Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Book review - Charlie THorne and the Last Equation

Title: Charlie Thorne and the Last Equation
Author: Stuart Gibbs
Genre: action adventure
Similar books: Stormbreaker by Anthony Horowitz
                      Jack and the Geniuses by Bill Nye
Rating:
excitement with issues to ponder

Summary (provided by publisher): Charlie Thorne is a genius.
Charlie Thorne is a thief.
Charlie Thorne isn’t old enough to drive.
And now it’s up to her to save the world…
Decades ago, Albert Einstein devised an equation that could benefit all life on earth—or destroy it. Fearing what would happen if the equation fell into the wrong hands, he hid it.
But now, a diabolical group known as the Furies are closing in on its location. In desperation, a team of CIA agents drags Charlie into the hunt, needing her brilliance to find it first—even though this means placing her life in grave danger.
In a breakneck adventure that spans the globe, Charlie must crack a complex code created by Einstein himself, struggle to survive in a world where no one can be trusted, and fight to keep the last equation safe once and for all.


My opinion: The first thing that strikes me about this book is that Charlie is a kid. Yes, she's a genius who does impossible things. But she's ultimately unprepared for violence and terrorism. Being attacked leaves her in pain and in tears. Seeing death leads her to vomit. She mouths off to people and fails to think through her decisions. She's a teen and ultimately makes teen mistakes. Her adventure forces her to look at her life and the decisions she's making, to start considering responsibility and making decisions for more than just her own good. It's puberty on a macro scale. It asks the reader to consider, too, the implications of world altering technology and the responsibility of those who create it.
Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley.

No comments:

Post a Comment