The final Higson book in the series and the last one I've read to date of the series. In many ways this was a lot more mature than the previous books and it was a lot darker. Although James has faced a lot over the course of the series this one sees him drawn a lot deeper in the world of spies. While he does return triumphant (he's Bond..duh) this adventure leads to a darker Bond - less trusting and more emotionally fragile. He survives but the cost is whatever innocence and trust he had left.

I hated Roan. For lots of reasons but something about her irritated me and I hated that James loved her. There were just so many better female characters in previous books. And I wasn't too impressed with Merriot by the end either. I felt sorry for James. The hits just kept coming. It reminded me too much of Alex Rider. I was sad to see James leaving Eton, I know he didn't like it there but it felt too much like he was just abandoned by everyone and everything. I would've liked to see Pritpal and Tommy and James make up or resolve the tension about Bentinck.

Overall Higson concluded his part of the series nicely, wrapping up James' formative years in a nice bow. I'll be interested to see where Steve Cole takes it. For all it made me sad it was well written with an action packed plot. 4 stars. ( )

I really enjoyed this Higson entry...in particular the action in the Austrian Alps at the beginning and the getaway with Roan in the second half of the book. ( )

A great ending to one of my old favorite series, depicting national espionage during the rise of the Nazis- but with a younger James Bond as the protagonist, of course. Not only were the cover and page ends awesome looking, but so was the book. The story is inventive and fits well with the 1930's theme: run-in's with the Hitler Youth, attempts at official's lives, secret bases in the alps. The makings of a Bond movie are very present- a lot of action and suspense is to be expected, as the young Bond survives avalanches and bomb plots. Enough with the listings- the novel is a decent conclusion- a little slow at times for the series, with Bond in the middle of something so much bigger than him. My favorites aspect is the fact that he can't do everything right like the movies- Higson makes the younger Bond fallible. All around a great read- the whole series is.

An excellent end to an Excellent series. Very OHMSS ( )

This book was very intresting but at some points it was a little slow. If you are looking for a quik easy read then this would be the book for you. ( )