Alex Rider

Alex Rider is the teenage spy protagonist of Anthony Horowitz's enormously popular Alex Rider series — a fourteen-year-old London schoolboy who is recruited by MI6 after the death of his uncle, the secret agent who raised him, and finds himself repeatedly drawn into missions that adult agents cannot undertake because only a teenager could plausibly be in those situations. The series has sold over twenty million copies worldwide and is one of the defining YA thriller series of the twenty-first century.

Horowitz created Alex as a response to his own love of the James Bond novels — a Bond for young readers who gets the gadgets, the exotic locations, the physical danger, and the impossible villains, but who is also genuinely a boy struggling with the unfairness of the situation he has been placed in. Alex never wanted to be a spy and never stops resenting the way MI6 uses and discards him.

The series is notable for its exceptionally well-plotted action sequences, its inventive gadgetry (provided by the MI6 equipment officer Smithers), and its emotional honesty about the cost of violence and danger on a teenager who is not, despite appearances, invulnerable. A film adaptation and TV series have extended the character's reach.

Begin with Stormbreaker and read in order. Perfect for readers ages 10 and up.