Model spy by Shannon Greenland

Kelly James is sixteen, she is living independently at college - and she has just broken the law in a major way by hacking into the government computer network.  She wasn't doing it to show off or for the thrill of it, she did it to help her friend David - the result however is that she is in deep trouble and the only way out of trouble is to agree to join a secret government spy agency that trains teenagers from troubled backgrounds to become part of a spy team that uses each of their unique talents.  The only problem is that Kelly never broke the law so the agency used David to nudge her into breaking the law so they could swoop in and strong arm her into joining the programme.  Now Kelly has a new name, a new "family", and she is about to be sent out on her first mission - as a model!  This is the perfect first mission for someone who is so clumsy that she can trip over thin air.

Model spy was a fun read and a fresh take on the teen spy genre - fun and flirty rather than serious and nerve racking.  Kelly is an interesting character with some rather glaring character flaws (she always runs late and tends to get too caught up in things) but she also manages to grow as a person throughout the book which is also kind of nice.  I wasn't expecting huge sweeping story lines with detailed plots and subplots in Model spy, and it lived up to my expectations with a healthy dose of humour and a sense of the ridiculous making it a worthwhile diversion for a few hours as Kelly raced towards the expected conclusion to the novel.  This is the first book in the series, and while it is a few years old now it still appears to be available.

If you like this book then try:

• Down to the wire by Shannon Greenland
• The winning element by Shannon Greenland
• Native tongue by Shannon Greenland
• Bad kitty by Michele Jaffe
• All-American girl by Meg Cabot
• Heist society by Ally Carter
• A girl named Digit by Annabel Monahgan

Reviewed by Brilla