Kitty Hawk

I, Q #3

by Roland Smith

The president's daughter has been kidnapped by the elusive and lethal Ghost Cell. Quest (Q) and Angela are in hot pursuit with vicious winds and blinding rain thwarting them at every turn. It's a desperate high stakes chase. But who is chasing whom? Are Q and Angela the hunters or the hunted?

Genres: Young Adult, Adventure, Mystery, Middle Grade, Espionage, Fiction, Action

240 pages, Paperback

First published February 2, 2012

About the author

Roland Smith is an American author of young adult fiction as well as nonfiction books for children.
Smith was born in Portland, Oregon, and graduated from Portland State University and, following a part-time job at the Oregon Zoo in Portland, began a 20-year career as a zookeeper, both at the Oregon Zoo and the Point Defiance Zoo in Tacoma, Washington. After working to save wildlife following the Exxon Valdez oil spill, in 1990, he published his first book, Sea Otter Rescue, a non-fiction account of the process of animal rescue. Smith continued to draw upon his zoo experiences for other non-fiction titles, including Journey of the Red Wolf, which won an Oregon Book Award in 1996.
In 1997, Smith published his first novel, Thundercave. The book continues Smith's theme, as teenage protagonist Jacob Lansa follows his biologist father to Africa where the father is researching elephants. The Lansa character also appears in 1999
s Jaguar and 2001's The Last Lobo. Other novels by Smith include The Captain's Dog: My Journey with the Lewis and Clark Tribe, Zach's Lie, Jack's Run, Cryptid Hunters, Sasquatch (novel), about a boy who searches for Bigfoot. Peak, the story of a teenage boy obsessed with climbing mountains, Elephant Run and Tentacles(novel). In 2008, Smith published the first book in the series I, Q, titled Independence Hall. Smith's books have won "Book of the Year" awards in Colorado, Nevada, South Carolina, and Florida, as well as in his native Oregon. Smith lives in Tualatin, Oregon with his wife and stepchildren.

Reviews

[07SethH Huber · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ladies and Gentlemen of the jury, I intend to prove that Kitty Hawk, the third book in the I,Q series by Roland Smith is a very good book with an intriguing and suspenseful plot and interesting characters that make it hard to put down. The story is told in a first person voice throughout most of it, although it sometimes switches to third person limited. It is about a boy named Quest Munoz (Q) and his stepsister Angela Tucker, who are helping to stop a huge terrorist plot. The other protagonist in this book is Angela’s real mother, Malak Tucker, a former Secret Service agent who faked her own death and took the place of her sister, who was an infamous terrorist. Malak is helping Q and the others stop the terrorists by infiltrating them. Her double life is one of the main issues in this book. The other is that the terrorists have the president’s daughter and are a “ghost cell”, which means they can simply go into hiding if needed.
The only thing I didn’t like about this book was that sometimes it was hard to distinguish between the good and bad characters based on their actions. For example, on page 155 it says, “Ziv and Eben were getting ready to set a car bomb off.” Ziv and Eben are supposed to be two of the good guys, but good guys generally don’t set off car bombs. Despite this problem in the book, it is still a very intriguing and suspenseful book.
“He crushed the cigarette out, put on his stocking cap, then pushed the cart through the sliding glass doors hoping there wasn’t a sniper bullet waiting for him as he crossed the parking lot.” A sentence like this instantly makes you wonder what’s going to happen next. But when there’s a whole chapter after it about a different character, you are definitely kept in suspense. That is just one example of many I could give of how this book is excellent at keeping you in suspense.
Another quality that makes this book a book you want to read are the interesting characters this book has. Just a couple of them that have been mentioned already are “Eben Lavi (a rouge Israeli Mossad agent who had stuck a knife in my neck) and Malak’s father, Ziv (not his real name).” Characters like that make this book very interesting. Every character in this book is like that. Though there are too many to name right now, a few more of them are Boone, X-ray, Vanessa, John Masters, the President of the United States, J.R. Culpepper and his daughter Bethany, and so many more.
The final quality that makes you want to read the book is the intriguing plot. On page 84, Boone says, “’The Tahoes aren’t there just to throw us off track. They’re bombs. Probably all four rigs are.” As soon as you find out that there are four car bombs going different directions, you have to find out what happens with them. There are many more examples of how the book has an intriguing plot that makes you want to read more.
In conclusion, this book is one of the books that make you want to read. It has suspense, interesting characters, and an intriguing plot. I highly recommend this book to anyone that likes a good mystery, suspense or anyone who just likes to read.

[Sarah Skinner · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have just finished reading this series (or what has come out so far), and I was very disappointed with this last book. Throughout the series, Roland Smith has built a fairly interesting (albeit bland in some parts) set of characters and situation. He pretty much throws it all away in this last book. The thing about this series that made it engaging was that it utilized real-world elements to create a frightening terrorist group. Suddenly Smith randomly decided that the old roadie/ex-spy and his dog should have superpowers!! Brilliant, right? No. This entire book was slow-paced and tedious. Nothing happened until the very end, and even then, very little happened. This book was thoroughly and overwhelmingly underwhelming and disappointing.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one wasn't as good as the others but still a page turner. I didn't like how the author suddenly added a supernatural twist to the story. Not sure where he is going with the story now. Q changed a little also, now he talks to himself and his "itch" was taken to a new level. From book 1 Boone has been looked at funny because of how old he and his dog should be. Now we find that they can "blink" to places. Oh, and the dog is super intelligent. Okay.. So I am curious as to what happens next but I don't think I will rush out and buy book #4.

[Desi Kennedy · Rating 4 out of 5]

So good!! I had to remind myself to breathe!!

[Bette · Rating 3 out of 5]

In the previous book of this series the president's daughter was kidnapped by the Leopard (Malak, undercover ex-secret service agent and Angela’s Mom) at the orders of the Ghost Cell.

Now, Boone, Angela, Q and the rest of the SOS (Some Old Spooks) are following, driving into a hurricane with vicious winds and blinding rain trying to find Bethany and return her to her father, the President of the United States.

At a rest stop Bethany and Malak were transferred to a black SUV but which one? There were four cars at the transfer site and three are decoys. Speed Paulsen, Q’s Dad, has suddenly shown up and Boone has a bad feeling about him.

Young adult action adventure yarn with spies and terrorists in Kitty Hawk, N.C. The author gives an overview of politics, geography and history of the Outer Banks (OBX). Very fast and involving story.

[Katie Killingsworth · Rating 5 out of 5]

The adventure continues, picking up right where the second book left off. Action-packed, things aren’t always going as anybody has planned. Boone has some tricks up his sleeve, but they haven’t fully been revealed, yet. (I’m not quite sure I like where that part is headed, but we’ll see.) I’ve realized each of the books actually only covers a very short period of time, but the author certainly packs the action into that short time period. Yep~ It’s good enough that I’ll continue on with the series.

[Danielle Norris · Rating 5 out of 5]

I kept having to stop reading because my heart was racing! That is a good endorsement of a book! It is a never-ending thrill ride!

[Marla · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars. Join the story in progress. Bethany Culpepper, the 1st daughter is kidnapped and our friends, new step-siblings, Angela & Q (Quest) are in pursuit with SOS - Some Old Spooks, led by old roadie/spy Tyrone Boone and his smelly ancient dog, Croc.

Likes:
* Entire book happens from September 7th from midnight to 9:15 am
* Clever chapter titles
* POV jumps between different spies and Malak
* SOS team - Tyrone Boone, Croc, tech wiz - X-Ray, big Felix, Vanessa, tall Uly, and ex-Moussad agents Eben Levi and Malak's father Ziv
* Croc's one blue eye and one brown eye
* Malak Turner, double agent and Angela's mother, aka terrorist Anmar, the Leopard
* President J.R. Culpepper "watching" operation
* Ex-SEAL guest spook, John Masters

* Croc knowing where Bethany and Malak were
* Using drone to track terrorists, then resort to old school methods
* Q's magic tricks and sleight of hand
* Bethany's yoga breathing
* Boone and Croc blinking places was interesting, but spy fans may not appreciate this paranormal twist
* Minutes for assault to transpire


Dislikes:
* First Son, P.K. (President's Kid), wasn't in this story much
* Peter "Speed" Paulsen, Q's famous rock star father kept turning up

* Basically one looong chase scene, but I enjoyed it
* Dad, Speed Paulsen, would hardly show up driving alone when he 1) never drives and 2) is never without his entourage


With-reservations (for middle school):
violence, kidnapping, terrorist, murder, bombs, smoking, breaking in, grand theft auto

[Tanner Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was original supposed to be the last book in the series but apparently the author decided to create a forth book to the series. This book was full of excitement and anticipation. The main character Q. was mentioned very little, and it kind of jolted between one story and the other. Their where multiple instances where the story could have been improved. for example, While the kids where on the island in the terrorist headquarters boon appeared in the site of Q. and held up the number 3, only the number three though, he did not specify what the three meant and why it was important to them. Somehow the kids knew that he was talking about three min.. In another instance Boon had reveled that he had the ability to telaport, while they where stopped in the middle of the road. he could have told them that he could and reassured them that they where safe before they where left behind in the car by themselves. the book was rather good though as well. Their was a good, strong structure to build on and he took as many chances as he could on writing it. Their was a good overall outcome at the ending. Only the people that deserved it were killed by the S.O.S team and none of the main characters died.

[Sam · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was an okay book. It wasn't NEARLY as good as the first two, I've read before. This book introduces superpowers with Boone, and brings in a character from another book by Roland Smith that does absolutely nothing. It seemed like for the whole book, people were just driving around in cars, looking for the Tahoe that specific group was following. It was pretty boring. I definitely would't read this over again.

[Sam · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was a very good book and kind of intense.

[Kristi Drillien · Rating 4 out of 5]

New step-siblings Q (short for Quest) and Angela continue to trail a ghost terrorist cell along with SOS, a team made up mostly of retired operatives from the CIA and other organizations. Most importantly, they're following Angela's mother and the First Daughter, and it's vital that they don't fall for the ghost cell's attempts to confuse whoever might be following them. Meanwhile, some unexpected new developments are thrown into the mix, and it's not always clear who is friend, foe, or neither.

We start in the middle of the chase again in this book, though I had no difficulty diving back in. I'm glad I'm reading the series after it's all out, or I'd probably struggle with remembering what's going on if I had to wait a year or more to continue on. The first two books were largely from Q's POV (1st person), with other scenes shown to us as 3rd person and in italics. This book, though, has a lot more from other people's POVs, still 3rd person, and fortunately loses the italics, because it would have been a lot of italics, and that's not always pleasant to read. It seemed strange to still be 1st person when following Q, since there was so much 3rd person this time, but it would have also been weird to suddenly drop the 1st person completely after 2 books. It was only a little confusing to go back to 1st person now and then, so overall, not a problem. And I really appreciated being able to follow the multiple sub-sets of the SOS team in one particular part of this book.

Two big things happened in this book that intrigued me the most. One was not clear to me by the end whether or not there's more going on than what is stated (there's not much more I can say without giving spoilers). The second new development is the big one, that being the sudden supernatural elements that seem to come out of nowhere. Though when I examine it further, I don't think it's completely out of nowhere. There were certainly signs that something unusual was going on in the first two books, but I definitely did not expect this. I'm willing to give both of these uncertain elements a chance, though. The books have been enjoyable so far, and I am still looking forward to seeing where the overall story goes from here.  At this point, I still recommend this series for younger readers who want something exciting or thrilling, or even adults who don't necessarily care for adult spy thrillers but enjoy a good adventure story.

[Phoebe Hosford · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book which is the third one in the IQ series named Kitty Hawk by Roland Smith tales place during a car chase along I-95 in the middle of a hurricane. This book is a direct follow up of book 2 The White House where Bethany gets taken. Boone and his team along with Angela and Q get into a car chase with the ghost cell to try to get Bethany back. The only problem is the cell is using five different cars that look exactly the same and they don't know which one Bethany is in. Another problem revealed in this book is that Malak needs to follow through on her mission of turning bethany over to the top members of the cell so that she can be admitted into the top part of the cell but f she does this Bethany will die and she promised the president she would protect Bethany with her life.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Now I have to stop until the rest come in from the library. Have I mentioned how amazing these books are?

John Masters also has a Seamaster watch and is a former SEAL. He's brought in to assist when Bethany is kidnapped. It's a huge, intense game of cat and mouse, with a shell game thrown in for good measure.

Malak has passed the test by kidnapping Bethany and is promoted to "the Five". She meets Member Five in the Outer Banks and is soon to meet the other three.

Q's dad is around now. I think he's going to be annoying.

By the end of the book, eight more terrorists are dead, Malak and Paul escaped, Bethany is returned to her father, and things seem to just be heating up.

[Ann · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hmmm. I’ve given some of the far-flung plot points a pass to this point, considering the idea behind the book series is to provide kids with an exciting spy story, not necessarily an extremely plausible one. But for whatever reason, 3 books into the series, there needs to be even crazier plot twists and more unbelievable reveals? I almost put the book down when I figured out where they seem to be heading. I won’t give away spoilers here, mostly because I don’t know enough to fully spoil anything, and I’ll continue reading the series, but with a heavy dose of skepticism that they might be laying things on a bit thick. This installment gets 3 stars, mostly because the other two were ok and I don’t have enough information about this new twist to judge its effect on my rating.

[Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kitty Hawk is the third book in the I. Q. series. This book starts right where book two left off with the President's daughter being held by kidnappers including Angela's mother who is still posing as the terrorist, Anwar. Q and Angela are in hot pursuit along with Boone, his ancient dog, Croc, and the rest of the SOS team. Complications arise when the kidnappers provide many decoys for the team to follow, a hurricane sweeps through the east coast, and Q's father shows up unexpectedly. This is another good entry in the I. Q. series. I'm looking forward to reading the next installment.

[Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good addition to the series, this book's best purpose in the story is to truly make the ghost cell into the menacing antagonist that they have been described as. This book is less centered on Malak and more centered on the different members of the SOS team, which is good for character development. The plot finally kicks into high gear, but some of the espionage is lost in the transfer. Some scenes have risen to be my favorites in series, like John Master's store scene. A good read.

[Jaer Armstead-Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

This installment was full of action from beginning to almost the end. Kept me turning pages. It does seem that the adult characters have much bigger roles than the kids. I don't mind it, but it just seems the target audience could be thrown for a loop a bit. Otherwise, the adventure is quite intriguing.

[Janessa Paun · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one just didn't hook me like the other ones, maybe because Angela's mom is starting to annoy me. I also just didn't love the plot as much, it didn't keep me as engaged as the other books. I loved though the snippets that we get of the President, though. I also thought that James was a really interesting character and look forward to seeing more of him in the upcoming books.

[Jack .V · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really good book, cant wait to read the others. The presidents daughter got kidnapped by the Ghost Cell, witch is the most deadly in the world. Q and Angela try to get her out her and the presidents daughter. Will there get her or not? Find out now!

[Edwin · Rating 5 out of 5]

The third book in the IQ series continues the good story line as the presidents daughter was kidnapped by a secret cell known as the ghost cell. Quest and his sister are on a mission to save the presidents daughter with plot twists and turns of events. This book is enjoyable and a good read.

[Mads · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this one. It had some twists but the fact that Roland smith added some super power characteristics kind of ruined the vibe. I still love this book and am excited to read the next one.


Recommend!

[Riley Rogers · Rating 2 out of 5]

The only reason I'm reading this anymore is because I want to know if Boone and Croc are immortal. That is all. I don't really care for the ghost terrorist cell anymore, just.. wrap it up. But naw there's 3 more books for me to read 😐

[Steve Center · Rating 3 out of 5]

Introduction of sci-fi elements at this point in series feels like Smith "jumped the shark"

[Stacey Mulholland · Rating 3 out of 5]

Maybe I wasn't as into this book because it has been so many years since I read #1&2 but this book didn't really interest me.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

This series just keeps getting better. And now there are allusions to a mystery involving Tyrone Boone and his ancient dog, Croc? I HAVE to find out what happens next!

[Sylvia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have decided to read the entire series ahead of my student. This is quite an adventure. I am not so sure that these kids can be as brave as they are, but the story keeps you cheering them on!

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

gahhh the cliffhanger!!!

[The Brothers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Asher (12yo) read. "What in the world is up with Boone and Croc? They can 'poof'! Also, great book, awesome to read. Fun. Die, Ghost Cell, die!"

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

it was pretty good book.