Death by Denim

June 1, 2009
Gr 7 Up-In this third installment, Aphra Connolly is in hiding in France along with her CIA-agent mother, Natalie. After seven months of peaceful anonymity, their location is discovered by one of The Mole's henchmen, a shadowy figure who wears snakeskin boots and has the distinctive smell of cheap French cigarettes. Aphra and her mother must escape and make their way to Paris, where they reestablish contact with the CIA. However, when Natalie's contact is found drowned with denim ligatures around his hands and feet and a cryptic note stuffed in his mouth, Aphra decides to embark on a dangerous mission to Italy to be reunited with her true love, Seth, and trap The Mole. Although lacking in well-developed characters, the breezy plot has enough fast-paced action to please mystery lovers and reluctant readers alike. This novel can stand alone, but most readers will want to go back to "Death by Bikini" and "Death by Latte" (both Sleuth/Speak, 2008) before diving into this fluffy read."Amy V. Jackson, Homewood Middle School, AL"

Copyright 2009 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

May 1, 2009
Grades 7-10 Starting with a heart-pounding chase scene, this third title in the Death By series sends 16-year-old Aphra Connolly and her CIA-agent mom back on the run from a sociopathic killer. Gerber weaves in some major cultural landmarks as Aphra races through Paris and then Italy on a mission to expose the would-be assassin and rescue her love interest, Seth. As in the previous volumes, the plot is secondary to the taut suspense, which, along with interesting tips of the espionage trade, will propel readers to the neat ending, which dispatches the bad guy and hints at a sequels story line.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2009, American Library Association.)