Going Deep Undercover….

Posted on November 15th, 2013

Every boys dream

Spies, MI6, MI5, James Bond to name just a few; what tween boy doesn’t fancy himself in this role? Certainly all my five from age nine upwards still tune in to anything spy related, have prioritised spy kits on their Christmas lists since they were about five and had hours of imaginary fun out on the farm.

Boy in Tights

When author Kate Scott contacted me to see if I would take a look at her new book the title had me straight away

“Spies in Disguise: Boy in Tights”

The book takes a seemingly average family moving house, except they turn out to be anything but average and young Joe finds during the move his parents are in fact secret agents (cool) and he is now part of their new life in a new town but no longer Joe, now Josie (not so cool). The embarrassment and worry of starting a new school pretending to be a girl, the friends he makes and his own spy mission he uncovers is both captivating and humorous.

The book is aimed at age seven plus but I would say that is a real lower limit. My nine year old boys were keen to read it but found the content too descriptive and not fast paced enough for them in the early pages and soon put it down. However when I read it to them they listened avidly and couldn’t wait for the next chapter. My 11 year old was put off by the front cover finding it too young for him, but when I persuaded him to give it a go he loved the content and read it in days. It is a real page turner but I would say not for the reluctant reader. If you have a book worm who enjoys the scene setting and description of a more grown up read then this is a must. Otherwise it is a great one to read to a child of age seven up to inspire them with books a chapter a night. It is no chore as a parent to read, on the contrary I found myself reading ahead of the children to see what happened next!

I have had to come back to this post since my daughter, age nine, is now engrossed in the story despite originally saying “It’s not my sort of thing Mum.” She is the book worm of my triplets and a very capable reader, for her it only took the first three pages and the book disappeared up to her bedroom!

Find out More

If you want a sneaky peek at the book then you can read an extract from the book by Piccadilly Press and also download some activity spy sheets which look both fun and educational. The book retails for £5.99 but is available on Amazon now at just £4.49 with free delivery.

Win your signed copy

If you fancy winning a signed copy of Spies in Disguise: Boy in Tights then just follow the instructions below; it would make a great stocking filler for someone.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclosure: I was given a copy of the book for this review which will be available for all our holiday guests to borrow in our reception shop, once my daughter finishes reading. All views and opinions are my own.