Sleeper

DJ #2

by Eric Walters

DJ jets across the Atlantic to England to follow a series of obscure clues and symbols he hopes will reveal the truth about his grandfather. In London, he stays with Doris, the elderly woman he climbed Mount Kilimanjaro with. Laid up with a broken ankle, Doris has her grandchild, Charlie, offer assistance. Charlie―short for Charlotte―is a beautiful model who is romantically (and secretly) linked to a member of the British Royal Family. Spies, guns, double agents, the Cambridge Five and a vintage E-Type Jag are a few of the things DJ and Charlie encounter on an adventure that makes climbing Kilimanjaro look like a walk in the park.

Sleeper is the sequel to both Jungle Land , part of The Seven Prequels and Between Heaven and Earth , part of Seven (The Series).

Genres: Teen, Young Adult, Adventure

240 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 2014

About the author

Eric was born in Toronto in 1957, which makes him "real old". But, as Eric says, "Just because I have to grow old doesn't mean that I have to grow up!" In his many roles as parent, teacher, social worker, youth sports coach and writer he is in constant contact with children and young adults. He draws from these experiences and feels that this helps him to capture the realistic interaction between young people—the conflicts, tensions, stresses and interests that make up their lives.

Eric began his writing as a teacher. He taught in classes from kindergarten up and his stories often reflect the curriculum that he was teaching. He always read stories—picture books and novels—to his students and this helped him to understand what children liked, responded to, and were inspired by. He enjoys the enthusiasm of his students and often looks at them to provide him with the inspiration to pursue a particular topic in both the classroom and in his writing.

Eric tries to write every day. When he has a story idea he starts with research. This could involve reading books, watching a documentary, or trying to experience the things that his characters are going to go through. This could include rock climbing or riding white water (for Stars), spending time in a wheelchair (Rebound), playing and walking with tigers (Tiger by the Tail), hanging around a tough biker bar (Diamonds in the Rough), standing out in his backyard in a blizzard wearing a T-shirt and shorts (Trapped in Ice), or traveling to Africa (Alexandria of Africa).

"The most important thing anybody ever told me about writing was to write what you know . . . and the only way to get to know things is to do your homework and research before you write," Eric stated.

Once the writing begins the story is always playing around in his head. He takes any opportunity, even if it's just a few minutes between presentations, to put things down, either with pen and paper or on his laptop.

Prior to entering teaching and writing Eric was a social worker (B.S.W., M.S.W., B.A.Hons—specialized major psychology). He worked in a variety of settings including child welfare, private practice, a mental health centre, and, for twenty years on a part-time basis as a Crisis Social Worker in an emergency department. He stopped teaching 4 years ago and left the ER only last year.

The majority of Eric's time is spent in the company of his wife, children and dogs (Lola a big standard poodle and a little white dog named Winnie the Poodle).

Reviews

[Krish Patel]

Nice. Suspenseful.

[Christina Getrost · Rating 4 out of 5]

I haven't yet read the whole Seven Series, but I have read the first one, Between Heaven and Earth and when I saw there was a sequel to it I thought I'd pick it up and see what it was like. The "Seven Sequels" is the new series with further adventures of the seven cousins/brothers who share the same adventurous grandfather David. Luckily, you can read any of the books in any order, and also read this sequel without having read the rest of the first series. This book stars DJ, the oldest grandson, in an adventure in England. He and his cousins discover some hidden foreign currency and multiple passports that their grandfather used--along with a coded journal. DJ gives pages of the journal to his cousins and they all decide to travel to the places mentioned, to see if they can figure out what their grandfather did in his past that he wanted kept hidden. Was he really a spy? This book is fast-paced, a great read for reluctant readers, as we follow DJ's adventures trying to uncover the truth about his grandfather. He meets the beautiful Charlie, the granddaughter of his climbing buddy Doris (from the first book), gets to drive a really awesome Jaguar, and gets involved in spying, car chases, shootouts, and helping out the ex-head of MI6. There are also fun references to spy and adventure novels for the clever reader to find. I enjoyed this book more than the first one, but only because this one was more exciting. I liked the moments that connected this book to the sequels, the occasional texts between DJ and his brother (whom you just know is having a great adventure in his own book!). It also had some funny American-vs-Canadian-Vs-British humorous banter. The first one was a little more introspective, more about the relationship between grandson and grandfather. Great for middle school readers.

I read an advance copy of this book from Early Reviewers on LibraryThing.

[Angela · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sleeper is a book I received from the Early Reviewer program with Librarything. This is a YA novel, so I read it with teenagers in mind. The book had a great plot line and moved quickly with little extra "stuff" to slow down the progression. Mystery, intrigue and adventure are the main focus of the story with a small romantic twist. I enjoyed the hints, foreshadowing, that was found at various points in the novel.My one regret is that the characters were not developed more throughout the story, but since it is only a short novel, that can be overlooked. Eric Walters

[Kyle Slayman · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a wonderful book if action and discovery. It is about a boy named DJ short for David, the same name as his grandfather, and he goes to London to meet a friend, Doris. Then he meets Doris niece, Charlie. They go and travel in a E-Type
Jag. Then they think they are followed and find an old man that used to work with the royal family and helped them get away and told them information. After that, they got captured by Russians and when they got away, DJ and Charlie go to the New Year Party and... SPOILER ALERT, They kiss.

[Shonna · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the sequel to Between Heaven and Earth. Loved it! I could recommend this book to anyone.

[Stacey Adams · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this Seven Sequel DJ goes to London. The grandsons have discovered a secret stash of their grandfather's that has them wondering if he was a secret agent like 007. They all have tasks to figure out different parts of the puzzle. DJ goes to London where he'll stay with his friend Doris but he gets detained at the airport. His passport with his name (which is also his grandfather's name) sends a red flag off and the authorities hold him. He gets released when they see that the person they're looking for is 90 years old....not DJ. The adventure begins. With the help of Doris' Sherlock Holmes group and her granddaughter DJ tries to uncover the truth. But they're not alone....they're being followed...by who? Fun adventure where DJ gets to drive a Jaguar on the wrong side of the road.

[Francis · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first book of The Seven Sequels. The character of DJ was one of my favourite throughout the other books, and this novel did not disappoint. Spies, secrets, espionage...it had it all.

Definitely more far-fetched than the previous books, but still very enjoyable to read. I’m interested in how the other 6 authors weave their tales together with this one.

[Christine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finally getting around to reading the Sequels... I'm hooked, on to the next book.

[Libra Rian · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you love Eric Walters and thrillers, you need to read this book. This is for people who love British culture, and CIA style spy thrillers. Great for kids.

[Jeremy · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorites from these series

[Bia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another memorable book that got me into reading and preferring fast-paced action-adventure books when I was in middle school.

[Sam · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sleeper is another quick read from the Orca imprint; it contains nothing much in terms of substance, makes a tentative attempt at portraying its premise with any sense of reality, and soothes any anxious readers with a tidy, happy ending.
The narrative is simple, fast-paced, and plot-driven. The author doesn't waste time on details, but includes enough to set the scene, distinguish between characters, and generate some interest in what might happen next.

*SPOILER ALERT*
Six cousins (an absent seventh is mentioned) meet up in their deceased grandfather's mountain getaway cabin and discover fake identification, gobs of cash in various denominations, and toys for big boys - guns and knives. They also find a cryptically kept journal that prompts them to set off on seven different whirlwind adventures encompassing the globe (providing premises for the other sequels in the series). After the initial cabin scene, Sleeper follows DJ (named after his grandfather) to England, where he meets a beautiful girl, drives an even more gorgeous Jaguar, handles volatile encounters with both Russian intelligence and CIA agents, is entrusted with classified information from a former MI6 director, and unravels a decent bit of the mysterious code his grandfather left for his grandsons -- and all in four days.
The dialogue is full of teenage banter and exclamation points, DJ's internal monologue focuses largely on the mental and physical assets of the girl who accompanies him on his mission, and the conflict resolution is predictable: the bad guys are vanquished, the good guys get away, and any worries readers had regarding the character of the late elder David McLean are put to rest.

In sum, it's a fine little novel.
This is not the kind of book to start a book club about, or even one to think about after turning the last page; neither is it absolute drivel or even badly written. It is a popcorn flick of a YA novel. Reluctant readers and middle grade readers looking for a little adventure will enjoy it, and it could have appeal to readers of the 39 Clues series. Most others, however, will most likely move on quickly or pass over this offering entirely.

[JordanSoukup · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ok so Sleeper is one of the books in the Seven Sequels series and the first one I have read. It starts out with the main character DJ going to his grand fathers cabin where him and several others, not really important to this book but I am guessing are in this series, discover evidence that suggest DJ's Grand Father was a spy. So DJ sets off too London where he stays with an old friend, Doris, to do some digging around. Now if this book sounds really interesting right now you would be right. But the execution of this plot was a little lacking. One of the things that bothered me was how the description of the book mentions a Vintage Jaguar E-Type so I am left thinking DJ is gonna go full out James Bond. Well in reality the E-Type is only driven once and its owned by Doris. Another thing is that DJ never really seems to find what he is after, now you may argue this but I Don't feel he found what he was after. Now lets talk about Charlie. I have mixed feelings about her. Shes a really nice girl and shes helpful but she doesn't seem to respect prior relationships, what I mean by this is that shes seeing this guy and yet shes low-key hitting on DJ. They do (spoiler alert) end up getting together in the end. But lets be honest we all expected that. I did like how its found out that the Russians were following them, But its very clique how its always the Russians who are the bad guys. But I feel that it doesn't even follow the plot of finding out of the grandfather was a spy. Then we find out that British Customs knew about DJ all along and that they were basically toying with him bothers me. But I did like a few of the Cab chases and how the cab driver was a double agent. Overall it was a good book and I enjoyed reading it but it could have been better and I will for sure read the rest of the series. Also take note the rest of the series is not written by Eric Walters but all by different authors. Also it does not matter what order you read the books in.

[Eden Grey · Rating 2 out of 5]

DJ spends his holiday overseas in England, trying to track down the truth about his grandfather's involvement with MI6, the British secret service organization. With the help of an attractive and clever girl named Charlie, DJ drives fast cars, runs from Russian spies, accidentally kidnaps an important British official, and ends up finding out a lot more than he expected about his family's past. Part of the SEVEN SEQUELS series, SLEEPER is a fast-paced novel for reluctant readers.

I can only recommend the SEVEN SEQUELS series for very special cases of reluctant readers. While the content would appeal to older readers, in high school or even college-age, the writing is too full of complex vocabulary and context-specific jargon to work in this context. Another issue is that despite it being a series, the exposition regarding the main character's family and history are rehashed in every single book - this was boring to me, and I fully expect it to be a boring turn-off for readers. However, if that hadn't been the case, and the exposition had been left out, the reader wouldn't have been able to just pick up one of the sequels and "read one, read them all, you choose the order" like is advertised everywhere in the book - because they would have been missing key plot points and character relationships. It's unfortunate, because I can see this series filling a gap in interesting series for reluctant readers.

Grades: 6 - adult
Literary Merit: Low
Characterization: Poor
Recommended: No

[Luke Hu · Rating 5 out of 5]

In "Sleeper" the seven grandsons of a man named David McLean attempt to meet up in a cabin. When they are together they find out a secret compartment that has multiple fake passports, all types of money for all of the countries, a note, and a gun. So the brothers go around the world to find out what their grandpa really was. DJ goes to England to find out his grandpa's identity. He finds his grandpa is part of the sleeper group, which is a group of spies.

This book wasn't not my favorite genre, but I find I usually like mystery books even though I don't read them very often. There was another series before this one and it was when the seven grandsons all did their grandfathers will. One climbed Mount Kilimanjaro which is the tallest mountain in Africa. Another shot a film. I liked that series and this one seems to have much more action and adventure into it so I enjoyed every part of this one. In this book, there are certain elements that I like such as fighting, humor, and a good happy ending without death.

However if you don't like mystery or books that relate to spies, James Bond type of book. Then I would not recommend this book to you. If you like books that have a lot of action in them or mysteries or both, then you should read this book. This book could be for fifth graders and up because some of the parts can be violent, but it is easy to understand.

[Susan Forsgren · Rating 5 out of 5]

After stumbling upon a secret compartment in the cabin of their grandfather David McLean, seven cousins decide to investigate its mysterious contents and find out who their grandfather really was. It falls to DJ to travel to England to investigate his grandfather's alter ego, Nigel Finch. With only a fake passport, encrypted pages from his grandfather's journal and a stack of British pound notes, DJ hopes to figure out whether David McLean was a slightly eccentric former businessman or a spy with connections to an infamous group of traitors. Thankfully, DJ's friend Doris is not only a genial host with a drop-dead gorgeous granddaughter and a priceless vintage Jaguar, but a member of a Sherlock Holmes group that is able to assist him in breaking his grandfather's secret code. Unfortunately, his newfound knowledge puts him directly in the cross hairs of some deadly adversaries. Part Holmes-ian mystery and part James Bond adventure, DJ's quest requires both intellect and an unflappable resolve. While the series promises it can be read in any order, DJ's story is the most complete narrative, providing a framework for the other six. Occasional red herrings are the only misstep in this otherwise solid nod to the British spy and mystery legacy.

[Cheri Linton · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this book disappointing after the first book in the Seven series. I felt like the book was written quickly and it was formulaic. The plot did move along quickly and there was all the prerequisites for a spy story. The bit about Kim Philby was interesting although it is doubtful many 12 year old readers would understand the reference. Also, there wasn't really any lead up to the romance between David and Charlie.

[Nanci Booher · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this up on a whim. It isn't the type of book that I would normally read (I have a thing about not reading books with people on the cover...i'm not sure why). This is part of a series where the same events are told from different perspectives in each book. I enjoyed the series and think that I finally have something I can recommend to teen boys.

[Alison · Rating 3 out of 5]

DJ has a very James Bond experince in this book. I'm not sure Grandpa's done surprising the boys yet.

[Connie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't know why, but Eric Walters' books in this series aren't quite grabbing me.