Super Secret Super Spies: Mystery of the All-Seeing Eye

May 1, 2021
Brilliant kids use their combined brain power to creatively solve obstacles and save the world. Life has taught tech genius Maddie Robinson to be creative and resourceful. When her parents disappeared on a polar research trip, Maddie moved into a one-bedroom apartment with her older married cousin. They don't have a lot, but they make do. So Maddie is gobsmacked when her abilities attract the attention of a mysterious, strangely nondescript man who opens the door to a hidden world run by the Illuminati, a benevolent secret society whose members have had a hand in changing history. She is whisked off to an international summer camp on a tropical island where gifted young people from around the globe are given special training to follow in the footsteps of illustrious Illuminati. Maddie and her new best friends, Caleb and Lexi, are challenged along with the others to combine their skills to solve increasingly dangerous problems. Futuristic tech gadgets give a science-fiction touch to this adventure novel. While Maddie's resourcefulness and the story's focus on a girl engaging in STEM problem-solving are compelling and the nonstop action will appeal to reluctant readers, those seeking emotional depth and well-rounded character development will be disappointed. Maddie and most other main characters are assumed White; Caleb is brown-skinned. A fast-paced STEM twist on the chosen one trope. (Mystery. 8-12)

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May 1, 2021
Grades 3-6 Six- or seven-year-olds reading well above grade level (but too young for Dan Brown) are the likeliest audience for this super simple "kids save the world" chapter book. Preteen inventor Maddie Robinson, whose scientists parents disappeared two years ago, jumps at a mysterious offer to join other gifted children at a supposed summer camp. Said "camp" turns out to be a training facility for the Illuminati--which is recruiting children to become the world's "historymakers." Hardly has Maddie joined forces with several fellow trainees endowed with complementary talents, when the Statue of Liberty disappears, and she finds herself leading a rescue mission that turns into a dustup with a megalomaniac eager (of course) to explain all his evil plans. Mason chucks in hidden messages to decode, high-tech gadgetry, secret facilities in prominent landmarks, and a climactic surprise for readers who think they've everything sorted out. That last item is the only real twist in the plot, but the characters are typecast without being stereotyped and do make an appealing bunch left set and ready for future exploits.

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