UNDERCOVER

Talented kids infiltrate a ring of pacifist fanatics and go for a rematch with shadowy evildoers in this brisk sequel.

Following a cybersecurity breach culminating in a massive explosion that takes out a weapons manufacturer’s clandestine research labs, Syrian British Zenobia Rafiq goes undercover to join Spikers, a supposedly nonviolent gang of hackers whose leaders (as it turns out) are bent on doing more than just exposing arms dealers and deals. Meanwhile, her partner, Caleb Quinn, who is white, and his AI buddy, Sam, struggle to retain control Terrorform, the wildly popular RPG they created, in the face of a mysterious invasion. Once again, Macx positively shovels in high-tech elements from microdrones and nanobots to a flying quad bike and invisibility cloaks as he pitches his intrepid preteen geniuses into impressive feats of physical and mental gymnastics. Topping it all off, exhilarating battles in worlds both real and virtual culminate in an aerial dogfight over the Bank of England in which an improvised goo cannon plays a messy but significant role. The portrayal of antiwar activists as either malign or naïve reads as rather simplistic, but Zen, at least, does express some sympathy for their cause. And for all the killer robots and explosions, there are no explicit fatalities. The end brings more of a lull than a resolution, promising further exploits to come.

Chock-full of appeal for spy thriller fans.