Title: Model Spy

Series: The Specialists

Author: Shannon Greenland

Publisher: Speak

ISBN: 0142408492

I received this title from the publisher via NetGalley.

Teen genius Kelly James is in a lot of hot water. A whiz with computers, she agreed to help her college RA, David, uncover some top-secret information. After all, she doesn’t have many friends and David has always been nice to her. It doesn’t hurt that he’s supercute and irresistible, too. All she has to do is hack into the government’s main computer system. But a few hours later, her whole life changes. She is caught and taken in for questioning, only this isn’t your run-of-the-mill arrest. Rather than serve a juvenile detention sentence, she accepts the option to change her name and enlist in a secret government spy agency that trains teen agents to go undercover. As if that wasn’t overwhelming enough, she discovers that David works for this agency as well! And before she even begins to understand what is going on, she’s sent on her first mission as an undercover model. And who better to partner with than David himself!

Welcome to my spot on the virtual book tour for Shannon Greenland’s Model Spy!

Kelly James seems like your average sixteen year old teen; she’s self-conscious about her thick glasses and klutziness, and thinks her brain is always 3 gigabytes behind where it should be. Or, she would be your average teen, if she didn’t have 191 IQ points and the amazing ability of hacking, an amazing ability that gets her arrested for “threatening homeland security and suspected terrorism.” But instead of serving a juvenile detention sentence, she gets recruited to join a secret government spy agency called The Specialists. But soon, Kelly’s needed on an important mission that will be more challenging then she could have expected. Can she successfully complete the mission?

 I really love how Kelly was into technology and was the hacker in the group, as in a lot of espionage stories I read, the girl is hardly ever the hacker. The grifter? Yes. The mastermind? Sometimes. But I loved how Shannon let us see this brilliant, geeky hacker who happened to be a girl. I adored how Kelly thought in computer code and was working on inventions; she was a unique character that was interesting to read about.

 I also enjoyed how Kelly’s character grew throughout the book. It was fun watching her gain confidence, and as a system kid who was bounced between so many families, it was nice to see her make her own family among the other Specialist team members. I also enjoyed the scenes where Kelly talked to someone who understood her hacking, the resident computer specialist.

 For a book filled with fun characters and plenty of espionage (plus some computer code), read Model Spy today!

Favorite Quote

 “I really wanted to stick my hand in the air and say TL, sir, I’m the geeky computer person. May I please be excused from physical training? I have code to key.”

 You can read my interview with Shannon here.

Find out more about Shannon and The Specialists series on her website, Twitter, Facebook, and Goodreads.

Shannon’s Bio

“Shannon Greenland dreaded reading and writing as a kid. Ironic, as she’s now a successful award-winning author. Her 5-book series for young adults, The Specialists, as well as her other novels, received such honors as National Booksellers Best, Daphne du Maurier and Romantic Times recognition, National Readers Choice, CAPA nominee, Aspen Gold Readers Choice Award, Holt Medallion and the Popular Paperback award from the American Library Association.

Penguin Publishing launched Greenland’s latest novel The Summer My Life Began in May 2012, and brings her entire spy series to e-form this winter.

When not writing, Shannon’s eager for adventure outside of a book’s pages. Hiking, rafting, climbing, caving, swimming, snorkeling, sailing, surfing, mountain biking, spelunking, canoeing, power lifting, running, camping, para sailing . . . she’s done it all.

Originally from Tennessee, the world traveler divides her time between Florida and Virginia where she mentors, tutors, and teaches math and gives authors talks at area schools.“

Happy reading!