James is trapped in Russia when mission with MI5 goes seriously, and mysteriously wrong. Though he's shown CCTV footage by a CIA agent, his mission control supervisor Ewart (husband of the Cherub chairwoman) tells James he's implicated in the catastrophe. Fearing his Cherub career could be over, and concerned that Ewart may be more interested in protecting himself than in clearing James, he decides to search Ewart's office. He asks his girlfriend Kerry to help him, but she'd rather play video games. Hurt and worried about his future, James searches Ewart's office alone, and is sprung by Dana, an older Cherub agent, who agrees to help him, a decision that results in some very unexpected changes.
In the meantime his younger sister Lauren in on her first solo mission, infiltrating a children's home to uncover a child prostitution racket involving young girls smuggled into Britain by Russian mobsters, and only narrowly escapes being raped and murdered.
The incorporation of significant thematic elements, present from the first book, The Recruit, continues through the Cherub series - in addition to the seriously heavy trilogy of abduction, prostitution and rape, Muchamore discusses the fate of these young girls - they are usually repatriated to their place of origin, only to (often) be recaptured and once again sent to the UK. The traumatic experiences Lauren has do not vanish without effect, and this is subtly portrayed toward the end of the book.
There are also elements that many teens have to deal with, from facing up to your responsibilities, to betrayal on a number of levels, the end of relationships, the consequences of actions, and the flawed behaviour of adults.
All that palatably wrapped up with an exciting plot, exotic locales, engaging characters and genuinely riveting writing. - Alex
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