First Strike, By Jack Higgins (Book Review!)

I picked this book up because of the cover: a tank, flames, and two teenagers right in the middle of it! :D

It seemed pretty awesome at first glance, but onto the rest of my review :)

 - Plot:

Meh. It's a bit over-done. Crime-solving teens with a secret agent dad, poking their noses into all of his cases. Of course, this kind of thing can totally be done when pulled off right (*coughs* Hardy Boys *coughs*), but this fell really short for me.

- Characters:

The cover distinctly shows two boys. You can't see their faces, but they are BOYS - I insist. They both look like boys, so, of course, I thought they were boys. Wrong. Jade is a girl, and that greatly disappointed me because a lot of books like this never have two guys like the Hardy Boys :(

Anyway, they weren't really bad characters, but . . . The author never stated the ages of Jade and Rich, which made it difficult to identify with them. I just labeled them as sixteen because I doubt they'd be able to legally go off to places and stay home alone for long amounts of time (days/weeks) if they were much younger :/

And their dad. Wow. He actually amused me (as a lot of the intended humor in this book didn't - sorry). He's so . . . well, clueless would be the word for it XD He doesn't really seem to mind his kids getting into these dangerous situations with him. It's unrealistic, but I found it funny :D

- Flow:

Sooooo fast. It never gives you a break. They're here, they're there, and now WE MUST BE OFF TO WASHINGTON! It keeps the pace from growing boring but at least a little break from the action would be nice :)

- Overall:

It seemed very Bond-ish to me. Like, a very watered-down James Bond movie for kids. I can imagine this being extremely entertaining for some, but I wasn't digging it too much. Some of the action scenes seemed forced, but maybe it's just me :)

I watch the A-Team so my definition of "explosion-y action" might be a lot different than other kids' - bahahahaha :D

So, yeah - pretty good book. Not my particular taste, but it was fairly enjoyable, and I'm sure a lot of kids out there would like it! :D

- RahRahAnn