Circle of Fire

Gr 6–9—As a young child, Maya, now 15, was rescued from war-torn Kosovo and adopted by Pam, a British intelligence agent. These two events shape much of the story. While out for a run at her grandmother's home (where Maya and her mom were under protection), Maya's mom is kidnapped, and an agent who has been guarding them is killed. The remainder of the book focuses on Maya's determination to rescue her mother at any cost. She ignores the commands of the top British agents at MI6, defies the Muslim contact who was helping her mother track a terrorist cell, and neatly stumbles on circumstances and coincidences that save her each time she encounters violence at the hands of extremists. The story has a happy ending, but the action, suspense, and romance are never fully realized. The characters' lines are ordinary, the terrorist cell inept, and the convenient escapes for Maya a little too hard to believe.—Joanne K. Cecere, Monroe-Woodbury High School, Central Valley, NY