May 15, 2017
Abby lives in New York City with her single mother, and with summer winding down, she’s looking ahead to seventh grade. Then a surprise letter announcing her acceptance to the Smith School for Children turns Abby’s world upside down. After arriving at the school, she learns that it has an undercover element—training girls to be spies—and its best alumna, code named Teflon, is Abby’s own mother, who has gone missing. A lot of people want to find Teflon, including the head of the Smith School, who uses Abby as bait to lure her mother out. When that fails, Abby and her friends search for her mother themselves. In her first book for children, McMullen (the Sally Sin series) delivers a fast-moving, twist-filled addition to the kid spy genre, which builds to a nail-biter of a conclusion. Abby’s wry observations and tenacity, combined with glimpses of her vulnerability, make for entertaining reading while establishing a real and relatable character readers will hope to see again. Ages 9–13. Agent: Leigh Feldman, Leigh Feldman Literary.
June 1, 2017
Unexpectedly enrolled in a prestigious boarding school, 12-year-old Abigail suddenly finds herself embroiled in a dangerous mission for a secret spy ring."A chronic user of poor judgment," mixed-race Abigail has dark eyes and hair, "deep tan" skin, and a penchant for trouble. Facing a "complicated year," her white, single-parent mother, Jennifer, enrolls Abigail in Smith School in Connecticut, hoping her daughter will be challenged. However, Abigail soon discovers Smith clandestinely recruits and trains select students to gather intelligence for the Center, an elite national security organization. To Abigail's amazement, she also learns her mother's a Smith alum, was "the Center's top agent," has vanished trailing the infamous Ghost, and may be in "terrible danger." The Center enlists Abigail to act as bait to locate Jennifer, but the mission aborts, leaving Abigail on her own to outwit Ghost operatives. Determined to find Jennifer, Abigail cracks a key clue with help from Smith classmates (a multiethnic bunch) and emerges a wannabe spy. Abigail's first-person, present-tense narration lends nail-biting immediacy, vulnerability, and self-effacing humor to her attempts to escape from Smith, her cursory spy training, and her harrowing experiences as a hostage and escapee. A sassy, new spy series with a spunky heroine, multitalented sidekicks, and tense, rapid-fire adventure. (Mystery. 9-13)
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May 1, 2017
Gr 4-8-Twelve-year-old Abigail Hunter, occasional rule breaker, is adjusting to her new boarding school and scary headmistress, Mrs. Smith, when she stumbles into a web of intrigue centered on her own missing mother. Abby discovers that her mother has been living a secret life as a spy, and now both good guys and bad are trying to track her down. Guess who's the bait to lure Abby's mother into the open? After learning some handy self-defense moves from mean girl Veronica and being outfitted with fantastical spy technology (a self-destructing smartphone that shoots rubber bullets, for example), Abby is sent to California, where she must use all of her wits to escape the clutches of henchmen working for a mysterious villain called "The Ghost." The action continues in the Big Apple after Abby enlists the help of her friends Charlotte, Toby, and Izumi. Throughout the story, Abby's faith in her abilities, even when she is underestimated, shows strength of character and purpose. Abby's funny, over-the-top personality and the book's numerous, enjoyable secondary characters combine to create a solid foundation for further installments as Abby follows in her mother's footsteps to enroll in spy training. VERDICT Middle grade readers of Stuart Gibbs's Spy School as well as fans of boarding school adventures such as Shannon Hale's Princess Academy will appreciate this comical and exhilarating escapade.-Alyssa Annico, Youngstown State University, OH
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