Lucia Chen/Staff reporter

Point Blanc is the second book in the Alex Rider series, published by British author Anthony Horowitz in 2001.

Point Blanc is an academy for the delinquent children of wealthy families and can only be accessed by helicopter because it is located in the mountains. In order to be admitted into the Point Blanc Academy, Alex Rider, a 14-year-old teenager, is hired by MI6 as a spy and given the new identity of Alex Friend, the rebellious son of Sir David Friend, who is a supermarket billionaire.

In the beginning of this book, Alex Rider almost gets himself arrested after coming close to accidentally killing a lot of people. When he is arrested by the police who begin to investigate him, the British Intelligence Agency (MI6) steps in and stops the investigation cold. Alan Blunt, the director of MI6, then blackmails Alex into investigating the death of two billionaires; Michael J Roscoe and General Viktor Ivanov. The only thing that links the two men together is that each of their disobedient sons attends the same school, Point Blanc Academy.

While at the school, Alex befriends another student, James Sprints, who tells Alex that there is something wrong with the academy, where there are only a total of eight students. James tells Alex that these students undergo a complete change overnight and become essentially perfect and flawless versions of themselves. MI6 wants Alex to get to the bottom of the truth behind what’s really going on at the Point Blanc Academy.

The novel is full of suspense with an unpredictable plot, it always leaves the reader wondering what will happen next. The book progresses very slowly, but it’s very detailed. It makes you feel like you are part of the adventure and experiencing everything with Alex. The perspective is also very interesting and unique because it invites the reader to see things from Alex’s perspective – a boy made to become a spy against his will.

Point Blanc is a wonderful novel, and it’s a good read for people who enjoy mysteries. Readers can start with “Stormbreaker” which is the previous book or start reading Point Blanc directly.