The Reluctant Assassin
Eoin Colfer. Hyperion, $17.99 (352p) ISBN 978-1-4231-6162-2
Readers mourning the end of the Artemis Fowl series can take heart: this first book in the time-bending W.A.R.P. series is an all-out blast. And its stars—17-year-old Chevie Savano, a quasi-disgraced FBI agent (of sorts), and Riley, the reluctant young assassin of the title—are every bit as dynamic as Artemis and Holly. After a bungled mission, Chevie has been sent to London where she is “babysitting a metal capsule,” which she learns is one end of a wormhole to the year 1898, when Riley (and a corpse) materialize, direct from the Victorian era. Riley has been raised by Albert Garrick, a magician turned killer-for-hire; as Garrick follows Riley to the present day, intent on changing the course of history, Riley and Chevie must use every bit of their expertise to take him down. Colfer blends grisly moments of horror, sharply funny dialogue, science fiction spectacle, and characters with depth to create a story that strikes the ideal balance between escapist fun and thoughtful commentary on the ways history, both personal and global, can shape a person. Ages 10–up. Agent: Ed Victor, Ltd. (May)
Details
Reviewed on: 02/18/2013
Release date: 05/01/2013
Genre: Children's
Compact Disc - 8 pages - 9780804123358
Hardcover - 341 pages - 9781423161622
Hardcover - 320 pages - 9780141341750
Prebound-Sewn - 352 pages - 9780606352567
Other - 304 pages - 9780141341774
Paperback - 341 pages - 9781423164951