Also Known As by Robin Benway Review

Also Known As by Robin Benway
(AKA, #1)
Release Date: February 26, 2013
Publisher: Bloomsbury Juvenile; 320 pages

Being a 16-year-old safecracker and active-duty daughter of international spies has its moments, good and bad. Pros: Seeing the world one crime-solving adventure at a time. Having parents with super cool jobs. Cons: Never staying in one place long enough to have friends or a boyfriend. But for Maggie Silver, the biggest perk of all has been avoiding high school and the accompanying cliques, bad lunches, and frustratingly simple locker combinations.

Then Maggie and her parents are sent to New York for her first solo assignment, and all of that changes. She'll need to attend a private school, avoid the temptation to hack the school's security system, and befriend one aggravatingly cute Jesse Oliver to gain the essential information she needs to crack the case . . . all while trying not to blow her cover.

That was one of the cutest books I've ever read. I don't think I've had so much fun reading a book before. The amount of times I smiled and laughed throughout was fantastic. I had no idea this main character, Maggie, was so damn hilarious. She is a firecracker! Between her, her best friend Roux and the love interest, Jesse Oliver, I just couldn't stop the laughter.

I am just so glad I read this. I was on the fence about it but I decided to go ahead and give it a try. The best decision I've made in awhile. If you're looking for a light, fun and cute read, this is definitely something you should pick up. I'm not even kidding you. I read it in less than a day. Stayed up until 5 am actually, to finish it.

Maggie has been a spy since she was born. She broke in to her first lock when she was just three years old. She is legendary in the spy world for how efficient she is for breaking in to safe's and picking locks. It kind of makes you want to try and see if you could break in to a safe after reading about how great she is at it. I know I'd be horrible but you still have that feeling that you'd wanna give it a shot. Crazy, right?

The relationship between her and Jesse is hilarious. Not only is she sarcastic but so is he and their personalities mesh very well together. Both can dish it but most importantly, both can take it. What I also love about these two is it wasn't 'love at first sight' which is too common in YA. Sure, she found him attractive from the moment she saw him but that doesn't mean anything. It wasn't until maybe their third or fourth meeting where feelings started to form. Their relationship seemed real, honest (or as honest as a spy could be) and just what any girl would want their first relationship to be.

Now the friendship between Roux and Maggie is just...hilarious. Roux, at times, seems to be a bit much and I think I'd need a break from her as out there as she is but she's a great fit for Maggie. Roux is the school's outcast but she hadn't always been that. She did something pretty bad to ruin her reputation and Maggie is the first friend she's had in a year. Their personalities are quite similar but again, somehow they don't butt heads (often) and really even each other out.

The relationships in this book are just amazing (including Angelo, who is absolutely fabulous and her parents), the story is exciting, stressful and, a lot of times, just funny. Who knew being a spy could sound so...cool? There's plenty of books I recommend but not too many that I'm like you need to run out to the store, buy this book and start reading it, asap. However, this book fits that bill - seriously, go read it. You'll laugh, I promise you...if not then you'll at least have a big ole smile on your face.

Thank you to Bloomsbury for approving me on netgalley to read and review this book honestly. I also cannot wait for Sunday when I get to meet this author and tell her just how much I loved this book.