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3.72 AVERAGE
3.72 AVERAGE
I can see why this series is so popular. It fulfills a fantasy of many young people and grown ups to be an international spy with all the pecks (cool gadgets in Alex Rider's case a very useful DS Nintendo), the danger and the intrigue that comes along with it.
This first book in the series introduces the main characters and the important secondary ones. Alex in forced into this life of high intrigue and danger by a morally ambigious MI-6 director. We are introduced briefly to MI-6 Chief of Special Operations, Mrs Jones and the gadget guy who are as gray as their boss. The one character that comes out in the end supporting Alex is being set up to be his arch enemy : Yassen.
The action is constant, the plot is straight forward and does the job in putting the players on the board. The main villains in this tale, the billionaire Sayle and his henchman and henchwoman are paper thin and are more like caricatures of evil mastermind. Blunt, the MI-6 director and his henchwoman and henchmen are more sinister and scary in my book.
This first book in the series introduces the main characters and the important secondary ones. Alex in forced into this life of high intrigue and danger by a morally ambigious MI-6 director. We are introduced briefly to MI-6 Chief of Special Operations, Mrs Jones and the gadget guy who are as gray as their boss. The one character that comes out in the end supporting Alex is being set up to be his arch enemy : Yassen.
The action is constant, the plot is straight forward and does the job in putting the players on the board. The main villains in this tale, the billionaire Sayle and his henchman and henchwoman are paper thin and are more like caricatures of evil mastermind. Blunt, the MI-6 director and his henchwoman and henchmen are more sinister and scary in my book.
adventurous
fast-paced
I think the thing that stood out to me when I read this book as a young teen was the sheer scale of the missions Alex was able to be a part of and succeed in completing. I also remember enjoying how inventive and mature he was, as it helped dissuade the notion that things like courage or character only become apparent at a mature age. However, I never really felt like I knew Alex as a person outside of his extraordinary capabilities and at times that left him appearing rather emotionless, which is kind of hard to believe considering the high-pressured and intensely dangerous situations he often found himself in. In fact, I think the scars (as I imagine there must have been some) his extraordinary life left on him should have been much more apparent, even if he didn't work through them explicitly in the book due to his young age.
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Figured I was obligated to read this one as most middle school boys request it. I can see why it's popular - action, spy toys, suspense. Great boy series.
if you're young, and you love spies, then you should definitely read the Alex Rider series.
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I'm definitely too old to be reading this, but I enjoyed the fast paced plot progression which took me back to my teenage years devouring detective/spy fiction.
I liked Alex as a character because not only is he not blindly patriotic, he's not thrilled to become a spy as one would expect from a teenage boy. He's uninterested, slightly snarky, and a pretty cool character.
What bothered me and hence lowered the rating was the racist overtones. I get it. The book was written long ago, still not an excuse. When the villain details his past of getting bullied as a foreigner, a middle eastern with dark skin and someone who could not speak proper English, Alex's response is not what I would have expected.
Not once does the book censure the Prime Minister for being a bully during his childhood and an opportunistic person of power as an adult. No, instead Alex says that lots of kids get bullied. Which is the absolute worst thing you could say to someone who just narrated the worst part of their life to you. I could ignore it if it was just Alex (the character) who said this. But then the narration ignores the whole backstory as if it didn't matter.
The author utilised the 'circumstances make a man' aspect of storytelling, but did not comment on it at all. I get that books do not have to do this. But when you bring such a a diverse character in, you do not ignore what made them hate something they loved and respected so much. Making him a 'Middle Eastern Baddie' seems an awfully familiar narrative by now.
This has left such a sour taste in my mouth. The white superiority is great in this as Herod Sayle says that there are a lot of people who hate the English, pitting the 'virtuous English' against the 'corrupt Other' as always.
I wanted to read these as the show was incredibly well put together, but I think I'll skip these. At least the show doesn't suffer from such bad character depiction.
I liked Alex as a character because not only is he not blindly patriotic, he's not thrilled to become a spy as one would expect from a teenage boy. He's uninterested, slightly snarky, and a pretty cool character.
What bothered me and hence lowered the rating was the racist overtones. I get it. The book was written long ago, still not an excuse. When the villain details his past of getting bullied as a foreigner, a middle eastern with dark skin and someone who could not speak proper English, Alex's response is not what I would have expected.
Not once does the book censure the Prime Minister for being a bully during his childhood and an opportunistic person of power as an adult. No, instead Alex says that lots of kids get bullied. Which is the absolute worst thing you could say to someone who just narrated the worst part of their life to you. I could ignore it if it was just Alex (the character) who said this. But then the narration ignores the whole backstory as if it didn't matter.
The author utilised the 'circumstances make a man' aspect of storytelling, but did not comment on it at all. I get that books do not have to do this. But when you bring such a a diverse character in, you do not ignore what made them hate something they loved and respected so much. Making him a 'Middle Eastern Baddie' seems an awfully familiar narrative by now.
This has left such a sour taste in my mouth. The white superiority is great in this as Herod Sayle says that there are a lot of people who hate the English, pitting the 'virtuous English' against the 'corrupt Other' as always.
I wanted to read these as the show was incredibly well put together, but I think I'll skip these. At least the show doesn't suffer from such bad character depiction.