Secret Weapon (Alex Rider)

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The only difference are the enemies and conflicts that happen of course. I don't really worry about Alex dying because I know he won't and that kind of just ruins the story, knowing how it's gonna end.😕 Story three, ‘High Tension,’ was ridiculously short. But it was fun. What was supposed to be a simple parasailing ride turned into something that could’ve been deadly, but Alex managed to stop it. Typical Alex Rider fashion. 3 stars. Readers ages 8 to 15 with a taste for tough-guy thrills will gobble this one up.”– Wall Street Journal I have to confess, I have never read an Alex Rider book before, but chose it based on different things I have heard from young readers, who are fans of the series. So far, there are 11 books in the Alex Rider series, not counting Secret Weapon, which is a book of 7 short stories. Having already been mistaken for Julius Grief, Alex is shipped out to the facility from which he is thought to have escaped. The psychologist there is the only one who knows the truth about Alex, and it’s up to Alex himself to find a way in to befriend Freddy.

It’s interesting that the Alex Rider books where Alex is fourteen (starting with Stormbreaker and ending with Scorpia Rising - though we do have Russian Roulette that focus on fan fave, Yassen Gregorovich), the missions have a slight sci-fi twist to them (at the time. Look now to technology such as space travel and cloning, we are very close), whereas the newer Alex Rider novels, starting with Never Say Die (Alex Rider 2.0, if you will), the books are far more grounded, more darker in tone and seems to go a little further.For those like me who don't know, 14-year-old Alex has been well trained to be a spy by his uncle, Ian Rider, who was a secret agent for MI6. After his uncle was killed, MI6 approached Alex, recognizing his potential, talent, and training. Now, Alex is working for MI6 and having some incredible adventures. But sure, ok. It's a minor enough quibble, until you finish Spy Trap. (Spoilers for Spy Trap from here.) Petski, Denise (10 November 2020). " 'Alex Rider' Renewed For Season 2 By IMDb TV". Deadline . Retrieved 20 November 2020. PDF / EPUB File Name: Alex_Rider–Secret_Weapon_-_Anthony_Horowitz.pdf, Alex_Rider–Secret_Weapon_-_Anthony_Horowitz.epub Originally published as A Taste of Death, now included in the Secret Weapon short story collection with the title, The Man with Eleven Fingers. This short story is set after Stormbreaker. Alex has a dentist appointment but on the way he's distracted by a crime. Alex grabs a sample chocolate from a guy off the street and finds it odd that Cadburys is spelt wrong. Then he recognises one of the drivers as a former Sayle Enterprises employee - one who threatened to kill him. Sykes turned to Alex. “Did MI6 send you after us?” he demanded. “No.” There was no point lying. “I saw your driver. I recognized him. He led me to you.” He paused. “Also, you don’t know how to spell Cadbury.”

Story four, ‘Secret Weapon,’ was the perfect short story. I absolutely loved how it was connected to a small event that took place in in the very iconic first novel of Stormbreaker. The prison escape was cool, the action and final showdown was brilliant and most of all, I loved seeing Tom Harris again. He is such a great character and his connection with Alex is unrivalled. I don’t think you can have a better short story than this. As a short story I give it 5 stars. seeing Alex in this one was sort of heartbreaking a little bit because this one is set after the events of book 3 and before the events of book 4. So seeing Alex put himself in so many more dangerous missions and getting caught in each one is the Alex that i don't really like because he really isn't like that in the main series. Short story told in first person. Christmas at Gunpoint is set before Stormbreaker and Alex reminisces about a Christmas he spent with his uncle, Ian Rider, and almost discovered his secret spy life. This story is now available as part of the short story collection; Secret Weapon. Well its was a fun read but if you really dissect the novel. It has gotten rather formulaic with a plot that can be summarized as Petski, Denise (10 November 2020). " 'Alex Rider' Renewed For Season 2 By IMDb TV". Deadline . Retrieved 10 November 2020.Alex was caught more easy in these missions then he was in the main missions and the conversations between all the characters were also a little dull to me.

The only problems I had with the book are minor. The main plot does get wrapped up at the end, but there’s still a few questions left hanging, and it does tease another upcoming story. At one point the villain declares, heavy-handedly, that “All I wanted to do was make Britain great again.” Horowitz writes of “Javelin surface-to-air missiles” (they’re anti-tank weapons) At one point it is mentioned that the villain was arrested for selling weapons to ISIS “fifteen years ago.” If the story is set in contemporary times, that timeline doesn’t make much sense. I didn't feel this was as good as the later novels or short stories. Alex is kind of dim. I mean jeez how many hints can you get? And fair enough if he just decided not to ask but he didn't even seem to realise something was up with his uncle. 2 stars.Another book in the series done and its book 12 in the series and don't get me wrong i love this series but it really should end now rather than going any further cause it's starting to get repetitive. If you've read my review of the previous Alex Rider novel, Never Say Die, you'd know that I was quite critical of it. I still am, and that book remains a blemish on the Alex Rider name in my eyes. I was hoping that the next installment would return to Alex's previous greatness, and it did, but not entirely. In May 2017, it was announced that ITV was developing a television adaptation of the Alex Rider novels. The series is being produced by Eleventh Hour Films, with Tutankhamen screenwriter and novelist Guy Burt acting as showrunner. Eleventh Hour Films is run by Horowitz's wife Jill Green. [8] Like the last entry, Horowitz ditches the usual formula for his Alex Rider books. Character development is pretty good, even for people who are usually on the sidelines (like Jones and Crawley) It’s also great to see Alex overcome challenges without the use of gadgets. Also, there are some loose ends from the previous books’ Scorpia plotlines (like Grief’s death and Blunt’s retirement) that Horowitz wraps up pretty nicely here, and does so in a fresh plot that doesn’t feel contrived. Some old characters make some satisfying reappearances that don’t feel forced. We even revisit some locations from previous stories. The story is pretty long, but it’s easy to follow and doesn’t drag. The suspense is great, but you might figure out most of the ��mystery” early on in the book.

Nightshade, as an organisation, pales in comparison to Scorpia, which is the obvious parallel here. Nightshade has an interesting angle on it, with it being a religious-cult type deal, but Horowitz never explores this much and he doesn't do much interesting with it. Perhaps a deep exploration of religious cultism would be too dark for a kid's book. Nightshade feels like a combination of Point Blanc and Scorpia, but without any of the interesting bits. Both of those books had a more interesting take on the exact same thing. Or maybe it's just that the last time I read an Alex Rider book was two years ago and now I have a different opinion on the series. I don't think the series is bad though. I still love Alex Rider as a character. I mean, he's a 15-year old spy!!! (I'm 15 and am no where near as cool as him, ofc) The first novel, Stormbreaker, was released in the United Kingdom in the year 2000 and was adapted into a film in 2006, starring Alex Pettyfer as the titular protagonist. The second and fourth books were adapted into a TV series in 2020 and 2021 respectively, this time starring Otto Farrant. Walker Books published the first novels in the United Kingdom alongside Puffin in the United States. More recent entries in the series were published by Philomel Books, an imprint of Penguin Books. Look. I love the Alex Rider books. They're a Formative Teen Experience of mine, I love the juxtaposition of being treated like a child while being expected to act like an adult that so many teens suffer, I love that Alex spends the whole time bloody furious about the whole thing but also can't help himself interfering, I love that he went to goddamn space. It's a LITTLE weird to reread the stories and see how much uhhhhh bad racial and disability coding is involved, but never let it be said that I don't love Alex Rider.When I tell you that I screamed when I found out this book had been written I'm not exaggerating. I had remained secretly optimistic after the last Alex Rider mission ended with a subtle hint towards a follow-up, but I didn't expect Anthony to actually HIT US WITH THIS MID-QUARANTINE?!?!? Chaotic energy, but much much much appreciated.