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The Shadow Project (Shadow Project Adventure)

by Herbie Brennan
357p. 978-0-06175-642-9.
COPY ISBN
Gr 7-Up Danny Lipman is a young thief who stumbles into a clandestine operation that he does not immediately understand. The staff of the Shadow Project allows him to escape after deciding that he shows natural talent for their work but not before bugging his jacket. Danny soon learns that the project is a joint MI6/CIA venture that makes use of teen operatives to conduct remote viewing, a paranormal activity that allows agents to gather intelligence without risking themselves. Or so they believed. Opal, the director's daughter and a skilled operative in her own right, is somehow detained while on a mission and Danny is brought in to attempt a rescue. He is enticed to work for them, in part by their promise to provide the best possible care for his Nan, who has just had a stroke. From that point, nothing proceeds as Danny or anyone involved in the Shadow Project imagined. Given the number of spy novels and those on the entire spectrum of the paranormal battling for spots on young adult reading lists, this book was probably inevitable. It's exciting, has a good range of characters, an appealing cover, and also feels like a series opener, also inevitably. It should have broad appeal."Eric Norton, McMillan Memorial Library, Wisconsin Rapids, WI" Copyright 2010 Media Source Inc.
Danny stumbles upon a secret government endeavor using astral projection as a means of spying. He finds he is a natural talent and is roped into helping "the Project." The story throws together elements of spy thriller with religious mysticism and the occult. The protagonist's development follows expected patterns, but that does provide some normalcy to an otherwise out-of-this-world tale.
Readers will be drawn in by the inventive premise. Herbie Brennan’s writing is sophisticated and self-assured. His action scenes are tense, and his dialogue is terse and witty. The supernatural foes Danny and his companions must vanquish are convincingly—and memorably—frightening. A fast-paced plot and numerous cliff-hangers will keep readers hooked until the end.

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