Alex Rider fans will eagerly gobble up this adventure featuring an ordinary boy attempting to save the world with zero skills.
Twelve-year-old Lincoln Baker is a troublemaker expelled after his latest prank imposes legal consequences on his school and family. These are problems that the top-secret special ops team, Pandora, can make disappear--if Linc can successfully impersonate their top junior agent, Benjamin Green, who's gone missing. The mission: travel to Paris to rescue Jacques Mégére, who's been taken captive by a criminal organization for hiding an evil Mona Lisa that can create mass hypnosis. Linc may be a dead ringer for Benjamin Green, but he doesn't have a black belt in karate and can't run five miles at Olympic speed. His cover is blown quickly--by both tech-genius Henry (who also appears to be Benjamin Green's biggest fan) and Jacques's feisty daughter, Françoise. Run-ins and switch-ups with the real Benjamin Green keep readers turning the pages, while the codes and ciphers keep them guessing.
F.T. Bradley's hero is driven by great intentions, remains hilariously mischievous and discovers a great deal about himself during this exciting undercover mission. The ending hints at more adventures to come. This debut novel will be welcomed by devotees of Eoin Colfer's Artemis Fowl series and M.E. Castle's Popular Clone. --Adam Silvera, reviewer and former bookseller