“Cammie Morgan is a student at the Gallagher Academy for Exceptional Young Women, a fairly typical all-girls school—that is, if every school taught advanced martial arts in PE and the latest in chemical warfare in science, and students received extra credit for breaking CIA codes in computer class.  The Gallagher Academy might claim to be a school for geniuses but it’s really a school for spies. 

Even though Cammie is fluent in fourteen languages and capable of killing a man in seven different ways, she has no idea what to do when she meets an ordinary boy who thinks she’s an ordinary girl.  Sure, she can tap his phone, hack into his computer, or track him through town with the skill of a real “pavement artist”—but can she maneuver a relationship with someone who can never know the truth about her? 

Cammie Morgan may be an elite spy-in-training, but in her sophomore year, she’s on her most dangerous mission—falling in love.” ~ Goodreads description

Title: I’d Tell You I Love You, But Then I’d Have to Kill You

Author: Ally Carter

Series: Book #1 in the Gallagher Girl Series

Publisher: Disney-Hyperion

ISBN: 9781423100034

Book courtesy of NetGalley

To celebrate Ally Carter’s fifth Gallagher Girls book, Out of Sight, Out of Time being released on March 13, 2012, I’ve decided to go back to the book where it all began: I’d Tell You I Love You, But Then I’d Have to Kill You.

I’d Tell You I Love You, But Then I’d Have to Kill You was the first YA book I ever read, and it’s been a favorite of mine ever since. Here, we’re introduced to Cammie (codenamed Chameleon because of her skill to be “invisible” and a great pavement artist) and her friends Bex (the athletic, “natural-born spy” who is the first non-American citizen to be accepted into the Gallagher Academy) and Liz (the quirky, loveable, genius from Alabama). The trio also makes friends with Gallagher Academy newcomer Macy, the spoiled, rebellious daughter of Senator McHenry.

In Cammie’s world, her school campus has a sword (that was used to kill the first guy who tried to kill Abraham Lincoln) that has enough electricity to light your hair on fire, should you try to grab it. Her school has paper that dissolves when you put it in your mouth. Covert Operations are a school class.

But what happens when Cammie, the girl no one sees, is seen by Josh while she’s out on a Covert Operations assignment? Josh, a normal boy who has no idea that she’s a spy?

“I mean, all I’ve heard for the last three years has been Don’t hesitate, but be patient. Be logical—trust your instincts. Follow protocol—improvise. Never let your guard down—always look at ease.” Cammie tells us in chapter ten, “So, see, if you give a bunch of teenage girls those kinds of messages, then, yeah, eventually things are going to get interesting.”

Yes, things do get interesting. Cammie trespasses into Josh’s house, goes through his trash, sneaks off school grounds to see him, and a tracking device is put in his shoe.

“I searched my mind for something—anything—to say, but kept coming up with things like “So, how ‘bout those new satellite-controlled detonators with the twelve-mile range?” Or, “Have you read the new translation of Art of War? Because I prefer it in the original dialect…”” Cammie says about talking to Josh in chapter fifteen.

What will happen to Cammie and Josh’s relationship? Read this book to find out!

   Cynical Cindy Says:

   I don’t get why Cammie had to tell Josh a bunch of lies about her and her family, couldn’t she just have told the truth, excluding the spy stuff? *Spoiler Alert* Josh hardly makes an appearance in the rest of the series. New questions entered in GG2 that are still unanswered (so far). This makes me wish that Carter had started asking these questions sooner and giving answers sooner.

   All in all, it’s still a great book that I highly recommend.

This book will not only leave you smiling, but it will also have you reaching for the next book in the series.

4 out of 5 teacups.

Extras:

Ally Carter’s website

Ally Carter’s Tumblr

Gallagher Girl Websites: Read the first chapter or two of Gallagher Girl books here and read short stories about the Gallagher Girls on here