart. And my heart just broke for these two, because as the truth is revealed about his family (And no one was more shocked than I was on this) you start to see how drive Ares is for his family and to save them.

The romance that builds between these two is just simply wonderful. I loved their connection to each other and how protective Ares gets even though he understands why so many students are bitter against Nix. Both Nix and Ares have such fighting spirits for adventure and for those that they love. They definitely have powerful sparks between them but there is also something so much deeper that forms between them. Nix quickly reveals all of herself with Ares, but what I loved about Nix is that she knows that there is a persona that Ares is hiding from her and when everything is revealed its truly so saddening for Nix. You know that there isn't another way that this could have happened, but even through that betrayal she also still loves him so deeply. And in the third act.....this book completely captivated me and I couldn't put it down. And seeing how Ares friends just ended up standing by him when they learn the truth just fills the heart seeing that strong loyalty that they have for each other. And seeing how much in the end that his family accepts Nix through it all despite what her father has done, warms your heart and soul on such a deep level. Sophie Lark really works her magic with this one and she has captured such beautiful things in this series and I can't wait to delve into the final connected book "The Savage".

Overall View
I found The Spy to be a captivating read that kept me on the edge of my seat, a plot that steals your attention, characters that endear your heart, and a romance that you will want to fight the world for.....STUNNING IN EVERY WAY!

Rating Evaluation:
Plot: 5
World Building:5
Cover:5
Hero: 5
Heroine: 5
Steam: 4
Heart & Feels:5
Ending:5
Overall View: 5



i had a feeling about who “the spy” was going to be, and im so happy that this was their book!!! this was so entertaining and fun to read, even when the action scenes did start to get a little boring. without giving anything away, this was a great book to wrap up the kingmakers series. that epilogue chapter had me tearing up for real

Danyella Barajas

Skye

“I want your wildness. I want your passion. I want you to love me the way you love the wind and the water and the outdoors. I want you to be untamable ”

•

I always knew I’d love Ares’ story, and I wasn’t wrong! It was so fun having all these characters together in one place and having so many stories finally come together. 

•

read if you like:

♡ secret identities 
♡ revenge plots 
♡ forbidden romance 
♡ irresistible friend groups 
♡ found family 
♡ athletic competitions 
♡ unraveling family secrets and history 
♡ rescue missions 
♡ prison breaks 
♡ mafia romance 
♡ multiple POVs 
♡ dark academia settings 
♡ boarding school-style college 
♡ ancient seaside castles with lots of secrets 
♡ on-page spice

trigger warnings:
☞ discussion of rape
☞ death of a loved one
☞ adoption / parental abandonment 
☞ parental neglect 
☞ parental abuse

Kristina

This book has the best plot I have ever seen! SABRINA GALLO is the star of the show.

Daniella Cuesta

I really liked the premise of this book. Overall, the buildup, the revenge arc, and how the author completed everyone’s stories was great. To be honest my only complaint was that the heroines character was too two dimensional for me. She wasn’t really fleshed out and developed, she was badass but completely blind to what kingmakers was and it just didn’t seem possible to me loll but I won’t complain too much. She had this brutal honesty that I LOVED. The MC was just as hot as usual but I even felt a little disconnected to him when I was sooo excited for his story. Besides Dean he was legit my favorite character. So overall this was still fire and a great end to the series I just needed more tension and attention to detail in regards to the characters to make it a five star read.

MIS NIÑOS no quiero acabar esta serie, los quiero mucho a todos😭😭

RAFENIX ESTÁN COMPROMETIDOS😌
ARESFREYA 💞
CARAHEDEON 💖
ANNALEO TUVIERON GEMELOS💗💗
CATDEAN TUVIERON UN BEBÉ💖
CHAYOZZY SE CASARON😍


creo que le doy 5 pq me encariñé mucho con ellos

Gianna Cabrera

Maybe I read this too fast to comprehend it, but I felt like I wanted more before the couple forgave each other.

Loulou

Yes, I'm crying. Are they happy tears? Of course! 

As you may already know, I'm in love with Sophie Lark, everything that we write is a masterpiece but "The spy" is definitely on my top 5.
This is the original end of the kingsmaker so we have all of our heroes together and we get a perfect ending.
The romance in this book takes a backseat and it focuses more on the problem and the solution.

clau

Kristen Gillis

“I want you,” I say to her. “I want your wildness. I want your passion. I want you to love me the way you love the wind and the water and the outdoors. I want you to be untamable, except by me. I want you to be my wife.”

Nix fierce, strong, sure of herself, fearless. The connection between them is amazing. They are so well suited for each other. 

The spy, no way!? He’s the Spy!? WELL PLAYED! I have to admit he was one of my theory’s, but I definitely didn’t predict how everything was going to happen. 

Ahhh Cat and Dean 😍 still my favorite couple. I love the relationship between Dean and Snow too. 

Oh Miles ❤️ his love for Zoe still shines through even when then only make small appearances 

QaI love that we get to see a true happy ending for the whole group 🖤

alyssa 

i can’t even describe how good this read was ! first off i love rafe 🥺 and omg it had soooo much detail , the fight was soo long and details were on point i love it . and omg the plot twist . i love little nix as well she’s so cute and brave and honest i love her . this book was amazing probably my fav one so far from the kingmarkers series 

Logan Chisholm

It’s hard to write a lot about this book without giving anything away, so i will keep it brief. To start, i read this in one sitting because it was such a page turner i *literally* couldn’t put it down. I kept telling myself “ok, at the next stopping point we go to bed” and that just never happened. 

I loved learning more about the spy and figuring out what his purpose is. It was so cool to see mysteries unravel and honestly just impressive to see everything that sophie created and how it all came to fruition. The relationship between the spy and his love interest was super intriguing. Very much “i hate you, but i want you, and i hate that i want you” vibes.

I felt like this wrapped up so many things so nicely, and the epilogue was just perfect. I was so glad to see how things turned out for the characters i loved, even though it was sooo not easy to say goodbye. the love stories and the friendships created in this series are some of my favorites. all of these characters love so hard and would quite literally do anything for each other, as proven in this book. Kingmakers was a place unlike any other, and i’m so sad to be done, but I can’t wait for the Savage and see more of Sabrina and Adrik!

Milanna K

I was sad when the Gallo and Griffin stories came to an end and was even more sad when Kingmakers ended as well. Very impressed with the way Sophie Lark prepared us for the Spy and the flashbacks that were part of the book. Ares was always one of my favorites and I was grateful for such a fantastic spotlight on him and the way that all of the details hidden in previous books came together and everyone got their place in the epilogue. It was a really wonderful way to say goodbye to these characters. 

Tanya 

As some of you may know this book is not like the others and so with that there is not much I can say. I can tell you that this book is about a family seeking revenge one of them being the spy and along the way one of them falls in love with the insurance. The spy has been at Kingmakers for 3 years now, gathering information, planning & biding their time until this new come arrives for their freshman year (Nix) a bit sheltered a bit not is heir to her fathers empire. She knows her father is powerful but what she doesn’t know is that he is the most frowned upon my all the other mafia families because his actions have all be foul and he’s a boy unhinged. She attends kingmakers completely blinded and her year starts out very hard. The spy should hate her because she is his mark but he can’t help fall in love with her…

The ride? Was a ducking FANTASTIC ONE. This book was everything to me. It starts out perfectly setting the tone and taking us back in time, yes there are flashbacks in here but I promise they are barable if you know me you know I hate them as well but they’re so important to the story that you’ll be anxiously waiting for the next one.

I think this plot might have been my favorite one because my brain never stopped working throughout this book. At every turn I was putting pieces together and well as swoony over the perfectly put together friends to lovers story ever. The spark and fire between the spy and Nix was undoubtedly HOT. Can I also say there was some girl on girl action here and I squealed?! Fuck this book was everything.

All of our veterans from this series showed up in the book at the perfect time and that ending?! EVERYTHING. I actually sobbed when it was over because honest to God I’m so attached to these people like legit they’re my friends. We are went to Kingmakers together. I’m really really sad that it’s over and I really wish I could take my memory away so that I could read it all again. Sophie, you deserve an award, lots of money, orgasms and happiness for this work of art. I am in awe of how and you meticulously put this body of work together. Thank you truly for this.

Alexandra 

UTTER PERFECTION. This is how you write a great mafia series...intriguing plot with many so many layers, heat and spice, incredible main characters, and strong family bonds. 
The perfect way to end the series of kingmakers. Not only kingmakers but also the Brutal Birthright series. Just overall fantastic. 

I’ll say this...At the start of brutal they were all enemies and by the of kingmakers...the children from the world of Brutal brought them all together into an amazing family you do not want to mess around with at all. 

Happily ever after for everyone 💜

Maya Federman

As my Kingmakers journey comes to a close, all I can say is WOW. This series is everything I wanted it to be and more, and the culmination of so many different threads finally coming together in The Spy was masterfully done.

Sophie Lark is a goddamn genius. I can't say too much about the plot of this bad boy because it's very much classified information, but I loved every second of this. My mind was spinning constantly as I read, and the intricacies of the series of events leading to this book were honestly insane. 

Spice was excellent but at this point, that's a given from Sophie. Devastated Kingmakers is over, but I know this series will stay with me forever.

Kristle Saneewong

All the foreshadowing Sophie Lark did in Kingmakers definitely paid off in this book. The interwoven flashbacks in this book was super engaging. I wasn't as convinced with the relationship at the forefront of the book, but there was enough of a particular other couple to keep me interested. 

The Spy Kingmakers, #4

Reviews

Highlights