Alex Rider Mission 3: Skeleton Key

Name: William Joseph
Price range: $

by Anthony Horowitz

Interest age: 9 to 13
Reading age: 11+

Published by Walker Books, 2015

Adventure
Classics
Thriller

About this book

An utterly relentless and gripping page-turning thriller of a ride, Skeleton Key is the third in the Alex Rider series of books by Anthony Horowitz.

Alex Rider’s back, and he’s in trouble. Real trouble. Having promised himself, and MI6 that he would be hanging up his spy hat for good, Alex is reluctantly drawn back in to the secret world of international espionage, intrigue and grave danger, all through the seemingly harmless guise of a sunny and strawberry-filled two week stint as an inquisitive ball-boy at the Wimbledon tennis championships.

But, as the tennis players limber up on Centre Court, strawberries are the last thing Alex has on his plate. With a nose for sniffing out trouble, and an inability to turn his back on a baddie, Alex is unwittingly lured into the path of a Chinese Triad gang, an angry (and hungry!) great white shark, hapless CIA agents, and a death-defying, world-changing plan involving two warring Russians, a swamp and a pound of nuclear explosives, all set in the beautiful back-drop of Caya Esqueleto.

About the author

Anthony Horowitz is a screenwriter and children's novelist. Born in 1955 in North London, he was educated at Rugby School and York University, and published his first book, Enter Frederick K Bower, in 1978.

He created the television series Foyle's War, Murder in Mind, Midsomer Murders, Crime Traveller and Menace, and has written episodes for many more, including Agatha Christie's Poirot, Murder Most Horrid and Robin of Sherwood. He has also written a horror film, The Gathering, starring Christina Ricci.

His books for children include the Alex Rider series about the teenage secret agent. There are nine books in the series including Snakehead (2007), shortlisted for the 2008 Book Trust Teenage Prize. He has also written The Power of Five series, Diamond Brothers series of mystery stories and the Groosham Grange series.