Desert Dark

Dark #1

by Sonja Stone

Hogwarts meets The Bourne Identity in this action-packed thriller about teenage spies—for fans of Marie Lu's Legends series and James Dashner's Maze Runner trilogy

Sixteen-year-old Nadia Riley is delighted to earn a spot at an elite, government-funded boarding school. Nothing sounds better than leaving behind her fraught relationship with her ex-boyfriend and moving to faraway Arizona to attend Desert Mountain Academy.

But when she arrives, Nadia finds out she has more than classwork to catch up on. Desert Mountain Academy is a covert CIA program, which recruits and trains high-achieving students for Black-Ops work. While struggling to keep up with her new classes, Nadia must also gain the trust of her teammates, and survive a rigorous exercise and combat training course. Thrilled at the opportunity, Nadia isn't expecting to fall in love—or to end up in real, deadly danger.

When news leaks that there is a double agent on campus, suddenly everyone is a suspect—including Nadia. To clear her name, she must use her newfound skills to uncover the traitor—before he can eliminate her as a threat.

Told from alternating points of view, including that of the anonymous double agent, Desert Dark is perfect for young adult readers who love action, adventure, and intrigue.

Genres: Young Adult, Mystery, Adventure, Romance, Action, Thriller, Suspense

336 pages, Hardcover

First published January 30, 2016

About the author

Sonja Stone developed a taste for life on the lam at an early age, as her family moved to more than a dozen small towns across the country and abroad before she turned fifteen. She collected intel on psychology and creative writing from Washington College, trained at Le Cordon Bleu for a cover job as head pastry chef, and completed a handful of courses at the same survival school where Tom Hanks prepared for Cast Away. Currently, she’s raising two covert agents masquerading as typical college kids. Just to be safe, Sonja’s learned to throw knives, fire guns, and navigate the desert, because…well, you never know.

Reviews

[Dorothy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really really enjoyed reading this book! 4 star, action packed, snarky, high suspense YA debut novel from Sonja Stone. Thank you to Holiday House publishing for sending me the ARC of Desert Dark. I am so glad I read this because my love for spy, covert ops, CIA school-type books has be reignited with a passion.

Plot:
If I could give the plot 6/5 stars I would because the fun never ends with this one. The book opens with a thrilling scene from Nadia's point of view in December then we're brought back in time by three months to see how we got there. I know that's not technically unique, but Stone just did an amazing job with the opening. First book I've read in a while that had the first page really pull me in.
Then the story just kept getting better and better and better. SO MANY TWISTS AND TURNS. SO MANY UNKNOWNS. Everyone is a suspect when you're reading. Everyone! I could not for the life of me narrow it down until the point where the clues got obvious and I could tell Stone wanted us to know exactly who it was. I kept going back and forth. No it's this guy. It's this girl. It's that guy. For the first 200 pages!
I also love the setting of this book. Lots of scenery these days have been set in deserts, but I found this one to be unique. It's on American soil, the school is gorgeous, the terrain was exquisitely described. I mean the imagery of a spy book is extremely important because you need those tiny details in a book like this. Stone did one hell of a job making you feel like you're really there.
Last the ending! OMG THE PLOT TWIST ENDING. Some people may have done better in making the connection, but my mind was out of it because I had to take so many break reading with school. So when I got the the finally big reveal. I was like... No. Wait. WHAT? I felt it coming right as I turning the page and then it hit me. The finals action scenes were written beautifully. And the last few bits just made me all happy inside.

Characters:
There's Nadia, Libby, Jack, Damon and Alan. Nadia is one smart girl. I'm glad she can stick up for herself and be cold blooded when she needs to be. Her overall character development throughout this book could be seen from the first few pages to the final fight scene. She had one of those personalities that you could related to so well that whenever I had a comeback for something another character said to her,she said basically the same thing!
Libby is not my fave, but I do like her friendship with Nadia. I think them being best friends was crucial because there was a desperate need for female female interactions at least somewhere in this book.
Jack, I had my ups and downs with. I thought he was going down right crazy at one point and was almost a tad bit bipolar but I think he won be over a little. I don't know if I ship him with Nadia though. I think I still would ship Damon with Nadia just because. They would've been cuter. Damon is a wonderful addition to the crew. If you've read Heroes of Olympus, he's like my Leo Valdez. The comedic relief/deep down really hurting soul of the book. Yepp, he's my Leo. And then there's Alan, who for the entire first half of the book I despised. Actually most of the book I despised him till maybe the last 60 or so pages. He's that one guys that makes all the rude sarcastic comments and just doesn't know when to shut his mouth. But then he started to change his attitude and became much more likable thank goodness.


THOSE ARE MY IMMEDIATE THOUGHTS ON DESERT DARK! ALSO POSTED ON MY BLOG! (Link in the bio! Check it out, thanks!)

[Danielle Urban · Rating 5 out of 5]

Desert Dark by Sonja Stone is brilliantly stunning. Her novel is set for YA; however, adults like myself will lose themselves inside this incredible read. I found it enticing, suspenseful and packed with action. There's also, a mystery surrounding the events that keep readers intrigued from the beginning and until the ending. This new title in YA is exciting, hot, and carries a lot of themes such as family, loyalty, and friendships. I absolutely loved reading this new novel by a very talented writer. Desert Dark is the first novel I have read by this writer and I am now looking forward to book two. Hopefully, there is one. These characters are funny, unpredictable, and sweet. They are also, realistic, smart, and can kick butt.

Inside this suspenseful spy covert mission book, readers will follow a young girl as she is being sent to a private school that she has never signed up for...it gives her a chance to start over rather than staying home having to face her cheating boyfriend and ex- best friend. Desert Dark totally fits in with the overall story. As the new girl, Nadia finds herself in the middle of a dessert with a top security governmental school, she finds there are indeed dark things going on...Nadia is smart and a tough student. She soon realizes how far behind she is and works daily to bring herself up to standards with her four-man team. Her roommate has a southern accent and is a little OCD when it comes to keeping things clean...but their friendship blooms despite that...but Nadia soon finds out each member of her team is holding onto a secret. Especially their hot team leader whose secret may crush what they both feel towards one another...then there's a diary Nadia finds...and it's after that her whole life gets messier than she ever expected. I loved reading this spy thriller. Desert Dark is not just for teens but can also be for adults. The plot, characters, and the pace were amazing. I couldn't stop reading it. Overall, this is definitely a novel to read by all.

[Annie Osborne · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can describe this book in one word: rollercoaster. I started it on Easter Sunday at noon, I finished it on Easter Sunday at 8 o'clock. And that's with family visits interspersed between reading sessions. To say that I couldn't stop reading would be an understatement. When my mom told me it was time to go on a family walk, I tried to walk out the door with the book so I could read it while I walked. My mom stopped me, reminding me that getting run over by a car is not a desirable thing. She made me put my book back inside. PURE evil.

So, the thing I liked most about this book was the pacing. I've been trying to find a fast-paced page turner all year. And this book was PERFECT.
This book is about a school in the desert. The special part? It's a school for special agents. A girl named Nadia is given a special invitation to attend. Nadia doesn't know what the school really is. But, it's a nice looking facility and a new start. So, she says yes. When she arrives, she meets a cast of fun witty, unique people. Alen, the book headed, stick-up-his-butt, smart, loyal kid, who feels that no one in America is very civilized. Libby, the witty, charming, flirty girl with a southern drawl. Damon, the flirty, carefree, but very smart, confident guy. And Jack, the sexy brilliant, top of the class senior.

This fabulous array of characters, along with the fact that the main character is short like me, drew me in immediately. The plot, the pacing, the action, the setting, the characters, just made this a wonderful read. The mystery and suspense also really added into even more. I can't say much more without spoiling something, so just Read it!

Happy Reading!

PS. Just so everyone knows, this book is not a standalone. I thought it was, but it turns out a sequel is being written.

[Nao · Rating 2 out of 5]

Pop Sugar Challenge #14 Książka z niekonwencjonalną edukacją (XD)

2.5 ale takie naciągane. (bo w miarę się czytało)

W ogóle to opis wprowadza w błąd - porównanie do hp (nie szanuje autorki ale czytałam więc mogę porównać) całkowicie nie, nie ma klimatu, nie ma praktycznie dorosłych a jak są to z niskim IQ, bardzo mało postaci pobocznych którzy dostaje małe rozdziały z ich perspektywy które nic nie wnoszą, błędy logiczne. Porównywane również do legendy i więźnia labiryntu - nie widzę tego.


Jako fanka odlotowych agentek (tych starych) bardzo zainteresował mnie kontekst szkoły z internatem dla szpiegów jednak dość szybko spora liczba mankamentów zniwelowała moją przyjemność z czytania.

Jest napisane że to Young adult ale przy czytaniu nie może umknąć uwadze czytelnika że jest to tak delikatnie napisane że czyta się to coś jak dla młodszej widowni (tak jest piu piu pistoletem ale to nie znaczy że jest to dla starszej widowni) jest masa rzeczy które są nielogiczne

Bez spoilerów to taka głupiutka i naiwna młodzieżówka z mini trójkątem miłosnym posypana szpiegowskim motywem, nie wyróżniająca się.

*spoilerowo*

Niby szkoła z internatem (nie pamiętam jak wyglądała totalnie i nie wiem czy to przez brak prawie opisów) ale najwięcej to pamiętam zajęć z bardzo stereotypowym japońskim mistrzem sztuk walk który musi co róż wrzucać japońskie słówko i tyle? legit było inne pojedyncze zajęcia ale nic bardziej nie zapada w pamięć poza nauką w bibliotece z grupą 'przyjaciół' głównej bohaterki, tajna szkoła itp a oprócz owego senseia to ciężko mi było przypomnieć sobie czy poza tym złym i nim byli jeszcze jacyś ogarnięci dorośli?XD jakby to wciąż są gówniarze i ktoś powinien nad nimi czuwać a była straszna samowolka

Nie potrzebne również były te inne perspektywy ponieważ zdradzały zbyt dużo albo wprowadzały zamęt który nie robił sensu dla fabuły, trójkąt miłosny (który przypominał mi Wybranych z jakiegoś powodu)również był taki XD to są 16-latki a zachowywali się jakby mieli po 12 lat

[Casey · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm going to ratings waffle on this one a bit. I sat down and read the first 200 pages in one sitting so originally I was planning on giving this at least four stars but after I put it down and picked it back up things started to needle at me a bit so I bumped it down to three stars. That said, it was readable and engaging and fun.

A small group of teens are handpicked from across the country to participate in what is essentially Jason Bourne boot camp. The main character Nadia comes in as late starting replacement for a student who died, officially in a car crash but unofficially it was murder. It is suspected that a double agent is working among the students. As the newcomer, Nadia is in the spotlight. The view alternates perspectives, including the mystery double, which at first I was wary of but helps keep the fast pace and the suspense.

My annoyance is mainly with another teen book where the main character is supposedly so much better than everyone else and who is also the object of, potentially, three men's affection. Three. But in general this was a fun if a bit forgettable story.

[Natalie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Honestly… a straight-up disappointment. The plot had sooooo much potential. But I disliked the main character more than I can say. I found myself actively rooting against her the entire book because of her gearing personality. So catch me not reading this book again.

[Camden Held · Rating 5 out of 5]

After some consideration, I settled on giving this book a 5-star rating. Desert Dark does a great job of capturing emotion throughout the book. The story starts by showing what led up to and caused Nadia to join the elite academy. She uses these first few chapters to set up the character by fueling Nadia’s ambition in different scenes, primarily relating to emotion. From my reading, three of the connections I made to How to Read Literature Like a Professor by Thomas C. Foster were irony, symbolism, and violence. Symbolism and irony can be found in every single book including Desert Dark, being some of the most important literary tools. Foster tells us to analyze these with a different perspective, one that is not straightforward since most quotes relating to these 2 themes may have different or hidden meanings. This is expressed in Sonja’s book when Nadia refers to her dad, “He stood with his back to the sink. The sun filtered through the window, creating a halo around his coppery brown hair.” and “A young woman walking down the street, unaware of her surroundings-it’s irresponsible.” Readers can then analyze these quotes and see Foster’s themes present, allowing them to find the “hidden meaning”. Violence is also present, specifically in the first few chapters where Sonja is still setting up Nadia’s background. Foster refers to violence as more of a metaphor for something else, which we can see being expressed through the beginning of Desert Dark. Overall though, as mentioned, I give this book a 5-star rating for Stone’s incredible writing throughout the book and would therefore recommend it to absolutely anyone. The best target audience would probably be 13+ years of age, but I would still recommend it to anyone. The best books I can relate this to are simply other fiction/spy fiction type books such as Not If I Save You First by Ally Carter.

[Chrissy · Rating 4 out of 5]

YA suspense/thriller. High school teens are recruited for a special boarding school to potentially become CIA agents. The story starts with someone shooting at a group of students, and then backs up to show what led to that moment. Nadia is invited to join after the school year has already started, because of the death of one of the students. The chapters follow from several points of view, but some are anonymous, so you don't know which character is talking. There is a double agent at the school, and you as the reader are trying to figure out who it is, along with the students and teachers.

First in a series.

[Morgan · Rating 5 out of 5]

this was really fun, it had similar vibes to the show quantico, and even though i figured out some of what was going on about half way through, i still enjoyed it and i’m looking forward to diving into the sequel

[Jude al-Ghazal Stone · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is witty, fast-paced, and dynamic -- YA isn't my typical genre, but the characters all have really unique voices and the plot keeps you guessing until the very end!

[Sara _V · Rating 4 out of 5]

**SPOILER ALERT**
Has something you were really looking up to turn out to be something that gives you many problems? For Nadia Riley, Desert Mountain Academy brings her a lot of problems and pressure. This is a thriller book with lots of suspense. I honestly think this is a great book. It's full of suspense, action,romance, and mystery all together.

The setting of this book is in Arizona, in the academy Desert Mountain. Nadia is accepted to a government-funded boarding school. At first she was really happy for leaving her home and going off to the academy, but she later finds out many things that cause her to struggle even more. She is told it's a CIA program where they train high-achieving students for the Black-Ops. She struggles to keep up with her classes and is having a hard time gaining one of her teammate's trust, Alan. She also seems to have a really big crush on her team leader, Jack. While trying to balance it all out, she is also the main suspect for the double agent that is hiding somewhere in the campus. She even thinks that the real person is trying to frame her so that they won't be exposed. One conflict that's in the book is person versus self because throughout the story, a character named Jack has to try to figure out who the double agent is so he can't really trust anyone. He eventually trust's the wrong person that almost gets him and Nadia killed. One theme in this story is to not jump to conclusions right away before having enough evidence. This is because Nadia makes the same error over and over again of thinking a certain person is the double agent, but then realizes that out of all those people, none were the agent.

The author's tone is mysterious in many of the chapters. The author does this by writing some chapters that have an anonymous person telling that chapter. What I mean by this is that each chapter is told by a different person. It's either Nadia, Damone, Jack, Alan, Libby, or the double agent. The chapters where the double agent is telling it, there's no mention of his/her name. This is also how the point of view is affecting the story, it creates a mysterious tone/felling. A major event that changed a character was when Jack goes into Nadia's room, and is caught by Nadia. He then has to tell her how Dean Wolf set him the task to observer her to see if she was the agent. This changed both Nadia and Jack. Nadia ended up trusting less people, especially Jack. Jack then felt stressed and frustrated with himself because he really did like her, but now she won't believe him.

I think about everything about this book I like except for some small details. Throughout the book I tried to figure out who the double agent is, and by the time the double agent was reveled, I had already guessed it was Damone. I really like the way the author made it really mysterious. One thing that shocked me was when Dean Wolf turns out to be working with the double agent and ends up shooting Jack and Nadia. I was shocked because Wolf seemed to consider Jack his son, and they both seemed to trust each other. In my opinion, I would have liked it if the agent had not been Damone because I feel really sorry for him since he's been through a lot in his life. Also because I just liked Damone and would prefer Alan to be the double agent.

I give this book four stars because I really enjoyed reading it and I am glad it didn't drag like some books do. I would recommend this book to people that like mystery because this book is full of it. Desert Dark is a really good book that kept me wanting to read more and more.

[Amy B · Rating 3 out of 5]

Few complaints - entertaining teen spy camp sort of thing, just what I want when I want some low-key espionage adventure. :)

[sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

Can we all just take a moment to agree that frequent italicized internal dialogue in books is just plain irritating? Oh no, are people going to disagree with me about this? It makes the storytelling choppy and really disrupts the flow. Oh, this is disrupting? If you're a good enough author to get your book published, I think you should know how to work your characters' thoughts into the narrative without having to italicize their actual thoughts at least once a page. Am I being too harsh?

Let's make a list because I'm lazy today (you're lazy every day):

The good:
-the concept of the book. A school where kids go to train to work in CIA black-ops? UM OK. Like Sydney Bristow in training? Yes please!
-Libby's southern charm and mannerisms

The bleh:
-Nadia. She gets into the school because she apparently has the potential to become to major spy prodigy or something because she's SO AMAZING AND AWESOME and three different guys love her because she's so PERFECT AND AMAZING. Except she's actually pretty worthless for someone who can get into an elite spy school. She actually shoots herself in the foot with a tranquilizer gun. It takes her 75% of the book to realize that someone is trying to frame her--even though she's supposed to be this prodigy spy. Everyone seems to see the sun shining out of her backside, when, in reality, she's thorougly meh at everything. Is 'meh' even an adjective?
-The internal monologue, which I've already blabbed on about
-The 70 billion red herrings that were meant to throw us off the trail of who the bad guys are. I appreciate one or two good red herrings, but when they're blatantly thrown in my face, it gets a little tiresome. Oh, that character is being sketchy? Hmmmm I wonder if they're the mole--oh wait, now that one is making secret phone calls on a pay phone! I bet they're the mole--BUT WAIT, now that one is---blah blah blah, we get it.
-The fact that none of these kids seem like they're going to be very good spies. THIS is the best the CIA can do?

[Sarah Evans · Rating 5 out of 5]

Intrigue at boarding school for future CIA operatives. Fleeing a bad break up and social stumble, sixteen-year-old Nadia gladly accepts a sudden invite to an all-expenses-paid boarding school in Arizona. Upon arrival, she’s even happier to find out the school is actually a secret training ground for CIA Black Ops. After all, she is smart and competitive, having won national championships for cryptology and learned how to read people from her criminology professor father. But this is October and the other students have been studying together since summer. Fitting into the team is awkward, especially when it turns out the spot opened up because a student was murdered. Determined to do her best, she forms bonds with her teammates; OCD Southern belle Libby, intellectually brilliant yet socially awkward Alan, and the charming and hyper-observant Damon. Unknown to her, each is hiding potentially explosive secrets. Committed to increasing her physical abilities, Nadia asks for and receives extra training with the combat instructor, Hashimoto Sensei, which results in a mentorship relationship. Nadia is cautiously optimistic when Jack, the handsome senior team leader, shows interest in her. Her trust in others is hampered when she hears rumors of a student double agent, but it is shattered when she realizes someone is planting evidence to frame her as the double. This is a well-plotted mystery adventure novel that ironically reminds me a bit of Harry Potter (We find out Nadia is suspect and unique because she got all the prescreening questions correct, Hashimoto Sensei functions like Dumbledore, and it is at a boarding school). Third-person narration alternate viewpoints between Nadia and each of her teammates, Jack, and the unidentified double agent. By the end, the stage is set for a series.

[Sublime Reads · Rating 1 out of 5]

"Are you Arabic?"







I mean, no, I'm not a Semitic language, as I am not made up of letters, sounds, words, syntax. Y'know, just putting that out there.
(Just to put this line into perpective: it's like asking someone if they are Urdu. Or Farsi. I mean, was it so hard to ask if they speak arabic? Or are Arab? -_-

I'm paraphrasing here but this line:
"Arabs and Jews have historically hated each other."
"Well, that explains the animosity here"



I mean, let us completely disregard history, the cohabitation (and later expulsion) of Jews and Muslims from Spain, and Jerusalem, before people started fighting over it. I mean, why don't we give in to the negative, unfriendly, stereotypes? I mean, no problem, right?

Furthermore, that guy was simply being a dick.

The long story short, I did not enjoy this book due to a variety of factors. There were too many POVs, a boring plot, and piss-off characters. All that, and these 2 terrible exchanges led to the dumping of this book. It might get better, but I don't know, and I'm not in the mood to try.
The too patriotic vibe and simplistic, political worldview put me off, so y'all can take this review with a grain of salt :)

[Liralen · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's about a black-ops boarding school, so of course I was going to read it. Nadia's a good student with a talent for breaking codes, but she's as surprised as anyone when she's offered a last-minute spot at a government-run boarding school deep in the Arizona desert. This is not the kind of government-run boarding school I went to—the biggest similarities are that both are free and you could be expelled for having somebody of the opposite sex in your dorm room.

The problem, for Nadia, is this: everyone else is carrying secrets. Nadia is not—but at least one of the secrets would be easily taken care of if Nadia just...weren't there anymore.

Those secrets are, for the most part, kept from the reader most of the way through the book. At some point it becomes clear who's holding the most significant secrets and why, though I think that if the secondary characters (Noah, Niyuri, etc.) had been fleshed out more/had more of a role, it would have been less apparent. Still, it's interesting to see things from multiple sides—see something happening from Nadia's POV, then slip into Jack's head and see what he thinks is happening, then into Damon's head to see what he's doing...

The students are all weirdly casual about the fact that they're being trained to be spies and assassins and the like, but I do get a kick out of all the training they go through. Three and a half stars, rounded down instead of up mostly because I failed to understand why so many students were gooey-eyed over Nadia. I'll pretty happily read future related books.

[Cindy Dobrez · Rating 4 out of 5]

All of the characters have secrets, making ferreting out the double agent tricky...it keeps the pages turning. I'm not sure the author gave us enough clues to figure it out, but the story is engaging, the cover is awesome, and it will make a great booktalk. I'm eager to get it in the hands of one of my middle school readers for feedback. The super short chapters are a bonus for my reluctant readers and the shifting narrators allow for everyone to be a suspect. There's an interesting shift from past tense to present tense, too, as the tension mounts near the end of the story.

[Josie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the best books I've ever read.

[Roxanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a Goodreads win review. This book is about Nadia and she gets into a great boarding school. But it is really a covert CIA program where she gets a lot of training. But there is an double agent and she needs to figure it out. This book is suspenseful and a thriller.

[Deniese · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it! Nadia rocks!

[Rebecca Shannon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Could not put down!

[Liilaa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Look, it is impossible for people to be Arabic. They can be Arab, but not Arabic, because that is a language. Otherwise, I liked this book, even though it felt really detached at times.

[Katy Lovejoy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought I would like it a lot more than I did

[Mike Finn · Rating 1 out of 5]

I wanted a lighter side to my "Summer Of Spies" reading so I picked up "Desert Dark", knowing from the publisher's summary that it was a Young Adult adventure book about a sixteen-year-old heroine attending a school for spies.

It was the light, fast, slightly simplistic read I'd expected it to be. It started at a run with an attempt on our heroine's life, did a "Three months earlier.." flip followed by an up close and personal murder. Then it slowed down so we could focus on Nadia's experience in attending spy school. 

The first indication that this might not be the book for me was how I stumbled over Nadia's reaction to her situation.

Day One of her new school she's subjected to an aggressive, invasive "psych eval" that seems more like an interrogation, is finally told the kind of school she's been tricked into signing up for and has been threatened with indefinite detention without charge under the Patriot Act if she tells anyone about it. 

Her reaction? "So I really get to work for CIA Black Ops? How cool is that?"

The dissonance felt pulled me out of the story. What kind of sixteen-year-old thinks it's cool to work for an illegal, lethal, organisations that sets itself outside of control by the democratic process in order to kill America's enemies?

After that, I struggled to muster the required suspension of disbelief.

As the chapters flew by, I began to see the Spy School as a sort of Hogwarts where everyone is in Slytherin and really proud of it.

I should have been caught up in a young Nadia's struggle to thrive in an elite spy school, which has been infiltrated by a double agent who has been told to terminate her in a make-it-look-like-an-accident way because she's perceived as a threat. My attention should have been split between figuring out who the double was (not a simple task as there were so many red herrings the plot stank of fish) and rooting for little miss cute but strong to succeed.

Instead, I kept seeing bright children being abused by a government agency that grooms them to be blindly obedient in the name of patriotism and then trains them to kill on command. They even use a psych profile to find the children whose backgrounds make them need to please and went to feel part of something larger than themselves. 

If this book had been written by Tom Clancy and set in a madrassah in Pakistan, he'd have shown it to the home of evil bad guys, exploiting children and misusing faith and courage. Setting the school in America doesn't make what's happening in it any more acceptable.

I stuck with the book to the half-way point because I was curious about who the bad guy was but, in the end, I couldn't set my distaste aside.

If you can come to this with a "Clear and Present Danger" for teenagers mindset then this will probably work for you. It was too Through The Looking Glass for me.

[Abby · Rating 4 out of 5]

Desert Dark is Sonja Stone's debut novel. It's a YA thriller about a teenage girl who goes to a boarding school that turns out to be a training school for the CIA. A student dies, which allowed Naida, our protagonist, an opening to even be able to go to Desert Mountian Academy. There is also suspected to be a double agent disguised as a student.

I grew to love all the characters, even the one's I originally hated. One of the characters in Nadia's group, Alan, had great character development. When he was first introduced, I would have never guessed that I would end up liking him towards the end of the book. Everyone in the group, Libby, Damon, Alan, and Jack, all had secrets which made it hard to figure out who the double agent. It made you feel like you couldn't trust anyone.

Towards the end, when we were starting to figure out who the double agent was, it got very interesting and I couldn't put it down. The climax was more towards the end of the book, but it was worth it. That being said though, I do feel like the ending was almost a little rushed.

I can't wait to read book two, Dark Divide, and see what happens next. I rate this book four stars, mainly because of the ending and how exciting it was. I think this is a great book if you are new to thrillers like myself.

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

FUCKKKK I WROTE A WHOLE REVIEW AND IT DIDN'T EVEN FUCKING SAVE. Alright, I'm not even gonna write a write another review. UGHHHHH I'm so mad I can't even wrote a small review. Sorry because this was actually a good book. Shit.
I'm going to write a little because I really did enjoy this book and it deserves some love. I don't really remember the names of the characters anymore so please bear with me.
Nadia and Jack (thank you, goodreads summary for including almost all of the names) was a cute couple. I also liked Nadia's relationship with the Japanese teacher. He was like a father figure for Nadia and I liked how he took precautions to protect her. Jack, on the other hand, I felt was... not the beat character. It was explained in the very beginning of the storty that he took his job to become a CIA agent very seriously and that he was a straight A student but his actions doesn't really reflect that. He basically fell in love with Nadia in like 2 seconds after they met and it was just to dramatic for me. I really like them together.
Libby's storyline was a bit dramatic for the amount of build up in the story. I guess I must say it surprised me and that it wasn't the worst reveal but for some reason, I a little bit expected more. Maybe it was too unexpected for me.
I didn't expect anything else when they revealed that Damon was the double. Alan doesn't seem like the person in the first chapter of the book or the person on the phone. The person on the phone and in the car seemed confident, just like Damon. I liked Damon's storyline and how he became a double. It makes alot of sense and there isn't much to criticize about it.
Ok, so that concludes my review on the book. I really did like the book but there's just something missing. I obviously binged since I finished it in literally 3 days. The mystery was really nice but I just expected something... more. I don't know how to explain it but whatever, it was a good book. See you next time! :)

[Kiera LeBlanc · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow!! This book is amazing. It follows our main character Nadia who gets accepted into a cool spy school as a replacement for one of the students, Drew Anderson who died in a car crash and quickly word spreads around that there is a double agent in the school. The headmaster Dean Wolfe asks Jack a smart highly skilled, and handsome *wink* a senior to spy on Nadia and gather as much proof as he can that might prove that she is the double.

This book was chosen as one of the 2018-2019 Battle of the Books books for Washington State (WBOB) so I picked it up to do some early battle meeting. Honestly what drew me to this book was the cover. The cover is so beautiful, I love the desert colors and I really liked the font in the book. This is kind of OCD but I like to read books that only use Times New Roman font. So when I picked this up one of the first things I noticed was the font, which after reading the book I don't mind the font now.

I love Jack and how he didn't want Nadia to be the double and I love how he really cared about her. Their relationship is great and they're first kiss!! I kept rooting for them throughout the story.

Overall Five stars!! Such a good book!!

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was actually a pretty good book and if this was my preferred genre/style of story, I probably would have given it a 5. As it was, I started it late one Friday afternoon and had it finished by the next Saturday after lunch. The story sucked me in and kept my interest with some twists and turns, and credible red herrings.

Nadia, 16, has been recruited to the Desert Academy, an ultra-exclusive training center and boarding school that preps students to become part of the CIAs Black Ops unit. Their training is absolutely confidential, from their families to the rest of the country. No one knows what goes on there. For good reason. But now there is a suspected double agent in their midst and everyone assumes it is Nadia. Will she be able to prove her innocence and find the real double agent in time?

This was a fast paced mystery/adventure story that students will enjoy. I would recommend it for grades 7 and up. There is some kissing, but no sexual or graphic language. Highly recommend.

[Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nadia Riley has just suffered through an embarrassing break up with her boyfriend, so when the offer to go to Desert Mountain Academy comes, she can't say yes fast enough. It isn't until after she arrives at the academy that she finds out that it is a training facility for future Black Ops operatives for the CIA. She meets the three other members of her team and their leader, Jack, for whom Nadia feels an immediate attraction. Little does she know that Jack has been assigned to investigate the possibility that she is a double agent. When the team finds out that the girl who Nadia replaced was murdered, they all start to suspect one another of being the double agent.

Told from different perspectives in each chapter, Desert Dark provides the reader with fully developed characters and different perspectives for each event that occurs in the story. Although some of the story is a bit predictable and far-fetched, it is well written and very entertaining with believable, young adult dialogue. Overall, a fun, fast paced, young adult spy tale.

[Lynne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m not sure why I picked up this book considering it’s not my usual type of dystopian or fantasy book but hey, once in a while, gotta spread my wings right? Try something different? Well, can’t say I didn’t try.

A group of kids training to be spies and everyone keeping secrets so I expected a lot of action and danger. Instead, there was the usual high school crush and drama sprinkled with a bit of mystery. A lot of the secrets, when I found out at the end, was kind of a let down. Like, that’s it? That’s the secret he/she’s holding? None of it seems like a big deal.

That said, it’s not a bad book and I wasn’t bored enough to stop reading. It’s really a 3 1/2 stars review but I’ll round up and give it a 4 star. I just have to figure out if thats enough for me to read the follow up books....