Middle Grade Fun Pick: City Spies

City Spies
Book 1
by James Ponti
Aladdin
2020
384 pages
ISBN: 9781534414914

Slick, clever and fun, City Spies is a dynamic new series opener by James Ponti.

Sara Martinez is a computer genius who can hack into any site. Usually, Sara doesn't cause any trouble. She only hacked the New York foster care database to report on the latest of her foster homes. She gets caught, and now awaits court. Enter a stranger who claims to be her lawyer.

He is an enigma and clearly (at least to Sara) NOT a lawyer. Sara agrees to work with this man in order to gain her freedom. The judge agrees for him to take Sara into custody, and he spirits her off to Scotland to meet his team of teen spies. Sara's savior is an MI6 agent who goes by the name "Mother." He has recruited kids from all over the world to train at FARM: The Foundation for Atmospheric Research and Monitoring, which is cover for  covert operations and tons of satellite feeds. Mother has a few enemies of his own (what did you expect from a career MI6 agent?)

Sara meets the team, each nicknamed for the city Mother found them in: Rio, Sydney, Paris and Kat. Each teen has skills that will be useful on any spy team. Sara, now named Brooklyn, is the team's computer genius. The team does several training drills before Mother tells them what their mission is: keep billionaire philanthropist Stavros Sinclair safe during a global youth summit. Everyone has a reason to be there, even the bad guys.

Sara is an engaging character who will resonate with readers. Fans of this book will probably follow the next books in the series. Ponti tells a smart story with enough high stakes details to engage middle grade kids.

Recommended grade 5 and up.

Spy Pick: Sealed With a Lie

Sealed With a Lie
by Kat Carlton
Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
2014
244 pages
ISBN: 9781481400534


This second installment in Kat Carlton's "spy" books is equally as fun and flirty as the first book (Two Lies and a Spy). Steamy and dreamy Evan Kincaid makes another appearance as smooth talking flirtatious Brit boy, and Kari tries to convince herself that he doesn't make her heart race and her palms sweat. Both kids are in a school that trains the next generation of spies. They learn languages, coding, martial arts and other inspirational arts like how to pick a lock and how to "case" a building. Kari and her brother Charlie stay with the agency's top brass Rebecca.

When Charlie  is kidnapped and held for ransom, Kari decides she'll do anything to save him. Evan will not let Kari go it alone and swears he's in with her to save Charlie. The kids can't tell the authorities or Rebecca for fear that the kidnappers will harm Charlie.  The bad guys hold all the cards and they order Kari to drive to Germany and await further instructions. Computer nerd Matthis rounds out the trio as they go in search of Charlie and put together a plan to thwart the kidnappers.

Evan proves to be a worthy sidekick to Kari's superhero. In fact, he keeps saving her. While she should feel thankful, she tries to convince herself that she doesn't need him. The trio of kid spies play cat and mouse with the police and the bad guys. The fun just doesn't stop; the kids use elaborate disguises, high speed chases and sleight of hand.


Kari's parents make another appearance but readers will still be mystified as to whether they are indeed Russian spies or true American patriots "pretending" to be Russian spies. There's bound to be another book where more about the parents is to be revealed, and I can't wait.

Kari Andrews is a worthy YA female protagonist; she's tough, stubborn, smart and sexy. She's the girl every girl wants to be and Evan is certainly the guy every girl dreams about. This is a smart, romantic quick read. For any fan of romantic adventure. If you enjoyed Two Lies and a Spy, you will love Sealed With a Lie.

Recommended grade 7-up. No profanity. No sex.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

This review has been posted in compliance with the FTC requirements set forth in the Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising (available at ftc.gov/os/2009/10/091005revisedendorsementguides.pdf)

Book Club Pick: The Art Forger

The Art Forger
by B.A. Sharpiro
Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill
2012
355 pages

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information about the theft

Deeply satisfying and rich in detail, The Art Forger is that rare novel that not only captivates the reader but takes the reader on a journey into another world: the world of prestigious museums, unscrupulous art dealers, unsavory, international thieves and corrupt gangs who use stolen art to fund their drug and gun purchases, and talented, yet unknown and undiscovered artists, who are driven by their desire to create works of beauty and those who will do anything to get that first big break.

It is in this world that Claire is struggling to gain her foothold. Three years earlier, she was in a relationship with celebrated artist Isaac Cullion and the art insiders remember her as the woman who brought shame and suicide to his name. Claire helped Isaac paint one of his most celebrated works--actually she painted  all of it--but Isaac takes all the credit, fame and wealth from her work. The more famous he becomes, the angrier Claire gets. She tells the museum that she painted 4D and they don't believe her claims. Shamed, Claire is unable to get any gallery to take her seriously and show or buy her work, so she ends up working for a company that sells high end copies of famous masters' works; she is an expert on Degas.

After three years in obscurity, Claire is approached by gallery owner Aiden Markel who contacts Claire and offers her a deal. He asks that she paint a copy of an important painting and she will be richly rewarded. Claire thinks of all the things that the money could buy and after pondering the deal for a few days, she agrees to help Markel.

Everyone who knows anything about art knows about the infamous break-in and robbery of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museam in Boston in 1990. Thieves broke in and ripped thirteen pieces of famous art from their frames including works by Rembrandt, Vermeer, and Degas. It is the largest unsolved art theft in history and the FBI is still on the case. None of the stolen art has ever surfaced.

Claire is excited to see the giant shipping crate that is delivered to her loft and opens it with Markel's help. In it is what Markel says is the stolen original Degas After the Bath. Markel wants Claire to paint a copy of the original which will be sold to a foreign investor and the stolen one will once again grace the walls of the Gardner Museum. Markel isn't doing anything illegal--he's returning one of the most celebrated pieces of art to its rightful owner--the museum and thousands of people worldwide will now be able to view it. Claire is speechless and excited. She has a real Degas in her loft! She gets to live with a masterpiece!

She begins to painstakingly prepare the canvas, taking an old, lesser work of art down to the canvas and mixes all her own paints. She knows Degas' techniques inside and out and she knows how to "bake" a painting to make the paint look as old as the original. When she is finished, no one should be able to tell that Degas did not paint it himself.

Markel reminds Claire that it is not a crime to make a copy of a painting. She is merely doing what she does at her real job--creating a copy of a masterpiece. Claire is paid again when the painting is finished and experts agree that it is the real masterpiece and it's sold to the buyer. Claire and Markel get entangled in a romantic relationship, and just when everything seems so right...it goes so wrong. Twists and turns will keep the reader enthralled.

Masterful storytelling and a compelling plot make The Art Forger a must read for any history or art buff and anyone who loves a great novel. This is a great book club book, are you listening, Oprah? I am constantly impressed by the talent of the writers chosen to be published by Algonquin. Algonquin is one publishing house that finds the true keepers in the world of literature. Do yourself a favor--run, don't walk, to the nearest book store and get a copy of The Art Forger--it's that good!

Highly, highly recommended grade 9-up. Some mature content. Sex, language.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

Uncommon Criminals

Uncommon Criminals (A Heist Society Novel)
by Ally Carter
Disney (Hyperion)
2011
298 pages

Vibrant, exciting, clever, quirky, and fun, Uncommon Criminals once again finds Katarina (Kat) Bishop deep in the world of white collar thievery. Her family, you see, has always been known as the best art thieves in the world. When a Rembrandt is rifled or a Picasso is pinched, Kat's family is likely to be the brains behind that nefarious business.

When an elderly widow contacts Kat with a strange request, Kat's interest is piqued. She will need to break into a super-secure building with the latest in CIA cameras and ex-CIA agents as security guards and steal the most infamous jewel in the world, the Cleopatra emerald--97 karats of sublime beauty, but a jewel with such perfect beauty comes with a cursed history. Everyone who has possessed it has died soon after.

Hale, Kat's best male friend and "almost" boyfriend and wealthy partner in crime is adamant; Kat cannot take this "job" without him and Gabrielle, Kat's beautiful and bewitching cousin. The three teens brainstorm and "case the joint"--which means--for all you novice crime fans--check out the security and day-to-day, minute-to-minute operations of the auction house where the emerald will arrive.

Next the teens are boarding a jet for a quick globe-trotting trip to the Alps to pick up a fake emerald from an estranged, and quite strange, even beyond eccentric, Uncle Charlie, the best art forger in all the world who just so happens to have a perfect fake of the Cleopatra gem. Back in New York, Uncle Charlie's twin brother, Uncle Eddie shows up and not only warns Kat that the Cleopatra is cursed, it is forbidden. None of this is enough to stop a determined teen-age art thief from stealing the rock and returning it to its home country of Egypt and making an old widow's wishes come true.

The Cleopatra emerald was part of a huge archeological find unearthed nearly a century ago by the parents of Constance Miller, the old woman who relates her story to Kat. The young assistant of the dig stole all the artifacts from the dig, selling them to the highest bidders world-wide with no concern for history or antiquity. The thief's grandson is among the world's richest men, one Oliver Keller, the owner of the world's largest antiquities firm. The Cleopatra stone rightfully belongs to the woman's parents, but battling the man in court for 12 long years,Mrs. Miller decided the only way to return the emerald to Egypt was to have a very gifted thief lift the stone for her and she enlists Kat and her friends.

Once the jewel is delivered, imagine Kat's dismay when she realizes she has been conned. The Constance Miller who met her and told her story of woe was an imposter! Now it's up to Kat to grab the emerald again. The adventure takes the teens to Lyon, France and Monte Carlo, Monoco in search of the scammer and a shadow ghost named Visily Romani, a figure from Kat's past who has a long history of masterful heists.

Sheer fun and suspense with a sweet little near-romance thrown in, Uncommon Criminals will please readers who like a well-planned caper. Both male and female readers will likely appreciate the fast-paced plot; girls will find Kat irresistible. Ally Carter's first book in the series, Heist Society, has been picked up by Hollywood and is in the capable hands of actress turned prolific director Drew Barrymore. Fans are in for a wild ride.

Highly, highly recommended for readers ages 12 and up who love adventure, mystery, globe-trotting, and a good crime caper.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I purchased this book for my library. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

Middle/High School Pick

Heist Society
Ally Carter
Hyperion Books, 2010
287 pages

Heist Society is the most fun a book can be--filled with witty dialog, smart sleight of hand, white collar crime, high dollar art theft, international globe-trotting, secret identities, fake passports, breaking into a fortess to steal an art collection, and quiet romantic moments, Carter delivers a gem of a ya novel.

When you come from a family of thieves, it's easy to follow in their footsteps. Kat Bishop and hottie guy friend Hale have to find stolen paintings for an Italian mobster before he puts a hit on Kat's art thief father. Her father is innocent, surprisingly enough, but it's up to Kat to clear his name. There's only one way to do it--find the art, steal it back and return it to the mobster.

Each section is set in another part of the world: Las Vegas, Italy, Paris, New York. The smart dialog between Kat, Hale, Uncle Eddie and cousin Gabrielle use terms like Fallen Angel, Drawbridge, Dog in a Bar--scams used by thieves to gain entry into their marks. Readers will relish the world in which Kat travels and her exciting adventures.

This is one teen caper that delivers! Not to be missed. Must read and a real page turner! The cover will captivate most readers--smart cover choice!

Highly, highly recommended for grades 7-up

FTC Required Disclaimer: I purchased this book for the library. I did not receive any monetary compensation for this review.