Remote Control
Grade 6 Up—This sequel toThe Lab(Scholastic, 2008) is set sometime in the future when there are no more countries, only corporations. Agent Six of Hearts Six, 16, and his twin brother, Kyntak, work for The Deck and must fight the evil ChaoSonic corporation. The hierarchy of "The Deck" has Queens, Kings, and Jokers; the weapons are futuristic conglomerates; the characters are sometimes clones or cyborglike; and the action pings at a quick and somewhat violent pace, which makes the whole book mimic elements of a video game. Kyntak has been kidnapped, and it is up to Six to rescue him. He gets to use really cool weapons and show off his superhuman abilities as he scales walls and makes mind-boggling leaps and wins battles even though he is vastly outnumbered. Along the way, he learns new information about his evil father and other siblings, and he is forced to question his own morality and motives. Readers never forget that he is not human, but the knowledge that he will never be able to lead a normal human life does not diminish his appeal. While this plot is a little less compelling, fans of Anthony Horwitz's "Alex Rider" series and Charlie Higson's "Young Bond" series (Hyperion/Miramax) will want to pick up this superagent adventure with a sci-fi gaming twist.—Jake Pettit, Thompson Valley High School, Loveland, CO(c) Copyright 2010.  Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc.  No redistribution permitted.