When an investigation into a series of mysterious deaths leads agents to an elite prep school for rebellious kids, MI6 assigns Alex Rider to the case. Before he knows it, Alex is hanging out with the sons of the rich and powerful, and something feels wrong. These former juvenile delinquents have turned well-behaved, studious-and identical-overnight. It’s up to Alex to find out who is masterminding this nefarious plot, before they find him.

KLIATT

This is the next Alex Rider adventure after Stormbreaker (reviewed in KLIATT in May 2001), which has been identified as a sure bet to interest young adolescents, especially males. The story begins dramatically, but Alex doesn’t appear until chapter two, so for highly impatient readers, this might be a slight problem. After that, however, it’s all Alex, all action, all the time. He outmaneuvers teenage bullies and South African racists left over from the apartheid days. British Intelligence places him in the worst school situation ever, isolated in the Alps above Grenoble, where he is threatened by a fate worse than death (well, death after the students in biology class dissect him while he is still alive, without anesthetic). Like James Bond, he is given some useful gadgets that save him, and like James Bond, Alex has super-human stamina, courage, wit and intelligence. It’s fun stuff for those who like thrilling reading. Category: Hardcover Fiction. KLIATT Codes: J—Recommended for junior high school students. 2001, Penguin Putnam, Philomel, 215p., $16.99. Ages 13 to 15. Reviewer: Claire Rosser; KLIATT SOURCE: KLIATT, March 2002 (Vol. 36, No. 2)

Publish Date : 2006-02-16T00:00:01Z