I read this book ages ago and loved it. I don't have much to say, but I did order it for my library at the time.

Dan Cahill and his sister, Amy, are the last of the Cahill family to be guardians of the fabled 39 clues. Those clues lead to 39 ingredients of a serum which, when taken, could transform a person into the most powerful human on the planet. The potential for the wrong person or persons to get a hold of this serum makes it dangerous. This is why the Cahill family has long had it as their mission to secure and protect each piece of the serum.

Dan and Amy have a problem on their hands now - the serum is missing. They have to find who stole it, find the serum, and get it back into hiding before something <em>really</em> bad happens.

How many books are there in the 39 Clues series? I am only slightly familiar with the series (I've read and reviewed one other book) which seems like a pretty good concept - secrets and clues and investigating ... this is precisely what so many younger readers enjoy. But how long can you milk a concept?

This story is okay. It moves along swiftly, should hold the average middle school reader's attention, but it does feel a bit formulaic as well. Dan and Amy seem like stock characters that you might find in just about any middle grade reader.

But this book isn't written for the likes of me. The target audience doesn't necessarily recognize stock characters because they don't have the reading experience. This should be just enough to capture the interest of a young reader, and, being a series, presumably hold on to the reader for awhile. But it's not likely that the reader will stay too committed to the series.

I'm in favor of any book that gets a youngster reading, but I'm also in favor of exposing a child to high quality.

Looking for a good book? <em>Nowhere to Run,</em> by Jude Watson, is part of the vast 39 Clues series. It could be an exciting story to young readers, but it's pretty formulaic and a little repetitive for someone with more reading experience.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, though Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.