Independence Hall

December 1, 2008
Gr 5-8-When Quest (Q for short) Munoz's songwriting mom marries rock star Roger Tucker, he and new stepsister Angela join the sensational duo on the road for a national concert tour. Life on the bus goes from boring to bedlam as an old roadie named Boone and his dog, Croc, come aboard, and Dirk Peski, an appropriately named paparazzo, stalks their every move. Boone's preoccupation with the teens' safety and whereabouts and Angela's suspicions about being followed lead her to tell Q about her dead mother's connection to the Secret Service. Alternating chapters of italicized dialogue between a mystery man named Eban Lavi and an international cast of shady characters alert readers that this parallel action will somehow impact Q and Angela when they reach Philadelphia, the city where Angela's mother was killed in the line of duty. Speculation that she may have survived and become a terrorist fuels Angela's determination to find the truth. The pair uses natural tech savvy and Q's magician tricks to elude their followers and comb the city for clues. Preoccupied adults and bumbling spies provide a convenient plot contrivance for the sleuthing teens, but sheer numbers of extraneous characters muddle the story. The best-developed character, Boone, steals the show as the paternal, James Bond-loving intelligence officer whose crime-solving dog is a sidekick. Action lovers will find just enough substance to keep them coming back for future episodes."Vicki Reutter, Cazenovia High School, NY"

Copyright 2008 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

October 15, 2008
Grades 5-8 Adventure, suspense, humor, fascinating characters, and plot twists galore will draw middle-graders to this series starter. Thirteen-year-old Q (short for Quest) has just gained a stepfather and stepsisterhis mother, singer-songwriter Blaze Munoz, has married singer-songwriter Roger Tucker, and their new band, Match, is set to start a yearlong tour. Rogers 15-year-old daughter, Angela is, like Q, less than thrilled at the speed of their parents romance, and both teens have mixed feelings about the prospect of spending a year together on a tour bus.But theres no time for grousing: the teens discover they are being followed, and given Angelas mothers past history as a Secret Service agent, thats not a good thing. The appearance of Boone, an old roadie friend of their parents, only keeps the mysteries building. Qs skills as a magician save the teens more than once, while Angelas knowledge of martial arts and spy games will fascinate readers. Think Ian Fleming for the younger set, and offer to those who love Rick Riordans Percy Jackson series.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2008, American Library Association.)