**this review contains small spoilers**
The idea behind this book intrigued me because it sounded similar to another series I have enjoyed for years, Alex Rider. A teen forced into helping an organization – this time the non-governmental Secret Service known as The Secrecy. The story starts off in the middle of things, leaving me just as confused as the main character, Adam. I enjoyed not fully understanding what was going on – too much information in the beginning wouldn’t have been as interesting.
When we get further along into the story, the less I like The Secrecy (the agency, not the book!), which is saying something considering they’ve taken to abducting people to be agents and forcing them to work for them or else. One of the cruelest things they do is set up fake funerals for Adam and Emma (his partner for the first mission, and roommate). Linda, the woman from The Secrecy they get a lot of information from, tells them it’s a “final goodbye, of sorts.” They did not need to do that to these young kids! It was an upsetting read, though I wish we would have seen more of Adam’s fake funeral than Emma’s.
After the funerals, Adam and Emma get their first mission, which seems impossible. They’re told that in the last 2 months over 4,000 people have gone missing in Mexico and they have to figure out what is going on. 4,000!
There were some high intensity scenes in the middle of the book that kept me on my toes. During one of these longer scenes, Adam admits to himself that he cares more for Emma than the other two helping to free the kidnapped victims, Levi and Duffy. I became a little suspicious of Duffy after they succeed in freeing the victims. She goes with Adam and Emma to the police, but it stood out to me that she wanted to keep parts of what happened a secret, so much so that I began to believe she must have been in on it.
I had a few questions throughout the book. The first was some of Adam’s knowledge of things. How does he know which weapons are military grade and which ones aren’t? How does he know so much about parachuting, even though he’s only done it once?
And sometimes the descriptions given feel a little too over-dramatic. Things move very quickly in first half. I would have liked for there to be more downtime between action to get the idea of how desperate the characters feel after being kidnapped and forced into this life-or-death situation. As with another book of Butler’s that I read, the death scenes are very sudden and easy to miss if you aren’t reading closely.
I thought the story was finishing up after they escape the first camp, and then I realized there was still over 100 pages left! There are a lot of twists and false endings, but it kept adding more depth that I really enjoyed. In the end, I was amazed (and thankful) both Adam and Emma survived the explosion at the police station.
I know there are more books in this series, and I am excited to read them!
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See full series- Kindle Price:$17.97By placing your order, you're purchasing a license to the content and you agree to the Kindle Store Terms of Use.
Shop this series
There are 4 books in this series.
Kindle Price:
$17.97
By placing your order, you're purchasing a license to the content and you agree to the Kindle Store Terms of Use.
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- Reviewed in the United States on July 23, 2022
