Ali Cross has always looked up to his father, former detective and FBI agent Alex Cross. While solving some of the nation’s most challenging crimes, his father always kept his head and did the right thing. Can Ali have the same strength and resolve?
When Ali’s best friend Abraham is reported missing, Ali is desperate to find him. At the same time, a string of burglaries targets his neighborhood—and even his own house. With his father on trial for a crime he didn’t commit, it’s up to Ali to search for clues and find his friend. But being a kid sleuth isn’t easy—especially when your father warns you not to get involved!—and Ali soon learns that clues aren’t always what they seem. Will his detective work lead to a break in Abraham’s case or cause even more trouble for the Cross family?
This book was exciting!!! As the son of a detective, Ali wanted to be a detective himself and he was anxious to jump on the mystery of his friend’s disappearance, when the police department didn’t seem to be on it fast enough. I was hooked from the get-go and couldn’t put the book down. I was on the edge of my seat wondering where Gabe was and how Ali was going to solve the mystery. Ali’s voice was also humorous and full of personality.
This is a dual POV book that includes both the POV of Ali and his detective father. At first I wasn’t convinced that the fathers POV was necessary but by the end, it grew on me.
Despite being MG, I liked that the story didn’t shield Ali from real danger. This would absolutely appeal to upper MGers.
Although it’s great that this book was written with the intention to appeal to young male readers (I’m guessing at least), there was a specific event in the book that I felt perpetuated male stereotypes (e.g. starting a fight at school was positively reinforced instead of discouraged) which didn’t sit right with me.
Ali stumbled upon some aspects of the mystery based on a “hunch” that later on turned out to be correct. I felt a bit cheated out of the thrill of the mystery itself because of this.
Each chapter ended with a hooky sentence or two which made me want to read the next chapter, which I liked at first, but this got a bit repetitive since it happened at the end of every chapter.
3/5 fishies!
Ali Cross was a fun and suspenseful mystery for MG-lovers!
Photo by Julian Hochgesang on Unsplash
SOPHIE LI 
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