Cherub Boxed Set, #1-3

CHERUB #1-3

by Robert Muchamore

This volume includes; The Recruit, Class A and Maximum Security.


The Recruit
CHERUB agents are highly trained, extremely talented--and all under the age of seventeen. For official purposes, these agents do not exist. They are sent out on missions to spy on terrorists, hack into crucial documents, and gather intel on global threats—all without gadgets or weapons. It is an exceptionally dangerous job, but these agents have one crucial advantage: adults never suspect that teens are spying on them. James is the latest CHERUB recruit. He’s a bit of a troublemaker, but he’s also brilliant. And CHERUB needs him. James has no idea what to expect, but he’s out of options. Before he can start in the field he must first survive one hundred grueling days of basic training, where even the toughest recruits don’t make it to the end.

Class A
Drugs, cars and guns! Keith Moore is Europe's biggest cocaine dealer. The police have been trying to get enough evidence to nail him for more than twenty years. Now, four CHERUB agents are joining the hunt. Can a group of kids successfully infiltrate Keith Moore's organisation when dozens of attempts by undercover police officers have failed? James Adams must start at the bottom, making deliveries for small time drug dealers and getting to know the dangerous underworld they inhabit. He needs to make a big splash if he's going to win the confidence of the man at the top.

Maximum Security
CHERUB agents are highly trained, extremely talented—and all under the age of seventeen. For official purposes, these agents do not exist. They are sent out on missions to spy on terrorists, hack into crucial documents, and gather intel on global threats—all without gadgets or weapons. It is a highly dangerous job, but these agents have one crucial advantage: Adults never suspect that teens are spying on them. In Maximum Security, James’s newest mission brings him to the sun-baked desert prison Arizona Max, home to 280 child criminals. One of them is the son of a weapons dealer who has been selling U.S. missiles to terrorists. If James can get the kid, CHERUB has a chance to stop the father. Getting into the prison is easy. Breaking out is the hard part.

1008 pages, Paperback

First published April 16, 2013

About the author

Robert Muchamore was born in Islington, London in 1972. He still lives there, and worked as a private investigator up until 2005 and the critically-accepted release of Maximum Security.

The Hunger Games phenomenon is part of the huge YA / Children's book explosion that has grown, thanks to the British Rat pack of YA authors, Anthony Horowitz, Robert Muchamore, Mark A. Cooper and Charlie Higson. We owe much of the hunger games sucess to authors such as Robert.

Robert was inspired to create the CHERUB series by his nephew after he complained about the lack of anything for them to read. CHERUB: The Recruit was Robert's first book and won the Red House Children's Book Award 2005 in the Older Readers Category.

Following the last book in the CHERUB series, it was revealed that a trilogy would be released starting from August 2011 that will focus on a new set of CHERUB agents centred upon Ryan Sharma and also involve an sixteen year old Lauren Adams. The first book will be called People's Republic.

Check out the Hendersons Boys series. Henderson's Boys is a series of young adult spy novels written by English author Robert Muchamore. The series follows Charles Henderson, the creator of the fictitious CHERUB organisation.
CHERUB is currently being made into a TV series.

Reviews

[Emmett · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read the book Cherub over the summer and I thought it was a quality read. In this book the main character James’ mom dies so he and his sister Lauren go to a foster home. When they are at the foster home James’ roommate Kyle recruits him to Cherub which is the school for the young secret service agents. When he is at Cherub he goes through a grueling training period of 100 days. I love how the book showed the character struggling through basic training. I also liked how the setting of the book is in Britain so the characters use British expressions. For example they call their friends “mates”, and when James likes someone they say he “fancys” her. If I could critique the book in one way, I would say that there were too many characters, it made the book confusing. But beside that I thought the book was superb.

[Dylan · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the book Cherub, it starts off pretty good. They’re on a mission to save some people. The book is very bold and very energetic. When you get done with one page you just want to read the next, and continue. The kids are born for doing missions. When summer break comes along, they have to work out.
I honestly feel bad for them. When I think of summer break, I think of vacations and having fun, not doing missions and working out the entire time. They have to run and lift weights. I personally like this book because it’s really fun and it’s a cliffhanger. This book is a good first book. I think that because it’s easy to read and it’s fun to read. I could get this book done with pretty fast and I’m a really slow reader. This is what i think of the book Cherub.

[Dan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a very good book for readers who like action. Many of the characters are outgoing and they a severely developed. Robert Muchamore is a very talented book writer who currently has three cherub series under his belt. The first series is before cherub officially started, the second is about during the period where it is still runing, and the last series is another cherub student like the second series.

[Daniel Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book: CHERUB, The Dealer

claim: It's easy to lose trust in a heartbeat but gaining it takes a lifetime

Intro:
The songs that I picked below are the songs that I thought that related to my claim and book well. Even though my book is about action there is a lot of romance and heartbreaking that goes along the way of this book. Most of it are about trust. Some of the songs are about gaining the trust back but some are about losing it.

1.Trust-Justin Bieber

The song once says did we build this relationship all this way to watch it fall. The fact that the word fall is implemented means that the relationship will fall quickly rather than slowly and steadily. Also, the songs title is trust, causing me to be certain that this song supports my claim.

2.maps-Maroon 5

The chorus says “I was there for you in your darkest times but where were you when I was at my worst and on my knees you said you had my back”. These lyrics are saying that when I was down and hurt you didn't have my back and you lost my trust. This song supports the losing trust can be a very fast part but not gaining the trust back. This song does not have anything to do with gaining trust, it is all about losing trust with one action.

3.locked away-R.CITY

The lyrics say “ Baby tell me would you stick around if I had nothing to offer you?” The way the lyrics are sung in this song makes it sound like he’s trying to prove his own point and asking rhetorical questions that he already knows the answers to. The fact that the singer does this makes me think that the girl has completely lost the guys trust by being a gold digger and using him to get things she wants.

4.mark my words-Justin Bieber

The lyrics in a part say “Mark my words, that's all I got, mark my words, give you all I got, in every way I will”. This part of the song is about the singer trying to gain the trust of a girl back and how he is trying so desperately and giving her all he has got. This song supports that the process of gaining someone's trust back is very hard

5.Be right there-sleepy Tom

In a part of the song the lyrics say “Don’t walk away boy, I'll be right there for you, My love won't hurt you again”. This song is about how a girl broke a guys heart and she is trying to make him stay and not try to run away. The lyrics that are used in songs about trust are always promising like ill be right there. This song supports my claim about how once trust is lost you may have to work extra hard to get it back.

6.Desire-Years & Years

This song talks about how it is a guy desire to be with a girl but some things are preventing him from doing so(Girl is cheating on the guy). In the lyrics, it says “your love only gets me abused”. In the song, there is also some vulgar information which implies that the girl is always with another guy so you can tell that the guy is hurt. It shows how easy it is to lose one's trust.


7. This goes out to you -Yonas

The chorus of the song is “this goes out to you, you were there when no one was around” This song is controversial because it shows that you always have to be there for someone to be trusted and close to them. In the song maps, it talks about how she was never there for him and this made him lose trust to her. This shows how easy it is to be trusted, to be there for them. Also, in the book James’ best friend Kyle is a very loyal man to his girlfriend and is always there for her. On the other hand, James is a player.

8.sorry-Justin Bieber

In the song Justin Bieber says “Hope I don’t run out of time can someone call the referee, cause i just need one more chance at forgiveness” and also “ I know you know that I've made some mistakes maybe once or twice” This shows that she has lost his girl and he is trying to get her back. From the context of the lyrics, i can tell that he has also lost her trust and is trying to get it back. In my book James the main character has to beg multiple times to get his girlfriends trust back after he cheated on her.

9. Same Old Love- Selena Gomez

In the song, Selena Gomez says “I‘ve heard it all before a million times, I don’t believe it”. What this means is that the guy is trying to make excuses and saying the same excuses over and over again which the girl does not believe. Once you have lost someone's trust they do not believe yo just like the fox boy. This relates to my book because this was almost exactly Gabriels' reaction when one of the main characters rats cheated on her and tried to make stupid excuses like she was the one that kissed me first.

10. The Heart Wants What it Wants-Selena Gomez

In the song Selena Gomez says “Save your advice I don’t care, you might be right but I don’t care”. This shows how much a girl/guy can be when you lose their trust by doing something stupid. Also, by the way, Selena Gomez says “I don’t care” after both of those lyrics says that someone has lost her trust and now she doesn't care what whoever says because she doesn't care and she knows the truth.

Conclusion:

The way all of these authors express the lyrics are different but they all do fit my claim. Everyone knows the story of the fox boy. He lies multiple times and at the end he loses everyone's trust. Later when a real fox appears and he calls out for help everyone does not trust him and he calls multiple times as a result of nothing. In conclusion, once trust is lost once it's harder to get it back.

[Nene Riley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Categories/Genres: Series/Spy Thriller

Estimate of Age Level of Interest: YA

Estimate of Reading Level: 4.5, Lexile 660

Brief Description:

In the first book of the series we meet James, a troubled twelve year old, who has been kicked out of school. When his mom dies of drug/alcohol poisoning he is recruited by Cherub, a British training program for child spies. After a grueling training period, he is sent undercover to thwart environmental terrorists at a squatter/commune that was started in the 1960s.


Two Characteristics of This Genre and How They Appear in the Book: One characteristic of the genre is familiar characters and settings that return with each book in the series. We get to know James, his sister, his partner Kerry, and his teachers. The characters are well drawn with their mix of amazing capabilities yet real life vulnerabilities. James is a great mix of tough, impulsive, brilliant and good hearted, for all he has experienced in his young life.

Another characteristic of series is the predictable narrative. There will be a dangerous mission to stop the bad guys with ingenious devices, physical prowess, and threat of injury or death. This series does not disappoint, but in the end James does stop to wonder who the bad guys really are. Are the oil executives whose lives he saves--whose business practices harm the lives of everyday people--really the good guys?

How the Book Serves its Intended Audience: The book serves boys and girls look for an exciting adventure story with a bit of romance, search for identity, and plenty of action.

Awards: Horn Book Review 10/1/10

Links to Published Reviews from Professional Sources:

“Much of the novel is standard spy training stuff, including a grueling boot camp (complete with a relentlessly tough and sadistic instructor), bonding sequences with his fellow recruits, and a first mission that goes awry. In this case, that mission involves infiltrating a camp of ex-hippies who are planning to attack oil company executives. If the plot is predictable, Muchamore presents both the spies and the dangers they face realistically, avoiding over-the-top gadgets and slapstick. Well-fleshed out minor characters-including James's training partner/crush, as well as his sister-help elevate the story above the standard fare.” Publishers Weekly, May 6, 2013.

“The narrative tends to explain thoughts and motivations rather than letting James's actions speak for themselves, but its fast pace and teen-spy action will grab readers' attention.”
Horn Book Sept/Oct 2010.

[Andrew]

5/19/15


4th Quarter Book Review

Title and Author: Cherub, The Recruit by Robert Muchamore


Identification of the main characters: James Robert Anthony Adams is the main character in the book Cherub, The Recruit. Throughout the book we experience the 100 grueling days of basic training through James's eyes. We also watch James go through his first mission which turns out to be more dangerous than the head spy of CHERUB had originally thought.


Summary of the plot: James loses his mother in the early stages of the book, making him and his sister orphans. His step dad adopts his sister Lauren but not him, forcing him into an orphanage. Luckily, scouts at the orphanage working for CHERUB spot him and realize his talents. He is then offered a place at CHERUB, a school for spies and an opportunity to start over. James gladly accepts the offer, however, he first has to complete 100 days of basic training to be able to go on missions to spy and gather data for the mi5 a branch of British intelligence. James completes his basic training and is sent on a mission to gather intel on terrorists threatening to harm oil companies.


Explanation of the conflict: The conflict in this novel is a group versus group. There are two groups, one a protector of Mother Earth, willing to kill to help save the our planet. The other group in the conflict is made up of the oil companies who want to make money off the earth's resources. The terrorists try to kill the oil company executives who are there for a meeting. The terrorists are planning to use a disease that will travel through the air vents. James and his field partner are sent to uncover as much information as they can and report back to CHERUB.

Whether you liked the book or not and why: I liked this book because it brought a new idea to my mind about the abilities that children have that adults do not. In history we are learning about WWII, and how kids ages 12-14 snuck into the military and the navy. While I realize that this book is fictional, and there is no organization that trains children as spies, in the 1940's children were trained in the ways of combat, just as they are in this book. I feel that the author could be trying to make this connection clear to the reader while still making the book thrilling and exciting for younger kids.

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

The reason why I like the book called Cherub The Recruit was because I like how they were put on courses to test them. Also how he put them on a mission to get to all the check points they had to reach by using what they were taught. Another reason I liked this book was because of all the action and survival skills. Another awesome reason is because of how they were taught to get along with people you don't now so you had to be carful on how fast there pace was compared to yours and how there balance and all that stuff. Over all I enjoyed this book and wood recommend this to people who like survival skills, action and adventure books so if your one of those people then I really recommend this series.

The reason why I liked the book Cherub the Dealer was because in this book it had a lot more action than the frist book. Also I liked how you were put undercover. Another reason why I liked it is becuase while they were undercover they were able to have fun. The reason they were undercover was because there trying to bring down a company called KMG. Also they were taught a lot more skills over the year. The last reason is becuase of how James little sister is now going threw basic traning. My favirote part in the book is when Lauren hit Mr.Large in the back with a shovel. The reason why this is my favirote part is because he treated every body like dirt but every one has wanted to hit at least once and no one has except for Lauren and thats why I really liked this book and why I rated it that.

[Cade]

I got this book from recommendation from my middle school librarian. This is the sequel to The recruit which i am hooked on the second book. This takes place in a beach mansion in Miami Florida. And the other half takes place in a agent compound in the countryside of England. This character is facing internal conflict because he doesn't want to betray his good friend junior Moore but he has to do to his agent mission. He also faces a drug operation as a physical force. This character is very dynamic. He faced a lot of friendship issues when he has to betray his good friend junior Moore to complete a cocaine drug operation. 3 traits to describe James would be: realistic, stays on task and friendly. " James has to betray his good friend Junior"- Munchamore. I don't really have any connections to this book but i guess i have lost a friend before and i have been to Miami and lastly i have been to the beach in Miami, not the one where the book took place but to a beach in Miami. I thought this book was an amazing and outstanding book that has a lot of action and a lot of adventure. I definitely recommend this book to anyone who like action and adventure books. Over all these books are some of the best books i have ever read.

[Da'jour · Rating 5 out of 5]

CHERUB: The Recruit is a fast and exciting reading that constantly keeps the reader interested. The dynamics of the protagonist, the use of diction, and the thickness of the rising action and climax keep the wheels turning. For example, the author's approach to the exposition i.e. the reason why the protagonist was chosen to be apart the agency, makes the rising action and the climax have a greater impact. Although, the author used menial diction throughout the entire story, it allowed for the reader to read quickly and enjoy the content. In conclusion, the author does a remarkable job and I would can't wait to read book #2.

[Grant Covington · Rating 4 out of 5]

The CHERUB series is set in modern day England. CHERUB is a company with highly trained and skilled spies. The twist is, these aren't your average spies. These are all children under the age of seventeen. The Majority of the story is about this boy, who is sent into foster care and finds his way into CHERUB. These books are filled with his adventures and his journey with other CHERUB recruits.
I absolutely loved this book. I thought the author did really well with the development of his characters. The only warnings I have are a little bit of language, violence, and a little bit of drugs/alcohol. I would recommend this to all of my friends.

[Vanessa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This first book from the cherub series is very interesting. It has many suspense in it and gets you to read more. If you are a teenage boy or girl then this book will fascinate you because it talks about undercover teenage spies and how they go on missions. This book is very good and i will really recommend this book to anyone who likes thrills. If you are looking for a good series with thrill and suspense then i recommend this book to you. This book can be very fascinated because you can relate to it if you are a teenage boy or girl. I will love to read the second book of the series.

[Luca · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was amazing it was a very good book. It had many twists and turns with horrifying adventure and crazy action. It is a secret spy book. It is about a kid how's mom dies and becomes an amazing agent thru hard work and training that could lead to death. This book took me off my egg of my seat of haw much mystery and what would happen next. My favorite part is when they stuck him in the world to find checkpoints and survive the nights of death. This good book is called The Recruit from Cherub

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This review is just about the book "The Dealer". I think that "The Recruit" was a better book but this was still really good. It was a really cool mission that James had to do, and the nonstop action was the best part of the book. I was also able to connect with James well, and this made it more enjoyable.

[Jack · Rating 5 out of 5]

These Books were AMAZING I would recommend this book to anyone who likes action. Mrs.G I think you would deeply enjoy this book.

[Mikachew · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great,long, exciting book that can't make you put it down