Point Blank by Anthony Horowitz
Horowitz, Anthony. 2006. Point Blank. New York, NY: Penguin Young Readers Group. ISBN-13: 9780142406120.
Alex Rider, spy extraordinaire. Not many 14-year-old boys can claim that title. A promise of secrecy concerning his last mission is a little hard to take, yet which school kids would he tell? Finding school a little boring after his last assignment, Alex creates his own flurry of excitement involving a drug dealer, a houseboat, and a crane. Whisked away from the aftermath by M16, Alex finds himself being solicited for another mission - find out what's going on at Point Blanc - a private school for uber rich delinquent boys. Strange things are taking place and with Alex working on the inside, M16 hopes to find out exactly what sort of wrongdoing Dr. Grief is up to. With action comparable to that of superheroes and comic books, some of Alex's feats are a stretch of the imagination, but if you can suspend belief for even a moment you will find yourself on a whirlwind of action and quick-thinking. The age-old showdown of good and evil guarantees an enthralling plot and lots of fans.
"Fasten your seat belts for the second installment in Anthony Horowitz' spy-thriller series starring 14-year-old British schoolboy and ace agent from M16, Alex Rider. James Bond has nothing on this crafty kid, and it's lucky Alex is on the job. It seems that mad scientists still infest the planet and still want to rule the world. When readers first met Alex in Stormbreaker (2001), M16 had sent him to spy school. This time they send him to an exclusive school for the recalcitrant sons of the super-rich. Disguised as the son of a British supermarket magnate, Alex learns that something extraordinarily odd is going on at the school. Yes indeed, the school's owner, the creepy South African apartheid supporter Dr. Grief, intends to take over the world by controlling his wealthy students. But who are his students? Is Dr. Grief using brainwashing, fear, or something more sinister on the boys? Can Alex escape from the fortress-like school before that sinister something happens to him? Horowitz devises a string of miraculous circumstances that keeps Alex alive and spying throughout. Spy thrillers appear too seldom in YA literature. With plenty of cliffhanger action, the Alex Rider adventures might help get young readers hooked. The unabashed fantasy imitates the James bond movies more closely than the books, but it's all plenty of fun."
Kirkus Reviews; February 15, 2002.
"There are times when a grade-B adventure is just the ticket for a bored teenager--especially if it offers plenty of slam-bang action, spying, and high-tech gadgets. Point Blank, the second in the Alex Rider Adventure series, is a nonstop thriller of just that sort, which features a 14-year-old orphan who is a reluctant spy for the British government. Trained by his uncle, a topnotch spy who died with his boots on, Alex is a bright, tough, daredevil athlete. No wonder M16 wants him to investigate a mysterious Swiss school dedicated to "reforming" delinquent sons of wealthy industrialists and important officials. Using a false identity, Alex enters the school and soon finds himself surrounded by curiously docile students, teachers who support the fascism, and a renegade doctor interested in cloning. With secret rooms, sullen sentries, mysterious disappearances, and wild rides galore, this is a great choice for reluctant readers."
--Jean Franklin
Booklist; April 01, 2002.
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