United We Spy (Gallagher Girls) by Ally Carter
| United We Spy (Gallagher Girls) by Ally Carter | |
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| Category: Teens | |
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Reviewer: Robert James
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| Summary: My book of the year so far, this is an outstanding conclusion to one of the very best teen series of recent years. | |
| Buy? Yes | Borrow? Yes |
| Pages: 304 | Date: September 2013 |
| Publisher: Orchard Books | |
| External links: Author's website | |
| ISBN: 978-1408314753 | |
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Warning: Spoilers for the previous five Gallagher Girls books, so if you haven't read them, don't read this review! Start now, with book one.
The Circle of Cavan are still on the hunt for Cammie Morgan. Their other plans, though, might be even more terrible than their hunt for the young spy. Can Cammie and her friends save themselves, and take down the Circle before they carry out their deadly mission?
Up until yesterday I hadn't read anything that's really retained my interest for weeks now (and to be fair, there's been some great books I've really enjoyed, but I've still been finding it hard to motivate myself to pick them up.) Thankfully, that all changed when I got my hands on the final Gallagher Girls book, which was one of my most anticipated reads of 2013.
Thankfully it didn't disappoint - in addition to being one of my most anticipated reads of the year, it's almost certainly the best so far. The Gallagher Girls books, along with the Gone by Michael Grant series have been one of the few longer teen series of the last 5 years or so that have managed to keep my interest for their entire run. This is mainly due to the superb characterisation and the brilliant relationships, which make them feel completely believable in their world. The key relationships here - despite the great romance between Cammie and love interest Zach - are definitely the friendship and loyalty between the 'core four' of Cammie, Liz, Bex and Macey, but the sisterhood between all of the students and staff at the school are also hugely important.
As for the plot? It's fast-paced and furious - the amount of action packed into around 300 pages is truly fantastic. It's also incredibly emotional, partly because the stakes are so high that I wasn't sure who would survive until the end. (I found out first hand that it's possible to cry with your heart in your mouth, and it's not a great look.) On that note, it's very unpredictable, with a couple of twists that took me completely by surprise. It ties up as much as possible from the previous books and gives us a superb conclusion which was well worth the long wait since book five. (Okay, it's only been about a year since I read book five, but it felt longer!)
If it's not clear enough by now, huge recommendations both for the book and for the series.
For more spying, with slightly more of an emphasis on romance, don't miss Spy Society by Robin Benway. Of course, I'm assuming you've already read all of Ally Carter's other books - if you haven't tried the Heist Society series that should be your first port of call!
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You can read more book reviews or buy United We Spy (Gallagher Girls) by Ally Carter at Amazon.co.uk Amazon currently charges £2.99 for standard delivery for orders under £20, over which delivery is free.
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