City Spies #1 [B1017]

2021 PB in nice clean condition. A bestselling GMA3 Summer Reading Squad Selection! "Ingeniously plotted, and a grin-inducing delight." -People. "Will keep young readers glued to the page . . So when do I get the sequel?" -Beth McMullen, author of Mrs. Smith's Spy School for Girls. In this thrilling new series that Stuart Gibbs called "a must-read," Edgar Award winner James Ponti brings together five kids from all over the world and transforms them into real-life spies. Sara Martinez is a hacker. She recently broke into the New York City foster care system to expose her foster parents as cheats and lawbreakers. However, instead of being hailed as a hero, Sara finds herself facing years in a juvenile detention facility and banned from using computers for the same stretch of time. Enter Mother, a British spy who not only gets Sara released from jail but also offers her a chance to make a home for herself within a secret MI6 agency. Operating out of a base in Scotland, the City Spies are five kids from various parts of the world. When they're not attending the local boarding school, they're honing their unique skills, such as sleight of hand, breaking and entering, observation, and explosives. All of these allow them to go places in the world of espionage where adults can't. Before she knows what she's doing, Sara is heading to Paris for an international youth summit, hacking into a rival school's computer to prevent them from winning a million euros, dangling thirty feet off the side of a building, and trying to stop a villain...all while navigating the complex dynamics of her new team. No one said saving the world was easy . . .

From recent Amazon/GoodReads reviews: "Wow! I honestly didn't know what to expect going into this book, but it completely blew me away. The action starts right away, and the characters are absolutely fantastic. It was way more of a feel-good story than I expected, and I loved every minute of it."; "I like this book a lot. The kids are all well developed, with diverse backgrounds and personalities."; "My kids LOVE this series! It's refreshing to read a series with my 3 boys where these is nothing hidden between the pages trying to influence them. This is a well written, well researched story of a group of unlikely kid- heroes traveling around the world to save the day! This whole series keeps us on the edge of our seats wanting more. My kids want to be part of the City Spies and really enjoy the stories where teens are portrayed as capable, helpful, smart and important members of a team! Please, please, please keep writing Mr. Ponti!"