I’m not usually a fan of spynovels. Typically, they’re not my cup of tea. That being said, the first time I read Stormbreaker by Anthony Horowitz I had trouble putting it down. Since then I have reread it several times, again just recently, and have also read most of the rest of the series. For those of you who are unaware, Stormbreaker is the first book in the Alex Rider series. This book tells how Alex Rider first became a teen spy for MI6. It starts with Alex being informed that his uncle Ian, his guardian and only living family, has passed away in a car accident. Being suspicious Alex decides to investigate, only to quickly figure out there is more going on. MI6 catches him and blackmail him into continuing Ian’s final mission, investigating Herod Sayle and the stormbreaker computers. Alex rapidly ends up in over his head and fighting for his life.
As you can gather it sounds like a rather compelling story. Like I said before I struggled to put it down before I was finished. The plot is incredibly intricate. I guess it would have to be for a spy novel but still. The way everything was so interconnected was both fascinating and impressive. It was relatively fast-paced with just the right amount of action and suspense. However, the story was also rather lacking in other aspects. Reading the story you meet a lot of characters but the only character that really felt even remotely fleshed out was Alex. Almost all of the characters don’t seem to have a lot of depth to them. In fact, the only other character that has even modicum of depth to then is the main villain, Herod Sayle. Most of the other characters we only learn superficial things about them, such as a fondness for sucking on peppermints. I know this is at least in part due to the main focus of the story being on Alex but it would still be nice to see more depth in other characters. They do get more character development in later books but here, there is not much to them. Overall, it was a very good book and a great start to an incredible series. I am giving it a full five stars.
I know this book was marketed as teen or young adult and I would agree with that as this book would definitely appeal to that age range. I do not think it is necessarily appropriate for younger kids though, due in part to the sometimes violent nature of a book about spies. In many ways I also agree with the author when he says that it would also appeal to adults and that parents should read it alongside their kids. I shared it with my mom and my older sister, both of whom also enjoyed it. If you happen to be familiar with the book or series feel free to share your thoughts in the comments.