Carter, Ally. 2006. I'D TELL YOU I LOVE YOU, BUT THEN I'D HAVE TO KILL YOU. New York: Hyperion Paperbacks. ISBN 9781423100041
2. Plot Summary
The Gallagher Academy is located in a small town, some townies believe it is a private school for rich girls, but secretly it is an all girls school for spies. Cammie Morgan is sophomore at the academy. "People call me the chameleon here- if you go to spy school, I guess that's a pretty good nickname" (22). Her mom is the head mistress of the school. This year there is a new Covert Operations teacher named Joe Solomon. He is super hot and his class is really tough. "Out there. It's not for everyone, and that's why I'm going to make this hard on you" (19). On a secret mission for her new teacher she meets a regular boy. Cammie is not sure how to act with a normal boy. "I realized how ridiculous it must have looked. Under the warmth of the smile, I forgot my legend, my mission-everything..." (79). Spy school has not trained her on how to be ordinary or to have a relationship.
3. Critical Analysis
The setting of the story takes place in a small town. This element adds to the secrecy of the school. The main character is a teenage girl who has been raised in the world of spies. The story is told from her point of view to allow the reader connect to her and understand what is going on in the story through her viewpoint. "Absolute torture! And that's not a word I use lightly, considering the family business' (14). The tone of the story is told with humor and a little bit of suspense. The spy dialogue that the character uses while telling the story makes it unique. For example every time Cammie meets Jason she analyzes the situation and him has if he is a spy mission. "The subject liked to state the obvious, which may signify a defect in observation skills and/or short-term memory?" (149). This adds charm to the story and a different perspective. The reader believes that the girls are not normal teenagers, but actual spy's in training. The overall theme of the story is be yourself. No matter where you go to school or who your parents are people are still going to like you. The plot of the story is self vs. self. The main character is trying to be accepted by a normal boy, and yet she is conflicted with who she really is. A spy in training. "But here's the thing about spy truth: sometimes it isn't enough to achieve your missions objective" (248). She has to decide who she really is and what it the most important to her. This is fun read with a new perspective on girls in spy school. Any teenage will enjoy the suspense and humor of Cammie's adventures.
4. Review Excerpts
SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL: "The teen's double life leads to some amusing one-liners, and the invented history of the Gallagher Girls is also entertaining, but the story is short on suspense. The stakes never seem very high since there are no real villains, and the cutesy dialogue quickly becomes grating. However, the novel has been optioned for a film and will likely attract readers who enjoy lighthearted, frothy tales and squeaky-clean romances. Unfortunately, it lacks the warmth and appeal of other teen books turned into movies, such as Meg Cabot's The Princess Diaries (HarperCollins, 2000) and Ann Brashares's The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pant."
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY: "The spy game isn't just a guy game, as witnessed by Carter's diverting entry into the flurry of teen espionage novels flashing loads of girl power. Unfortunately, Raudman sounds like she's straining (and sometimes squeakily so) to sound younger than she is and her intonation is a bit off, giving her reading a falseness that's hard to overcome."
5. Connections
Other books about Cammie Morgan:
Carter, Ally. CROSS MY HEART AND HOPE TO SPY. ISBN 9781423100065
Carter, Ally. ONLY THE GOOD SPY YOUNG. IBSN 1423128205
Carter, Ally. DON'T JUDGE A GIRL BY HER COVER. ISBN 9781423116608
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