By: Advik
Hello, everyone! For anybody reading this right now, let me recap what has happened so far in the San Francisco Regional Mensa (SFRM) book club, The Jr. Taleblazers!
At our first meeting, we introduced ourselves and got to know each other. At first, there were only about 10 kids. But after a few meetings filled with books, activities, discussions, and plenty of jokes, our little group somehow exploded from 10 members to about 40! Apparently, book clubs can multiply.
At each meeting, we start with a warm-up, introduce ourselves, discuss the book, and finally vote on what we want to read next. One of my favorite books we have read is “City Spies” by James Ponti. So, naturally, I decided it deserved a review.
Reviewer: Advik, GY from SFRM, 10 years old
Rating: ★★★★★ – 5 out of 5 stars
Date: July 26, 2026
My Review of “City Spies“
“City Spies” is an amazing spy book packed with codes, interesting facts, secret missions, suspense, and comedy. I think it is awesome for three main reasons: suspense, long-lasting fun, and vivid imagery.
But first, you should probably know who the spies actually are.
The operation, called Project City Spies, is run by two adult agents named Mother and Monty, whose full name is Alexandra Montgomery. They recruit five kids to become spies. Each kid gets a code name based on a city, which explains the title “City Spies.” Their names are Brooklyn, Kat (short for Kathmandu), Rio, Paris, and Sydney. I really like this naming system. It is much cooler than being called something like “Agent Bob.”
Reason 1: Suspense
The first reason I love “City Spies” is the suspense. This book is filled with action, danger, secret operations, and moments where you really want to know what happens next. One of my favorite parts is when Brooklyn hacks into a computer. I like to imagine her staring at a screen filled with endless strings of 1s and 0s like something straight out of “The Matrix.”
Real computer hacking probably does not look quite that dramatic. But it should.
Reason 2: Long-Lasting Fun
The second reason “City Spies” is a great book is that it lasts a long time. The book is more than 300 pages, and yes, I admit I read it in multiple sittings.
But that is actually a good thing.
The cliffhangers kept pulling me back into the story, and I kept wanting to find out what would happen next. Instead of being a book that you finish quickly and forget about, it gives you hours of mysteries, missions, jokes, and spy problems to solve.
Reason 3: Vivid Imagery
The third reason I recommend “City Spies” is the imagery. The descriptions are so vivid that you can imagine yourself joining Mother and the City Spies on one of their missions.
The author also uses some great vocabulary, including words like “strewn,” “painstakingly,” and “exasperated.” (That last one is also a useful word for describing how parents sometimes look.)
The book also takes readers to fascinating places, including the Eiffel Tower and the Catacombs. One minute you are sitting on your couch, and a few pages later you feel like you have traveled across the world. Without even having to pack a suitcase.
If You Like This, You Might Also Like…
“City Spies” reminded me of “Big Game” by Dan Smith, which is about a boy who ends up stuck with the President of the United States while they are being hunted by dangerous henchmen.
Both books have action, danger, and characters who end up in very unusual situations. But to me, “City Spies” has more code-cracking, teamwork, and comedy, while “Big Game” feels more like a pure action-adventure story.
That balance is part of what makes “City Spies” different. It almost creates its own category: spy-action-code-cracking-comedy-adventure.
What Would I Change?
If I could change one thing about “City Spies,” I would add an epilogue.
The characters change a lot from the beginning of the story to the end, and I wanted to know more about what they were thinking afterward. What did they do next? How did they feel about everything that happened?
Still, other than that, I think “City Spies” is a masterpiece. It has suspense, humor, vivid descriptions, interesting locations, clever characters, and enough pages to keep you occupied for a very long time.
For middle-grade readers who like funny books, secret codes, spy missions, suspense, and stories you can get comfortable with and read for hours, I highly recommend “City Spies.”
Five stars from me.
Happy reading, and I hope to see you at a future Jr. Taleblazers meeting!