Friday, January 10, 2014

THE RELUCTANT ASSASSIN (W.A.R.P.: Book 1)

The story: Orphaned Riley is apprenticed to a murderer in 1890s London; Chevie just wants to get old enough to join the FBI in the 21st century--but a wormhole, planted in London courtesy of WARP (Witness Anonymous Relocation Program) brings the teens together on a collision course that looks likely to leave both of them dead...courtesy of Riley's master, the killer Albert Garrick. Only if Riley can use his guttersnipe street smarts, and Chevie can employ every skill her training with the Bureau has ever given her, can the two hope to escape the illusionist-turned-assassin, and get his reluctant apprentice out of the business altogether.

June Cleaver's ratings: Language PG; Nudity G; Sexual Content G; Substance Abuse PG; Violence R; GLBT content G; Magic & the occult G; Adult Themes PG-13 (kids being forced to kill); Overall rating: PG-13.

Liz's comments: Colfer's ARTEMIS FOWL series is arguably for middle-grade readers, but with Book 1 in his new series, he moves firmly into the territory of YA books. The first few chapters feature one killing after another: fairly standard fare for adult thrillers, but pretty darn bloody for middle school. Possibly the publishers feel that MS kids play enough Grand Theft Auto or first-person shooter games that their parents won't care about an on-page killing spree...but I found it off-putting. It wasn't until the killing stopped that the book finally engaged me. It's a long-running joke in Boy Book Land that boys won't be interested in anything that doesn't have something blow up by the end of Chapter One, and judged by that standard, this is a sure-fire hit.
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