Review Detail

The last book ended with Ben and the CIA realizing that his parents’ identities had been compromised and that they need protection. I absolutely loved his parents finding out the truth about the “science academy" he’s been part of for the last 18 months. His mom was angry that her child was in danger without her knowledge or permission, and his dad thinks the whole thing is extremely cool and wants to brag to his snooty neighbors. That was quite believable even with Gibb’s humorous and quirky style of writing.
The action picks up quickly when someone fires a missile at the CIA room they were originally supposed to be in. Footage shows it to be Erica Hale. Ben is confused by her actions but his faith in her innocence never wavers. Her actions put the whole group’s friendship to the test. They have had other classmates defect and join evil organizations before, so some think Erica is the latest to turn while Ben and Mike are certain that Erica is absolutely not a traitor.
Once again Ben, the Hales, and a few trusted friends are left dodging the authorities and uncovering the latest group, the Croatoans’, nefarious plans before the leaders of America are killed. This book is a little different because Ben is faced with the betrayal of a friend. At first, it was likely the friend was looking out for his best interest. Yet, once he proved the Croatoans were real and there was a plot his friend still went against him. This was a highly engaging portion of the plot and one I didn’t see coming as the friends picked sides. I had wondered how the evolving love triangle that Ben found himself in the last two books would resolve and I guess this situation answered that.
What Left Me Wanting More: The character, Agent Nora Taco’s name stuck out like a sore thumb to me. Yes, there were many jokes that could be made from it. It made her look suspicious at times, but it felt so obvious as a joke that it was a bit distracting to my enjoyment of the plot.
Final Verdict: This plot has them chasing down famous locations from George Washington’s time and uncovering encrypted messages from the past. It felt like the Charlie Thorne series that Stuart Gibbs also writes. I love the Charlie Thorne series but the similarity made this book feel a bit like an outlier in the Spy School series, especially when the SPYDER arc is finished and they are trying to establish a new organization to keep it going. In the end, Murray Hill is once again a part of the plot and set up as their focus for the 9th book.