Reader's Response: "Only The Good Spy Young"

Isha Kalaga

Ms. Asuncion

English 9H, Block 2

15 February 2016

Reader’s Response: “Only the Good Spy Young”

“The pigeons Cammie.”

“The pigeons,” I said.

And then one of the greatest spies I’ve ever known ran towards the rising edge of the bridge and propelled himself over the top, flying, falling. Bex’s parents rushed after him but I was already there, staring into the Thames. And Joe Solomon was already gone (Carter 18).

“Only the Good Spy Young” was written by The New York Times bestselling author, Ally Carter. The book is the fourth in a series called, “The Gallagher Girls.” The first book being, “I’ll tell you I love you but then I’ll have to kill you.” It is a young adult action and mystery book. This series is a about a girl named Cameron Morgan, Cammie for short. Cammie goes to the Gallagher Academy for Exceptional Young Women. On the outside, it looks like a preparatory academy for the daughters of the rich, but those who actually know can tell you that it’s a spy school.

Cammie gets her name, Cameron Morgan, from both sides of her family. Which actually plays a big part throughout the story and is very influential. Cameron is derived from the last name of her maternal side. Her mother, who is Rachel Morgan, formerly Rachel Cameron and is also the headmistress of the Gallagher Academy—an all-girls spy school— along with an ex CIA agent. On the other hand, Morgan, her last name from Matthew Morgan her deceased father who went MIA on a mission assigned to him by the CIA. Cammie’s name take’s a big part throughout this series because it essentially defines who she is. The daughter of perhaps two of the best spies in the CIA and that legacy that her parents have left in the past comes back to haunt her on something they think she knows.

However, now in the fifth book Cammie soon discovers that her boyfriend Zachary Goode may not be who she thought he was. Also, her father’s best friend and her special operations teacher Joseph Solomon has half the world’s best intelligence officers after him yet she still trusts him! During the fifth book specifically, the journey starts out in London and along the way many secrets get unraveled. One being that Joseph Solomon is actually part of The Circle of Cavan. Along the way, Cammie and her friends also run into another highly certified member of the CIA, agent Edward Townsend.

The Circle of Cavan, also known as The Circle, is an ancient terrorist organization where the founder of the school, Gillian Gallagher got involved and took down their founder. Now, centuries later, The Circle was the reason for her father’s death and now, the descendants of the founder are after her. The series is based on Cammie, along with her roommates Macey McHenry, Rebecca Baxter and Elizabeth Sutton. Macey is a politician’s daughter, Rebecca is the daughter of two MI6 agents, and Elizabeth is a genius with a high IQ from a small town in Texas. Altogether they go on missions enlisting the help off Cammie's boyfriend Zach to figure out who the circle are and why they are after Cammie.

Overall, this series in general is very intriguing as it is not like you typical cliché story that many authors seem to write. There is a plot that keeps you hooked and the author illustrates everything in such a way that readers get immersed into the story where we take the plot and what feelings currently run through the character to heart. Everything is connected throughout and tests your memory in the sense that it is important to pick up even the tiniest details. Ms. Carter also writes in a realistic way on how military academies, or in this case spy academies, most likely teach their students in the aspect that she incorporates a lot of terminology like covert operations or a class called cultural assimilation where you learn how to blend into your surroundings based on what country or situation you are in. An example includes teaching the students ballroom dancing or proper etiquette.

This all helps that characters later when they are on the field, but also informs us and we learn many things too. For instance, during one of their classes they speaking purely in a foreign language thus, the readers learn a few words in Russian or Albanian. The characters in the book also show a personal rebellion which is common in other books but not in the sense that one time, the characters rely on the smartest of the group to drug there new replaced teacher with a truth serum where she gave an overdose then slapping him to get answers. Every chapter however, ends as a cliffhanger that leaves the reader to continue asking questions.

“Oh now, I doubt that.” There was something of the man from London creeping back into his voice. He smiled. “I don’t think Rachel Morgan would want to work beside the man that killed her husband” (Carter 92).

            Overall, the book written by Ally Carter is different than anything I have ever read before and prompted me to look into and start reading a new genre. I also enjoy that the author includes a lot of foreshadowing throughout the series but not enough that we can correctly guess the outcome. I recommend this series to anyone who is looking for a mystery to read but also not the typical high school story where the nerd falls in love with a jock.

Works Cited

Carter, Ally. The Gallagher Girls. Only the Good Spy Young. New York: Disney/Hyperion for

Children, 2010. Print.