I Am the Mission

May 15, 2014
An unnamed soldier infiltrates a teen military camp and picks up where his lost colleague left off.Still recovering from the trauma of his previous mission in New York City (I Am the Weapon, originally published as Boy Nobody, 2013), Boy Nobody, known as Daniel in this sequel, embarks on a new one. He is to assassinate the ringleader of a secret military camp in rural New Hampshire, where he indoctrinates teens to become weapons of fear. Daniel knows he must win their trust and prove his leadership abilities, and that makes up the majority of the pages of this tightly written, exciting second outing. Zadoff packs in plenty of tension-filled moments that will leave readers on the edges of their seats, including some flirty repartee that leads to a bit of steamy action with the daughter of the camp's owner. This time, however, the blood-and-guts level escalates. It's no splatterfest, but there's some bona fide Rambo action in which Daniel digs a knife into his own skin, and that will no doubt turn a few stomachs-but the book's not really for those readers anyway. The novel's only fault lies in Zadoff's apparent need to keep going. Just when readers think they've made it through one breathless climax, Zadoff adds another twist that tacks on more pages and Hollywood-esque thrills. Readers won't mind, however. In fact, they'll be sorry when it finally stops.A more dangerous Alex Rider for the older set. (Thriller. 13-17)

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May 1, 2014

Gr 9 Up-Teen assassin Boy Nobody has to prove to The Program that he isn't a liability. His mission in a brand-new location goes awry and secrets are revealed that put him at the edge of his allegiances and the truth.

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

May 15, 2014
Grades 9-12 Boy Nobody, the 16-year-old trained assassin, finds himself entrusted with a new mission by The Program; he is to infiltrate Camp Liberty, a paramilitary camp that trains teenagers in the techniques of domestic terrorism, and eliminate its founder and director. But things quickly go wrong, and he finds himself in jeopardy, cut off from The Program and forced to examine his most deeply held convictions. In this follow-up to Boy Nobody (2013), Zadoff has crafted another highly suspenseful, compulsively readable futuristic thriller with an agreeably intricate plot and a sympatheticthough often cold-bloodedprotagonist. Readers will be clamoring for the next volume.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)

July 1, 2014
Boy Nobody's new assignment from The Program: kill the leader of a training camp brainwashing teens with anti-government philosophy. The emotional scars from his last mission (Boy Nobody), growing doubts about The Program (and theirs about him), and continuing efforts to unravel his mysterious past add noticeable depth to Boy Nobody's character in this superior second installment, which ends with a humdinger cliffhanger.

(Copyright 2014 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)