Also Known As by Robin Benway

Also Known As by Robin Benway
Walker Childrens; 1 edition (February 26, 2013)
ISBN-10: 0802733905
ISBN-13: 978-0802733900
320 pages
Ages 12 +
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My Rating: 3/5

Summary from Publisher: From the hilarious and poignant author of Audrey, Wait! comes a fast-paced caper perfect for fans of Ally Carter.

Being a 16-year-old safecracker and active-duty daughter of international spies has its moments, good and bad. Pros: Seeing the world one crime-solving adventure at a time. Having parents with super cool jobs. Cons: Never staying in one place long enough to have friends or a boyfriend. But for Maggie Silver, the biggest perk of all has been avoiding high school and the accompanying cliques, bad lunches, and frustratingly simple locker combinations.
Then Maggie and her parents are sent to New York for her first solo assignment, and all of that changes. She'll need to attend a private school, avoid the temptation to hack the school's security system, and befriend one aggravatingly cute Jesse Oliver to gain the essential information she needs to crack the case . . . all while trying not to blow her cover.

The Verdict: First impressions of the original cover were pretty good even though I think the photos were generated by one of those virtual makeover websites. I was actually motivated to request a review copy based on the cover design alone. The series of photos are fun and definitely communicate a spy feeling.  From that and the summary, I was expecting something on the lines of Ally Carter's books (that's what they were hoping for by name dropping in the first line, right?). And while Ally Carter is the master, Also Known As was like a less skillfully crafted younger sibling. Kinda like a Disturbia to Hitchcock's Rear Window.
While the story was fun and some what original outside the aforementioned works of Ally Carter, it did have it's fair share of errors. Most of these were grammatical which I hope will be screened out of the print copy. But there was a big flaw in timeline where a whole day is cut out of the weekend. In one scene, Maggie is talking about "Friday night jitters" then the next morning she tells her parents she is sleeping over at Roux'. This leads to a conversation about school being the following morning. So is it just me or does that mean Sundays don't exist in this magical world of New York?
Also there was far too much walking around and saying "I am a spy" vocally for the characters to seem believable. I don't know any real life spies but I don't think they ever feel the need to call themselves that to fellow spies. I'm just saying.
And while I did initially love that cover art, don't be mislead. In chapter 1, Maggie makes it clear that she never has to physically alter her appearance. So I was very happy to see the updated cover (seen above) that doesn't feature this misrepresentation.
All that being said, it was a fun read. You just have to overlook a lot of details. Kinda like watching a Hallmark movie or something. Jesse Oliver is pretty unbelievably sappy in the way that makes 14 yo girls swoon. But Roux steals the show. She is such a fun and over the top character that I wanted her as my teenage self's best friend :)
At the end of the day, I think it is a fun vacation read that is clean enough to share with younger audiences.


I received a free review copy of this book from the publishers but the opinions expressed here are my own.