Reviews

The Spy Who Raised Me by Ted Anderson

storieswithbee's review against another edition

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4.0

It’s these kind of stories that make me love graphic novels/ comics.

Our story starts with Josie, J.B, a seemingly regular teenager who is struggling through her teenaged life, all until she uncovers that she’s a sleeper agent and her Mum is a part of a huge plot to promote a sofa companies sales and influence political decisions, commit espionage, bank heists and bring down the CIA.

The story was hilarious and both J.B and J.B’s best friend, Zoe, are so relatable. Their reactions and comments are how any sane person would respond to the events and steps throughout the book. I love authors who keep their characters realistic.

The use of a mainly red colour scheme was a super interesting concept. The tones variation really made certain scenes seem so intense and action packed, while others light- hearted. I think Gianna Meola (illustrator) did a fantastic job in this comic.

Thank you to NetGalley and Ted Anderson for giving me the opportunity to review the ARC of The Spy Who Raised Me in the exchange for my honest review.

teabooksart's review against another edition

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3.0

An interesting little comic with an unusual premise. Much of it felt a bit rushed and I think that was mostly because J.B.'s friend was all in on some pretty dangerous stuff. But overall it was a fun read, the illustrations were nice, and I enjoyed it. I personally would have enjoyed getting to know the characters a bit better.

jodi_kryer's review against another edition

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2.0

I don't even know where to begin. The story is literally about the girl's mom being a secret agent for a Coca Colaesque company. The reason that Coca Cola is evil is because they're putting chemicals in their soda to control people(???) and the mother has turned her child into an unwilling spy. I realize that the Coca Cola company thing was an allegory about rich people and capitalism (most likely for children), but I wasn't having it. The second thing I'd like to talk about is the art style. It is so inconsistent and wonky, this style would have been better if it were a short animated film. Lastly, the dialogue fell flat every time. There was no emotion in this book. I really hate ripping things apart like this, but this book just made me so angry.

abarton92's review

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adventurous funny fast-paced

3.25

destdest's review

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adventurous lighthearted fast-paced

1.5

 The premise isn’t a bad idea, but the execution is like using Hello Kitty stickers instead of duct tape. I don’t mind silly or ridiculous stories, but I just didn’t get this one. Josie’s been drugged and programmed all throughout her life, and the truth comes out after a fateful trip to Paris. But it’s so matter-of-factly. Her mom just owns up to it. While Josie is happy to be in control of her life again, I thought she didn’t have a strong enough reaction to basically being a robot, test dummy. 

Also, Josie’s high school friend Zoe is prominently in the story. She doesn’t add much besides a joke or two, but I liked her. 

The artwork is very simple and flat-colored. It can feel unfinished, at times, and there are few in-between shots of movement. But I liked the reddish-peach color scheme. 

If you just want something fast-paced, action-packed, and nonsensical, then this isn’t a bad option. Just don’t expect to understand anything or connect with the characters on a deep level. 

mancerelle's review

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dark sad tense fast-paced

2.0

Ugly art, super dark story. 

lisbethwhite's review

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adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced

3.0

akriti's review against another edition

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3.0

Book: The spy who raised me
Author: Ted Anderson
Illustrator: Gianna Meola
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Description:
Some parents want their children to turn out just like them. Only a few secretly turn their kids into elite special operatives.

Josie Black can infiltrate any building, speak a dozen languages, and fight like a martial arts master. But no one told her that. After J.B. detects gaps in her memory, her mom reveals the truth: she works for a covert agency, and she's given J.B. the skills of a super spy. After J.B. freaks out, runs off, and tries to escape the weird world of espionage, she'll have to decide who she wants to be.
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Recently I have discovered my love for graphic novels and I want to keep reading more of it.

theeuphoriczat's review

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3.0

Thanks to #Netgalley for making this book available to me.

I flew through this book. Josie Black is a teenager age who slowly finds out that memory has been altered. She would wake up and simply not remember what had happened hours or even days prior. She finds out that mom has been lying to her and manipulating her memories. JB is an experimental spy who can speak multiple languages, fight like a martial arts master and has all that makes a super spy. When she finds out that her mother has been hypnotizing and mind-controlling her, she is not pleased. She uses her spy abilities and tries to escape from her mother.
Then she finds out that her father is in on it and he was only with her to take her back to her mother!

The story was okay but the artwork was not really my cup of tea.

readalongwithnat's review

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mysterious tense fast-paced

4.0

I received a free eARC from Netgalley and Lerner Publishing Group in exchange for my honest review.

This graphic novel kept me on the edge of my seat as I wanted to know more and more -- and boy, were there a lot of plot twists! Perfect for lovers of Spy Kids and Home Alone.

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