Not as good as book 2 but still incredibly consistent People love the Alex Rider books because they give you James Bond but written in a very relatable way. I'm 26 and he's 14, so it may not be THAT relatable. But it's definitely more relatable than some 40-something highly-trained spy. The stories are constantly tense and this one doesn't deny us that feeling. I always feel like the villains are a little weak, but I guess the age this book is written for aren't worried about a convincing villain with an understandable motive. 4/5 would be about eight from me.

Alex finds himself impersonating a ball boy during the Wimbledon Tennis Tournament. His participation in this investigation brings him to the attention of a Chinese crime syndicate, so he must leave England for awhile. The CIA uses this to their advantage as they recruit Alex to portray the son of a couple of agents posing as a family on vacation in Cuba where a Russian general has been building a nuclear bomb with stolen uranium. As usual, Alex finds himself in the middle of the action. Skeleton Key is the third entry in the Alex Rider series and definitely falls on the side of implausible. An evil former general in the Russian army is the antagonist. The general is more than a one dimensional character as he does give his reasons for his actions and actually considers Alex as a possible substitute for his dead son, but the plot and characters in this story are over the top, while some of the dialogue is stilted and unbelievable. Overall, Skeleton Key delivers action and adventure, but doesn't add much to the Alex Rider series.

I love this series so much! Like I've said a hundred times before it brongs back so much nostalgia for me. I am so happy I decided to reread the series finally. I missed Alex and Sabina so much.