Catherine Jinks.  Evil Genius
Harcourt  $21.95  ISBN 978-0-15-205988-0  486 pg.
Reviewed by Keegan age 14

As a School of Deception student, Cadel would have to attend certain compulsory courses as part of his first-year program. These courses would include Basic Lying (or “Coping Skills”), Pure Evil (or “Pragmatic Philosophy”), Case Studies I (or “Self Discipline”), and Forgery (or “Cultural Appreciation”). He could then choose his electives-like infiltration…

Cadel Piggott is a small boy with a big brain, so is sent to the Axis Institute. There he learns things that no other school teaches. When he finds out something fishy is going on between criminal mastermind Dr. Phineas Darkkon and the school, he investigates and starts to unravel all the mysteries of the institute and more.

Evil Genius is a great book filled with mysteries and suspense. After reading it I can’t wait for a sequel, Genius Squad, because it leaves you with another mystery to solve, one that can only be unraveled with yet another book. Jinks’ descriptive writing captures you in this part mystery/part action genre book, keeping you on your toes.

I would recommend it to those in their mid-teens as it has some coarse language and would be a hard read for younger kids.

I give Evil Genius 5 stars.