Genius Squad (Evil Genius Trilogy Series #2)

Once Cadel was going to take over the world. Now he's stuck in foster care.

Publishers Weekly

Readers who loved Evil Genius will find this sequel as gripping, devilish and wonderfully dark as its predecessor. What made that first book so good was the author's delivery of a complex, layered protagonist in the young Cadel Piggot and the world of criminal masterminds in which he lives and learns, a world he eventually destroys. From these ashes rises another imaginative and just slightly less villainous cast of characters, the Genius Squad of the title, to tempt Cadel's vulnerable conscience. Cadel and his multiply-disabled best friend, Sonja Pirovic-a central figure this time around-land themselves among a new gang of superhuman brainiacs, who help populate this story with fresh twists and eyebrow-raising, technologically over-the-top antics. Cadel may be a genius, but is he smart enough to overcome his evil upbringing to land himself squarely on the side of good? Between Cadel's touching concern and growing feelings for Sonja, and the help of a few kindhearted adults, there's hope for Cadel. As readers keep their eyes on Cadel, however, Jinks stays busy, gradually setting up her audience for a stunning climax. Ages 12-up. (May)

CATHERINE JINKS was born in Brisbane, Australia in 1963. She grew up in Papua New Guinea and later spent four years studying medieval history at the University of Sydney. After working for several years in a bank, she married a Canadian journalist and lived for a short time in Nova Scotia, Canada. She is now a full-time writer, residing in the Blue Mountains of New South Wales with her husband Peter and their daughter Hannah.Catherine is a three-time winner of the Children's Book Council of Australia Book of the Year award, and has also won a Victorian Premier's Literature Award, the Ena Noel Award for Children's Literature, and an Aurealis Award for Science Fiction. In 2001 she was presented with a Centenary Medal for her contribution to Australian Children's Literature.