Warp Book 1 the Reluctant Assassin (Warp, #1)

by Eoin Colfer

[Amber (The Literary Phoenix)]

The Reluctant Assassin is entertaining. The story follows unlikely pair Riley and Chevie, one a waif from Victorian England, the other an American teen who is the product of a decommissioned FBI taskforce.  When Riley falls through a time tunnel, the pair struggle to escape a mad assassin and set things right in the present and history alike.  It's a bit of a mad runabout, with the purpose falling away until it seems like the books will never end.  It's entertaining, but altogether, it's a bit pointless.

The characters were fine, although there were moments that made me a bit uncomfortable.  Chevie is Native American, when the pair travelled back in time, the story was rife with racial slurs.  While, yes, these were period appropriate, I think they were unnecessary. I think Chevie and her surroundings could have been better adapted, especially considering this is a middle grade novel?

However, the writing style was very true to Colfer's original. It was light and fast-paced and funny when I didn't expect it to be funny.  I didn't completely dislike the book - there were moments where it was perfectly entertaining!  But The Reluctant Assassin feels like more of a library book than a buyer for me.  Then again, I am many years older than the target audience, and I can see middle schoolers finding this particularly amusing.  But it was a little off center for my tastes.

Generally speaking, I'd say that while I wouldn't necessarily recommend The Reluctant Assassin, I still recommend Eoin Colfer, and any fan should try out this series and see if they enjoy it. :)  But I'd start with Artemis Fowl or The Supernaturalist.