thirteen-year-old “Q,” or Quest, is at a life-changing moment. His singer-songwriter mother, Blaze, is marrying Roger, and together they have a hit album. The rocker couple plans a cross-country tour with the kids. A year out of school with only an online tutor leaves plenty of time for Q to practice his magic tricks and to get to know his new 15-year-old stepsister, Angela. The tour bus stops in Philadelphia, the parents exit to do their show—and Angela confides to Q that she believes they are being followed. With the help of Boone, a former roadie (and retired spook) who is now in charge of the kids, they realize that Angela is in danger: Her mother, a CIA agent believed to have perished in a terrorist attack, may still be alive. A blend of adventure, suspense, intelligently imagined characters and terrific authorial sleight-of-hand (not to mention Q’s own card tricks) will keep readers engaged as the kids solve the mystery in this series opener.
