Also Known As by Robin Benway Review

Title: Also Known As
Author: Robin Benway 
Publisher: Bloomsbury  
Release Date: February 26, 2013 
Received: Netgalley  

Summary:  Being a 16-year-old safecracker and active-duty daughter of international spies has its moments, good and bad. Pros: Seeing the world one crime-solving adventure at a time. Having parents with super cool jobs. Cons: Never staying in one place long enough to have friends or a boyfriend. But for Maggie Silver, the biggest perk of all has been avoiding high school and the accompanying cliques, bad lunches, and frustratingly simple locker combinations.

Then Maggie and her parents are sent to New York for her first solo assignment, and all of that changes. She'll need to attend a private school, avoid the temptation to hack the school's security system, and befriend one aggravatingly cute Jesse Oliver to gain the essential information she needs to crack the case . . . all while trying not to blow her cover.   

Review:  I am basically convinced that Robin Benway can do no wrong. I liked both Audrey, Wait! and The Extraordinary Secrets of April, May, and June but I have to say that Also Known As is my favorite book by her so far.

If you are a fan of Ally Carter's books then this book is for you! With spies and cute boys what can go wrong? I have to say one of my favorite parts of this book was the secondary characters. Roux and Jesse added so much to the narrative and were so well developed that I missed them when they were absent from the story.

I have moved quite a few times so I could sympathize with Maggie and her trials with going to a new school in the middle of the semester, but I have to say I never had the added pressure of trying not to blow my cover. :)

I really liked how much Maggie's parents were present. In most YA novels the parents are absent and I liked the added dynamic of not just having one hovering parent but two. 

I kind of figured out the twist/villain of the novel but I kept changing my mind about who it was so kudos to Robin Benway for keeping both Maggie and me on our toes.

Basically if you like mystery, spies, awesome friends, hilarity, and cute boys then this book is for you.