  | Full Text Reviews: Booklist - 06/01/2012 Aboard a yacht en route to Hawaii, 17-year-old Susannah, her parents, and the crew discover a seemingly abandoned boat but soon find it contains two dead bodies and a large satchel of cash, which they haul aboard. Big mistake, for what they don’t know is that another 17-year-old, Jeremy, the son of a warlord criminal, is—along with two of his father’s dangerous employees—searching for the same cache of cash. When Jeremy locates the family, as he inevitably does, things change from dangerous to desperate as Susannah finds herself and her family in grave peril. Though initially slow paced—Cadnum devotes more attention to character development than plot—the action of this adventure-thriller picks up speed and suspense as Jeremy and his cohorts close in on the yacht. Oh, and let’s not forget that shark. Fans of sea stories and suspense will enjoy this one. - Copyright 2012 Booklist. Bulletin for the Center... - 07/01/2012 On board Athena’s Secret, chugging leisurely toward Hawaii, are a mother and father who are barely speaking, a daughter who’s smitten with her first cousin, and a crew member who’s smitten with the daughter. Dead in the water floats Witch Grass, with two bullet-riddled bodies and a sack containing $800,000. Overhead, a seaplane with a crime lord’s teenage son (on his first mission from Dad) and two supportive hit men hunts down Witch Grass? and the money that never made it back to its “rightful” owner. Anyone who’s ever cracked the spine on an action thriller will know just where this is heading, and if you can correctly guess the final body count, you can almost write the plot yourself. “Almost,” however, is the critical term here, because Cadnum has a couple of surprises, involving some interesting weaponry in a storage compartment on Athena’s Secret and pervasive greed among the entire cast that leads readers to flirt with the idea that maybe the Good Guys in this affair put themselves directly in harm’s way. A storm, a shark, broken communications equipment, and a torn sail complete the list of accoutrements for a hellish encounter. Bon voyage. EB - Copyright 2012 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois. School Library Journal - 08/01/2012 Gr 8 Up—Seventeen-year-old Susannah, her family, and an 18-year-old crewman are sailing from California to Hawaii. The trip starts out smoothly until they are driven by a storm into the path of a drifting powerboat. The mysterious vessel is carrying two dead bodies and a stash of 100-dollar bills. For Susannah and her family, this cash changes everything. Her father is in debt and could use it, but the teen would rather burn the money than keep it. Everyone on the yacht seems to have a different view of what to do with the find, causing dangerous divisiveness. The yacht is being followed by an airplane carrying some pretty bad dudes: Jeremy Tygart, a drug lord's son who wants to prove himself, and Shako, a teenage hit man who likes killing people. This adrenaline-filled adventure keeps readers on edge, and Cadnum has a way of making them feel as if they know each character personally. Teens who like action and adventure will enjoy this title.—Shannon Seglin, Patrick Henry Library, Vienna, VA - Copyright 2012 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission. Loading...
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