Spy School #1 by Stuart Gibbs

My name is Erica. The heritage of my family is spying, going all the way back to the Revolutionary War. I'm pretty good at it, unlike my "legendary" father. A new kid named Ben recently arrived at school, but the CIA made up a story saying he created a super code in order to trap our enemies. Now Ben is amazing with numbers, but that's where his talents end. However, he has helped me by uncovering information about a mole in our school and about a secret, super-big plot. I'm going to do my best to keep Ben alive, he's surprising me every day, despite "help" from my father. The man is an incompetent idiot who steals credit from others! Other students aren't sure if Ben is incompetent too, or if he's faking it to cover his super spy skills. I think we'll keep them guessing, plus I'm not totally sure myself.

This book is a fun spy novel, although the setting is in a remote school. Ben is recruited right away in the plot by Erica's father (think James Bond). Erica's excellent spy skills are in complete contrast to her father, so there's ongoing tension between them throughout the book and series. Ben's character is dynamic. He discovers the reason he was chosen by the CIA and sets out to prove himself to them, and to Erica. The book seems believable even though it's obviously not. I've been reading the series in reverse order, because I couldn't find this book first. I actually read book 3 first, but I still enjoyed it. I recommend you start with Spy School though! The format of the series is very similar to this book, so if you like Spy School then you'll love the whole series.