Love Undercover

by Jo Edwards

True love needs no disguise.

Kaitlyn Nichols craves a little mystery and mayhem in her life. Having a secret agent for a father should do the trick, but unfortunately Dad is no 007, and danger is nowhere on the horizon.

But all that changes when Mr. Nichols brings home Blaine, a seventeen-year-old hottie who's about to enter the Witness Protection Program. Suddenly Kaitlyn's in the perilous position of protecting the cutest guy she's ever met!

When Dad enrolls Blaine in her high school, it's up to Kait to detect the girls who want him...and the guys who want him dead. Meanwhile, Kait's about to discover that there's one little thing she can't protect — her heart.

Genres: Young Adult, Romance, Chick Lit, Teen, Contemporary, Fiction, Young Adult Romance

264 pages, Paperback

First published December 26, 2006

About the author

Jo Edwards also writes under the name Johanna Edwards.

Reviews

[andie z (amzreads) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reviewed for TeensReadToo

Kaitlyn Nichols doesn't have your typical parents. Her father is a member of the FBI secret service and is often gone for long periods of time. Her mother is a sex (excuse me, "relationship") columnist, and her research frequently involves piles of thongs and condoms lying around the house. However, despite what one might think, her parents' work doesn't usually affect Kaitlyn too much. Until now.

Enter Blaine Donovan, AKA "Gordon," AKA the son of a Texas billionaire, AKA major hottie. Blaine's father is in the middle of a big business deal, and his rivals have started threatening the family. So, Kaitlyn's dad has put Blaine in the Witness Protection Program as Gordon Dennis Nichols, Kaitlyn's third-cousin who has come to live with her family and go to school with her for a few months. Now Kaitlyn is responsible for keeping Blaine safe and watching for anything suspicious. She brushes up on her spy tricks by watching Alias, The Bourne Identity, and James Bond, and she feels ready to handle anything that comes her way. But when she starts to fall for Blaine, she realizes that she's broken the number one rule of being a secret agent: she's gotten emotionally involved.

I've really enjoyed all the books in the Simon Romantic Comedies series, and LOVE UNDERCOVER is a great addition. The spy stuff doesn't overwhelm the book, but it's just enough to be fun, and Kaitlyn deals with problems that every teenager faces: liking the popular boy who doesn't know you exist, dealing with mean popular girls, and occasionally keeping secrets even from best friends. I definitely hope that Jo Edwards contributes more books to the Romantic Comedies series – and soon!

[Skyler Thomas · Rating 2 out of 5]

Goofy as hell

[Geli · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book to be very cute. Its very simple but still fun. the whole spy part of the book made it more interesting. I love the characters and the story line. This is a fun quick read that should be part of your collection.

[J.B. · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an entertaning, fast-paced book, GREAT BOOK!.

[Tiffany · Rating 2 out of 5]

This had the potential of being a very cute story but was weighed down by other factors I didn't care for. Her mother is a sex columnist which causes many unneccessary sexual topics. There was also more swearing then normal in these Simon Romantic comedies. I also don't care for stories where a couple meets a crush develops but the story lacks information of them getting to know each other well. These two seemed to know each other pretty well but there was the lack of that part of the story within the story.

[Michelle · Rating 1 out of 5]

I did not get past the first chapter or two in this book. It begins by discussing the teenager's parents' careers. The dad is an FBI agent, and that's fine. But the mother just became the "sex columnist" for a newspaper, and the teenager goes on about all of the embarrassing topics her mother is writing about. Then the book goes on about how all teenagers do is talk about sex.

Obviously, I was not interested. I do not recommend this book.

[Elaina · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is quite similar to the other books in the Simon Romantic Comedies line, and I have much of the same critiques. This one is fairly cheesy and the pacing did not feel natural. There were odd choices in which scenes were fleshed out and which were just glossed over. It mostly fell flat.

[Lindsay · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was pretty cute but very juvenile. Things were forced, awkward or just weird in places.

[Culture-Vulture · Rating 5 out of 5]

It reads a bit dated in 2021, but even so, it's a cute story for young teens. I give it 5 Stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ for the humour, and the way the teens act like actual teens instead of mini adults.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very cute YA book. I did a double take at some of the references (MySpace) and then looked at the publication date and it made sense. The story was fun and the characters were adorable.

[Kes · Rating 3 out of 5]

re-read before donating. not bad for what it is

[Micre · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is absolutely amazing

[°☆.。.:*・Nanna°☆.。.:*・ · Rating 3 out of 5]

The actual rating is 3.5 stars.


The beginning was intriguing how the author introduced the book. It was really entertaining, especially with the suspense combined with a little romance. Compared to the other mundane Simon Pulse books I have read, where they use the same general format for love, this one was different. It actually had some drama going on outside of the romance happening in the story.

It gets a little slow until, one day, Kaitlyn thinks that her dad has come home from doing his usual boring desk job, until all of a sudden he takes in Blaine, this hot stranger. Turns out that her dad's new assignment is to keep Blaine (aka the hot guy, also temporarily known as Gordon [his undercover name]). For his transfers to her school, Kaitlyn must watch out and protect Blaine from any suspecting people that wish to harm him.

All is well, with getting Blaine adjusted to school life. Blaine and Kaitlyn are getting along great and are even becoming good friends, that is until Amber, Kaitlyn's sworn enemy (since Amber and her friends laced her best friend, Morgan's Gatorade with Ex-Lax, before tryouts for forward), swoops in. Amber finds out that "Gordon" is going to be attending school, and she doesn't waste time to get the hot new guy by her side.

Blaine may be a nice guy who happens to be hot and rich, but I cannot believe how blind he is to Amber's ways. You would think that he would think that there was a reason that Amber is her mortal enemy, but no he thinks that "Amber is a really sweet girl" when she is actually a she devil in disguise. I just don't get how he just believes Amber and then doubted Kaitlyn, and doesn't even hear her out. Wish he saw Amber when she showed her true colors, especially when she revealed all the things hat she did; because I really hate that chick, especially when she said, "You know something? I've never broken up a family before. Friendships, yes, boyfriends and girlfriends, yes. But a family? That's a new one. Should be fun." Made me want to slap her.

It was interesting when the car was following them. It was exciting and I liked the father-daughter moment Kaitlyn has with her dad. It was nice having them bond over their cautious actions against danger. It also got kind of exciting when Mr. Dimitri takes Blaine and Kaitlyn tries to save him.

Even though the ending after the incident is kind of boring and could have been better the way it was wrapped up, I liked that there was romance wrapped with suspense. It was also made the book interesting that there were people against the main character. Even though I hated them, they added more drama to the book. The only part that I wish happened was for Amber to exposed to Blaine as the total b*tch that she truely is.

[Jennifer Wardrip · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reviewed by Andie Z. for TeensReadToo.com

Kaitlyn Nichols doesn't have your typical parents. Her father is a member of the FBI secret service and is often gone for long periods of time. Her mother is a sex (excuse me, "relationship") columnist, and her research frequently involves piles of thongs and condoms lying around the house. However, despite what one might think, her parents' work doesn't usually affect Kaitlyn too much. Until now.

Enter Blaine Donovan, AKA "Gordon," AKA the son of a Texas billionaire, AKA major hottie. Blaine's father is in the middle of a big business deal, and his rivals have started threatening the family. So, Kaitlyn's dad has put Blaine in the Witness Protection Program as Gordon Dennis Nichols, Kaitlyn's third-cousin who has come to live with her family and go to school with her for a few months.

Now Kaitlyn is responsible for keeping Blaine safe and watching out for anything suspicious. She brushes up on her spy tricks by watching Alias, The Bourne Identity, and James Bond, and she feels ready to handle anything that comes her way. But when she starts to fall for Blaine, she realizes that she's broken the number one rule of being a secret agent: she's gotten emotionally involved.

I've really enjoyed all the books in the Simon Romantic Comedies series, and LOVE UNDERCOVER is a great addition. The spy stuff doesn't overwhelm the book, but it's just enough to be fun, and Kaitlyn deals with problems that every teenager faces: liking the popular boy who doesn't know you exist, dealing with mean popular girls, and occasionally keeping secrets, even from best friends. I definitely hope that Jo Edwards contributes more books to the Romantic Comedies series -- and soon!

[Vivian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kaitlyn has a father who works as a secret agent. Sounds cool right? Actually, no. It's not as exciting as it seems. Usually, he's just filing papers or doing some kind of office work. BORINNG.. But then one day, he unexpectedly brings home Blaine, a witness in need of a safe house to stay in until he is no longer in danger. Kaitlyn's dad enrolls him in her high school with a fake identity as Kaitlyn's cousin, giving her the duty of protecting him as well as reporting any suspicious contact. But then as Kaitlyn and Blaine get to know each other, Kaitlyn becomes emotionally attached to him, but..how can she love him when he's suppose to be her cousin?

A humorous and cute read, but if my experiences with Simon's romantic comedies stay true, it will not be very memorable. It's probably not the best out of the stack either but it's certainly a page turner. I finished this in just two days, which is fast for my usually slow as a turtle reading pace :P . The plot is simple and not cliche. The characters are quirky but likable, especially Kaitlyn. Blaine is adorable but oftentimes is too polite to be realistic. Also, some of his dialogue comes off as a little fake. Idunoo.. doesn't seem to me like a teenage boy would shout "OH No!" after he gets caught awkwardly dancing along to a song on his ipod. So like I mentioned before, it's no Nicholas Sparks, but the romance is there and it's a really fun and cute read to pass time.

[Nina Zheng · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like this book because it is really interesting and humorous. It is pretty easy to read and understand so it really is fun to read when you are bored and would like something fun to do. This book makes you crave for more. So much that you hate it when it ends and makes you wish that it was a series instead of one book. This book is a little different than what I usually read in that it doesn't include the supernatural but it is similar in that it includes romance and the surreal although it can happen just that I don't know anyone that it can happen to since it includes things that are not part of my life. Not that it's bad in anyway since it does make the story more interesting.
The main character in this story is Kaitlin. In the beginning of the book, she introduces her mom and then goes to her friend, Morgan's house for a sleepover where she thinks about the things her mom said. However, something surprising happens and she has to go home where she finds a stranger in her house. Thinking that he might be a robber, she gets ready to defend herself. Unexpectedly, the stranger was a major "hottie" and he is going to be living with her for the time being due to certain "circumstances".

[Lisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

I realized that I really like reading these books when I'm sick because they require absolutely no thought and are silly and fun. This book was no exception but it could have been better. Here's the summary:

Kaitlyn Nichols is a normal girl - gets good grades, likes to write, has a crush on the hottest guy in school. That changes when her normally boring secret agent dad brings home Blaine, a seventeen-year-old hottie who's entering the Witness Protection Program and is now playing the part of her 'cousin'. Suddenly Kaitlyn's faced with keeping a HUGE secret from her friend, lying to everyone about her new cousin and dealing with keeping her own feelings undercover.

This sounded so cute! It had all the elements I love in books: love (forbidden!), mystery, fun, cheesiness but it ended up falling flat. I liked Kaitlyn but no one else. Her close relationship with her parents seemed forced, her best friend came and went (literally, she was barely in the book), even her developing relationship with Blaine was weak. Blaine is supposed to be this amazing guy who is in love with Kaitlyn but he ends up spending most of his time with Amber, Kaitlyn's nemesis and the meanest girl in school. This makes Blaine come off as a jerk and his relationship with Kaitlyn seem fake.

[Mikaela · Rating 4 out of 5]

this book was really cute, im normally not one for romance books but it involved spies and comedy. i highly reccomend this book to anyone interested in a good love story, its a pretty quick read too, i finished it in like a day or less. The main character Kaitlyn's dad is part of the FBI and her mom is a Journalist in the local newspaper, one day she comes home from a sleepover and finds a stranger in her house his name is Blaine and his father is a Billionare. Kaitlin's dad is part of the witness protection program and he voulunteered their home to Blaine while things get sorted out in his home state Texas. obviously Kaitlyn developes a crush on Blaine and she has to hide that because according to the FBI he is currently Gordon Nichols a long lost cousin. of course things go wrong and in the end..... well i'll let you figure that out on your own ;-)

[Rebecca · Rating 2 out of 5]

I expected to like this book a bit more then I did. It was pretty fast paced and it is a quick read. Some parts were funny (Kaitlyn "studying" how to be a spy by watching Alias and The Jason Bourne films) but it had too many pop culture references that (even though I was a teenager when this book was released) still took me out of the story. they watched a lot of Laguna Beach and update Myspace. Many of the characters were just one dimensional villains and I wished we could actually see Kaitlyn and Blaine falling for each other. All you know is that he is cute and nice(although he just seems to be a bad judge of character).

If you want to read a book where the bad girl is just bad (no reason, just a terrible person) and the good girls are a bit awkward (and have a lot of embarrassing moments) but cute then I would recommend this book. Good for a day at the beach.

[Taylor Fenner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kaitlyn Nichols is an average 16-year-old except for one thing; her father is an undercover FBI agent. Sadly his job isn't as glamorous as it sounds; until the day he brings home Blaine Donovan.

Blaine is the 17-year-old son of a Texas oil tycoon, whose life is in danger. He comes to stay with Kaitlyn's family as he hides out from the hit men who are after his family.

Now Kaitlyn must protect Blaine while juggling high school, friends, and mean girls all while keeping Blaine's identity a secret. But how will things play out when Kaitlyn finds herself falling in love with the guy she's supposed to be protecting?

'Love Undercover' is a cute and witty story about falling in love when you least expect it. It will make you laugh and you'll finish it with a smile on your face. If you're looking for a happy, uncomplicated plot this is the book for you!

[adA · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is like those YA books that are unrealistic and ruins the mind yet adds to the inagination of teenagers...but i like it anyway! It's has something to do with detectives but that was reallly just a coincidence. It's about rich boy name Blaine and he is endanger becasue he's rich and someone is threatening his family so he has to hide his identity for a while in a "undercover" place until teh police can find the people who are after Blaine and his family. it turns outthat he will live temporarily in this investigator's home so he would stay protected. there he meets teh investigator's daugter, Kaitlyn, adn eventually falls in love with her...after a series of conflicts that is! its a naiive and cute story...=)

[Kaitlyn Amira · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book when I was in the hospital for 3 months undergoing tests. I had absolutely nothing to do and this book fulfilled its uprpose: it cured my boredom. However, that's pretty much all it did. The writing style was upbeat, humorous and fun, the characters were quirky and funny, if a little plain, but overall it was an OK book. I figured out the ending way, way before it actually came, but what can you do? I'd recommend this book to anyoen suffering from accute boredom and in need of a light read, one in which you don't really have to think.

[Yushi Wang · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kaitlyn's life changes when she takes on the responsibility of protecting Blaine because of the Witness Protection Program. Now she has to be aware of everyone around her and be on the lookout for suspicious people who might want Blaine dead.

I enjoyed reading this novel because it had an unique plot. The journey that Kaitlyn went through was both adventurous and comical. It was interesting to read about what happens.

[Kate H · Rating 4 out of 5]

Simon Pulse Romantic Comedies are always a fun read. These books are not necessarily the best written novels but the stories are always fun and you know you will get a happy ending. I think some adult romances could take a note from these books b/c they are characterized well which is much of the battle in writing any novel since you want your characters, for the most part, to be endearing and relatable.

[Angela · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute story. Kaitlyn made me laugh out loud with her spy research. And her interaction with her best friend was cute. The love story was a bit lacking and I wasn't all that keen on decisions Kaitlyn's love interest Blaine made. I think what saved me from not liking this novel was how it made me giggle from time to time. Overall, it was a decent read, but not my favorite of the romantic comedies.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

an original teen romcom while there is not a huge amount of character development with many characters being quite 2-dimensional the love story is cute and the mystery may intrigue people. despite this as a light trashy read i find this one quite enjoyable... despite finding the male lead kind of oblivious he is still a sweet guy and our leading lady does have a interesting voice.

[Alisha · Rating 1 out of 5]

I read this because I was forced by my friend who said this was the best book she read in high school. Well guess what for me this was the worst book I've read I suppose if I was 10 maybe I would of had liked it but this to me is a children's book and the story and characters were completely childish to me, I'm sorry.

[Saleema Parker · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book a lot but before I started reading this I thought that it wasn't going to be all that good. I was wrong it was very interesting and had me laughing I thought that this is a cute love story.

[Jinxiu · Rating 3 out of 5]

Love, adventure and humor all assemble into this story. A nice read.

Due to the witness protection program (wpp) Kaitlyn, the main girl has to protect Blaine, who is in danger of being killed. However can protecting Blaine, spark something more out of them?

[Mirela · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was a lovely story the characters were personable. The spy twist was an awesome lead and I felt that I couldnt put the book down. The story was a fast read, with simple sentences and small sentence structure changes.