Mission Atomic

The 39 Clues: Doublecross #4

by Sarwat Chadda

Confidential until July 2016!

Checkmate.

Thirteen-year-old Dan Cahill and his older sister, Amy, are running out of time. An exiled Cahill known as the Outcast has already recreated three of history’s worst disasters, and he’s saved the worst for last. If Dan and Amy can’t find and stop the Outcast fast, he will initiate a full-scale nuclear meltdown. But as Dan and Amy race around the world, they discover something horrifying. The Outcast’s disasters are only a smokescreen to cover up his true plan, a diabolical revenge on the family that betrayed him. Soon Amy and Dan will have to confront a hard truth: sometimes the only way to save the world is to sacrifice everything you love.

Genres: Adventure, Mystery, Middle Grade, Audiobook, Fiction, Young Adult, Childrens

Unknown Binding

First published June 28, 2016

About the author

Sarwat Chadda has lived and traveled throughout the world, from China to Guatemala. He’s been lost in Mongolia, abandoned at a volcano in Nicaragua and hidden up a tree from a rhino in Nepal. Not to mention being detained by Homeland Security in the US and chased around Tibet by the Chinese police. Maybe he just has that sort of face.

Anyway, now he’s trying to settle in one place and stay out of trouble. Hence his new career as a writer. It’s safe, indoors and avoids any form of physical danger.

Throughout his travels, Sarwat has soaked up the myths, legends and cultures of far away places. Now, with the Ash Mistry series, he aims to bring these unfamiliar tales of ten-headed demons and blue-skinned heroes back home and put them beside the exploits of Achilles and Thor. His heroes are Prince Rama and the demon-slaying Kali. Isn't it about time you met them too?

Reviews

[Rustic Red Reads · Rating 2 out of 5]

So after solving the book puzzles, I thought the last plan will be about mutated bees that is affected by radiation, and that will be disappointing but gladly it isn't. And unlike the previous book where there is no Hurricane but rather only the outcome of the hurricane that was replicated, the Outcast did save the worse for last. . .

But why only two stars? This is becoming tooooo syfy mutated animals, bees carrying some kind of poison, a poison killing those with the Cahill DNA, a fusion-fission reactor. . . that sometimes it is too overwhelming that it seems impossible, or I think it is. But if that happened how will the Outcast make the bees attack the Cahills? Ship every bees to every country, city in the world? And bees ain't that aggressive attacking people they see.

Hoping the allegedly last standalone novel under the "series" name Superspecial - Outbreak


Analyze the symbol on the back of Doublecross Cards that makes the Doublecross Puzzle. The disasters that the Outcast are trying to replicate are somehow related to the four elements.
Mission Titanic - water
Mission Hindenburg - air
Mission Katrina or what I would rather call Mission Dam- land
Mission Chernobyl - fire

[B · Rating 4 out of 5]

I miss Jake and Atticus....

[aindy! · Rating 5 out of 5]

Codes:
Front cover: FAIBNCD TDHEE HFIGVHE (FIND THE HIVE)
-A clue to what happens in the book

Inside cover: KAIBLCLDEER FBGEHEIS (KILLER BEES)
-A clue to what happens in the book

Page before prologue: 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 16 17 18 19 20/0 (I don't know how to solve this, or if it even is a code)

Page numbers: BAUBZCZ BAUBZCZ (BUZZ BUZZ)
-A clue to what happens in the book

Last page: SAIBNCEDAED IASB RAEBTCUDRENFIGNHG (SINEAD IS RETURNING)
-A clue to the next book?

[Anne D · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very satisfying ending to this series!

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wah. I am not ready to part with the Cahills.

[Jackie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This time, Dan and Amy, are out to thwart the Outcast's latest recreated disaster that occurred in April, 1986...the catastrophic accident known as Chernobyl. A nuclear meltdown that destroyed lives, vegetation, and cities, another disaster like that one is beyond comprehension. Yet, the Outcast is only using the recreation as a ruse. He has a much dastardly plot in mind, which will assure him of complete control of the Cahill family and all the others.

Mission Atomic is full of suspense and danger, yet we are hoping that good wins out in the end. Amy and Dan, along with Ian and Cara, Sammy and Nellie and a very surprising accomplice, will have a difficult time trying to stop the madman, known as the Outcast, aka, Nathaniel, Amy and Dan's grandfather. A tense, yet satisfying wrap-up to this off-shoot of The 39 Clues series, does it really end here, or is there something else in the works? Time will tell.

[Kelly Carey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another book in the DoubleCross series of 39 Clues. This one connects to Chernobyl and the nuclear accident that occurred in 1986. The ending appears to wrap everything up, so this is probably the last book in the DoubleCross series. In fact, the ending was a bit too neat and easy.

[Kevin Comfort]

A nice finish to another break off portion to this series. Fun to see the evolution of Cahill kids and how all the Cahill's work together to defeat a family member

[Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This review originally published in Looking For a Good Book. Rated 4.0 of 5

* * * WARNING -- POTENTIAL SPOILERS AHEAD!! * * *

Things are heating up for the Cahills, thirteen year old Dan and his older sister Amy. One of their own ancestors, a Cahill now known as The Outcast, has recreated three of the world's worst disasters and appears to save the worst for last and if Dan and Amy can't stop him, he'll recreate a nuclear disaster that could destroy the entire world.

But what the Cahills don't realize until too late is that The Outcast has used these disasters as a distraction. His real plan has been in the creating of a 'natural' enemy genetically coded to destroy only those with Cahill DNA. It looks as though there is no way out for Dan, Amy, and the rest of the Cahill clan.

These 39 Clues books are a lot of fun - they are like Jason Bourne stories for middle-grade readers (Danger! Action! Excitement!) - and they offer just the appropriate amount of danger (and solutions) for young readers.

When the series first began I eagerly read the first few books. Since then there've been a number of branches of the series' (The Clue Hunt; Cahills vs Vespers; Unstoppable; Doublecross) and I didn't bother to keep up. Mission Atomic, by Sarwat Chadda, may be the last book in the last series.

I'm years late reading this book but because some of the primary action centers around the Chernobyl disaster, it seemed very topical once again (as I read this book the Chernobyl nuclear power plant was in the news again as the Russians took over the plant in their invasion of Ukraine).

I think it's an interesting notion, to add a bit of history in a middle grade reader action title. I can imagine any number of young readers suddenly knowing more about events such as the sinking of Titanic, the destruction of the Hindenburg, hurricane Katrina, and the Chernobyl disaster than the average student because of books like this.

The was exciting and fun, even if it stretched my willing suspension of disbelief, but then this book isn't meant for a 60 year old reader, it's meant for those middle school students, and I think many would really enjoy this book and this series.

Looking for a good book? Mission Atomic, the fourth book in the 39 Clues series, Doublecross, by Sarwat Chadda, is an action thriller that will grab the attention of young readers and manages to sneak in some history along the way.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Edelweiss, in exchange for an honest review.

[Chalinviri · Rating 2 out of 5]

📖Mission Atomic📖

Terminamos con este libro y con eso la 4ta Saga Doublecross...y otra vez sucedió...siempre fallan en los finales, muy cortados, muy tajantes, te quedas con la palabra en la boca y a los personajes les vale, ellos van a lo que sigue y no te dejan ni un momento para asimilar esa conclusion.

A este paso y con el final anterior, este libro se volvió predecible, definitivamente se cubrió la lista de situaciones que debía incluir esta saga (Hasta el del sacrificio valiente). Me hacen pensar que quizás los autores de esta serie no se hablaban, no hay conexión de un libro a otro y eso puede quizas ser la respuesta de porque la inconsistencia de un personaje de un libro a otro...Hamilton fue el mas notorio de esto.

Ok, este libro nos va a mostrar la recreación del desastre nuclear de Chernobyl...version 39 pistas y aunque tuvo una mayor relevancia que el desastre anterior, creo que el libro donde se tomaron esto de los desastres con mayor seriedad fue el de Hindenburg.

Lo que pasa, es que desde el libro anterior, al malo no le importo esa prueba porque se dedico a otra cosa, así que el desastre fue reducido a algo insignificante y lo de Chernobyl de ese libro también paso a segundo plano por el PLAN MAYOR DEL OUTCAST...y la forma en como se resolvió fue de lo mas....ahhhh me desespero mucho, y como todo se corta al final ni siquiera te jsutifican la razón de porque la decisión final.

A los mismos Jovenes les dio lo mismo, ya que regresaron y pues se dieron cuenta que familia Cahill son ellos y nadie mas, entre ellos se van a cuidar, van a crecer y ya vale el resto de la familia, y en ver de dirigirla y ver quien es el líder vitalicio, deciden otra forma de gobierno familiar.

y ya...FIN...

...Y QUE PASO CON TODOS LOS CABOS SUELTOS, CON ATTICUS Y JAKE, LOS STARLING, ES MAS, LAS HERMANAS DE HAMILTON...DE PLANO CORTARON TODO.

Creo que Doublecross es mejor que Unstoppable, pero sigue teniendo finales cortados.

vamos por el ultimo libro de esta serie...

[Kryssy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was probably my favorite of the Doublecross spin off series. Knowing my who you’re fighting just makes the story better.

I really think it helps to know about the disaster described in these books. I think this book also did the best job explaining it for people who may not know about it

- Nathanial is looking for dan. Kara adjust the facial recognition accuracy
- He tried to recreate his own serum because grace wouldn’t tell him. She knew she had to put feeling aside and do what was best for the family
- School trip to China. Where most attendees are ekats
- Divide into teams again. One to china, one to chernobyl. Another somewhere…
- Nathaniel needs the help of Melina. Whoever that is
- “Uncle” in Ukraine
- Every year alec takes a trip into chernobyl
- Ian’s check to dimitri bounced so he teams up with nathaniel
- Alec’s wife was a rescuer for Chernobyl
- Alec attacks the cahills. Everyone is wounded
- Amy tricks nathaniel into thinking she’s dead. Dan sees too
- An experiment with radiation resulted in attributes similar to with the serum
- Wants to destroy the formula. Only dan knows it but he doesn’t want to just kill him
- Need to open a door (very much like the actual disaster and in deadpool)
- Use bees to distribute poison to the cahills
- Nathaniel dies
- Amy is looking at a portrait of grace. It feels as if she still is controlling everything
- Switch the leader every 4 years. Between branches too
- Exclusive: jonah created a movie very closely based off their lives. Amy and dan worry that someone will figure out what it means

[Aria · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is a really great finale to the Doublecross series. I've read it multiple times, and it never gets boring.

Um, well, first off, Alec Spasky. The Spasky siblings sure do have a lot going for them:
They're murderous, heartless, and out to get Amy and Dan. But then they're not. First off, like 10 books ago or something, Irina sacrifices herself to save Amy and Dan, not willing to let Isabel get away with her evil doings again. Then, in this book, Alec turns to the good side to seek revenge on Nathaniel. His reasoning, as he says, is that he's an assassin, not a mass murderer. This is a good point, and that's what leads him to help unclog the pipe and prevent the nuclear meltdown. But back to the Spasky siblings as a whole, they both experienced grief, which most likely led them down a life of crime. Irena, her son, Nikolai, and Alec, his wife Natalia. But in the end, they're brave and give their own lives for the greater good, and to save Amy and Dan's lives. If you've read the books, you probably get what I mean.

And I actually love how all of the characters are so well developed, and how everyone's characters evolve over the course of the books. That is especially amazing considering how many different authors contributed to the writing of the books.

[Sally · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another whole series review. I really enjoyed this series, but it still bugs me that the Chens were never mentioned again after book one! What the hell was the deal with that?! Nellie and Sammy were like in deadly peril and then suddenly in book two they're flying off somewhere to help the others, with no mention of the Chens ever again... argh wtf. Also no Jake and Atticus! I know the Outcast said no outsiders, and then Jake texted Amy in book one saying he'd be off the grid for a few weeks anyway, but not only did they never reappear, they were never even mentioned. Omg.

However, I loved Alek Spasky, as much as I loved Irina. I love a bad guy who ends up turning good, or at least doing good. When he went with Amy into the radiation zone because he's an assassin, not a mass murderer, that was cool.

There were one or two other plotholes between the books as well, but I can't remember them all now that I'm done. I read the first three books all in one day last Sunday, and then the fourth one today (Saturday)... like the others in the 39 Clues world they are quick and easy to read, compelling and fun.

[Fourohfour · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great ending to the 39 clues franchise!

They wrap up the Outcast Disasters pretty quickly, but it doesn't feel too rushed.

Alec's turn from cold-hearted killer to sympathic ally is done perfectly. You can tell in the moment where the scientist is describing the way to stop the reactor from meltdown that he's figured out that he's going to die. It's a perfect tragic full circle setup: he's going to die saving millions from nuclear fallout, just like his wife; he's going to die for one of Grace's grandkids, just like his sister. His shock when Amy saves him-- its like he suddenly understands why Irena died for her and Dan. So he helps her go get Dan and truly dies for them to foil the Outcast's plot.

There's also that lovely come full circle nod to the American revolution origins from Maze of Bones, when Amy proposes the Cahills adopt democracy.

Jonah, Hamilton, and Kara felt more sidelined in this one. Ian got some good growth, as did Amy.

I wish that Amy and Dan got to reunite with Jake and Atticus at the end, since they were forced to hide the Outcast fiasco from them in Mission Titanic.

[Jam Torio · Rating 5 out of 5]

The penultimate book in the Cahill series was...a bit underwhelming.

For a series that revolves around recreating four of the world's worst disasters, the storyline seems not disastrous enough. Particularly with this story, that ending was not it, so to speak. Mission Atomic did not quite give me that rush a supposed finale should feel like. I ended up craving for more adrenaline pumping, heart racing Cahill brand of action.

Also, having three new authors write these last three books in the final series is a bold and risky move, at least for me. It may or may not have contributed why some of the scenes that involved the Cahills that we know since book 1 act so unCahill-like. It was just not at par with the series before it in terms of storytelling.

As a series, Doublecross is still a good one; not just as good as the last three series prior to it, though. I will still give Mission Atomic 5 stars just because of my unconditional admiration for Amy and Dan.

Now, on to the last one! I'm not quite ready to part with the Cahills yet. :(

[Nicole · Rating 3 out of 5]

The last of the Doublecross spin-off of the 39 Clues, which is the third spin-off series! The series as a whole was fun, and I did like the resolution of this book, right before the ending. But I was disappointed that two of the main characters weren't mentioned at all in this book. It seemed just like a snapshot of the series instead of a really good conclusion for what was going to be the last book. Another thing I didn't like about this spin-off series is that it wasn't very educational like the original series, where the characters traveled the world and where you'd get little history lessons. Now I am reading (well, listening to, like I have the entire series) the very final 39 Clues book, and I like how so far it's done a re-cap of the characters and seems to get back to the roots of the series. The original 39 Clues are the best books, even though they get a bit predictable.

[Heidi Z · Rating 3 out of 5]

I haven’t written a review for any of these books so I will kind of some up my thoughts now that I’m done with the entire series. I began reading these along with my son as something we could enjoy together and something that I could read ahead on to make sure it was appropriate for him. Long story short, overall the entire 39 Clues series is really great! Unfortunately I didn’t like the Doublecross series as much as the previous books. I didn’t like that they chose to bring in more mature content into the series. I know people will rip me apart for that but that’s their opinion and this is mine. I wish they left romantic relationships out of the whole series but especially don’t love what they did with a main character here. You can read other reviews if you want more details on that. Besides that, this last series just didn’t flow as well as the others. I was happy to see how the overall story ends but I do think that they could have done that by ending it earlier.

[Adeline Hughbanks · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book took 2 months to force myself through what could've been read in a day. In my opinion, the Cahill stories just went on all too long, and the series got dull and repetitive. In addition to that, there's not really a climax to this book. Even if there is... Sort of?? There's practically no resolution. I was disappointed with how this book turned out, but I will admit that I would probably have gotten more out of it if I had read it in one sitting. If you're reading this, you've probably already read all the other series, but if somehow you haven't ...don't waste your time here and find something with a plot, more character development, and fewer cliches.

(PS is anyone else confused about why Jake, Atticus, Hamilton's family, and Cara's mom and brother went??? They kind of flew off the face of the earth.)

[Tarissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

The battle against the Outcast is coming to an end... The final challenge looms ahead – one that can blow the entire Cahill family to bits.

This book introduces readers (young kids who may not know about it) to the Chernobyl incident, and the effects of radiation decades after its release. (We're still learning history and science facts here, just like the original 39 Clues series – excellent stuff!)

There's a lot of danger and high-stakes adventure in this epic (almost) finale. Dan has to contemplate murder, it's so definitely intense.

Now I await reading the alleged final book in the Cahill saga... (although I think there still might be another special and some ebook shorts I have yet to discover, so there's always those. Yay!).

[Fatima Sarder · Rating 3 out of 5]

While this book was definitely better than the last two, the ending, so neat and tidy like a present wrapped with a bow, ruined it.

After all these adventures, countless hostage situations, staring in the face of death on a daily basis, the main characters, Amy and Dan, somehow remain functional. I know this is a children's book but the subtext of deep trauma could've been there.

And the Nathanial, the villain, turns out to be Amy and Dan's grandpa (no surprises there), no wonder Grace had to kill him off, she is bad, but turns out, he's worse! He orchestrated the Chernobyl meltdown!

For someone who was this big of a bad guy, dying by bee-stings seems like an anti-climatic way to go.

[Somnath Roy · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's a good read although the ending is a little anticlimactic.

There's certainly a lot of thrill to be found and quite a few nice little twists to the tale. It is also full of death.

However, the character weren't really painted as vibrantly and even though the story feels more or less complete, things seem a little rushed. Perhaps this book would've been better split into two separate parts.

Not a bad end to the franchise.

[Katlyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I must admit that I'm glad the series is ending soon. While I'm enjoying it, it is quite long! It's starting to drag a bit in my opinion. I really liked the ending though. I'm glad that they've finally reached the realization that Grace was kind of a bad person. Oh, and Kara and Ian are so cute! 4/5 March 30 2018

[Caleb · Rating 5 out of 5]

For this exciting book the Cahills are trying to stop the Outcast from recreating the disaster of Hurricane Katrina. They have a few clues to start investigating as the race against time starts and the fate of the world is on their shoulders. This book was fun to read and was full of tons of intensity to keep you on edge!

[Dani · Rating 5 out of 5]

Considering I read the 3rd book back in 2017, I didn't really remember what happened at first but, I got back into it pretty fast. I enjoyed it. It was a nice ending, although there is the Superspecial: Outbreak which is set after this book so, I guess that's the true ending but, still, good book. I really enjoyed this whole series. Might re-read it soon....

[May · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very solid conclusion. I like what the author was able to do with the plot in such a short book. I was happy to have finally read the conclusion to this series, so imagine my surprise when I found out there was one more book after this! Lucky for me, it's just one book and not another series so I think I will read that one so I can definitively say I read all the 39 Clues books.

[Cas ♛ · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice plot line, the questions we've been asking since book one are finally answered in this shocking conclusion. Amy and Dan find some unlikely allies and shocking enemies in this well written conclusion.

[Anaya · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was waiting for a bigger twist on who was the Outcast, I thought it was too obvious that Nathaniel was the Outcast and thought it would actually be someone else but they disappointed me. Overall, a good series though and less depressing than the past two series were.

[Stephanie Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall, a good read. The ending was a bit... unexpected and rushed, but I appreciated the sentiment. The character development wasn’t as strong in this set of four series, but still fun to see the way they work together.

[zee · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this book was actually a great turnaround. It read like the original series which is the highest of compliments. I have loved getting to see more Cahills in this series instead of just Jake and Atticus. I hope Outbreak is as good!

[San To · Rating 4 out of 5]

The end of another Era, though we could say that about a lot of points. The first one in this series was the last one written by one of the original authors, but had to finish reading the story she started.

There's just one more in the series for me now.