Little Miss Evil by Bryce Leung and Kristy Shen

Pages: 139

Intended Audience: Tweens

Genre: Adventure/Humor

Notes for Parents: Contains violence and some mature scenes

The Back Cover

When you live in a volcano, ride to school in a helicopter, and regularly see your dad on the news with the caption “EVIL GENIUS” underneath his picture, it takes a lot to rattle you.

Until you get a message that says: We have your father. Deliver the NOVA in 24 hours or we will kill him.

What’s a NOVA, you ask? It’s a nuclear bomb capable of turning the city into a radioactive mushroom cloud, and ever since Fiona’s dad built it, it’s caused nothing but grief. But telling him to stop building weapons is like telling Michelangelo to stop painting. And that’s why thirteen-year-old Fiona has a flamethrower strapped to her arm.

After all, who’d mess with a girl who can throw fireballs?

Apparently, these guys.

Big mistake.

What the cover doesn’t tell you:

The authors are a husband and wife writing team. They are engineers and live in Toronto.

What’s good?

There’s plenty of action and adventure in this story about Fiona, the unfortunate daughter of an evil genius who isn’t keen on following in her father’s footsteps. But she loves her dad despite his villainous ways and sets off to save him when he’s kidnapped by his nemesis. This is a quick and easy read with a simple plot and a few good twists. It’s charming and witty with the same light tone as Despicable Me but it maintains a fresh, original feel. Fiona is fun and likeable, the pace is swift, and the story is entertaining.

Best Part: Fiona’s birthday gifts over the years.

What isn’t good?

The authors use a lot of clichéd similes and metaphors that make it feel childish after a while. The wit gets stale too as the plot becomes more dire. The secondary characters are a bit flat, although the interaction between Fiona and the others works well. The cutesy bits disagree with the big action scenes.

Worst part: The intended audience is a bit confusing.

Recommendation þþþoo

In the end, this is a strange cross between a Saturday morning cartoon and an adult action movie. It will work for some and not for others. I think mature readers will have a hard time buying into some of the facts (Ruby is a 13-year-old helicopter pilot; Jai drives his own submarine), but younger readers will enjoy the adventure and humor. It’s quirky and fun, but has some mature violence.

Leung, Bryce & Kristy Shen. Little Miss Evil. New York: Scholastic, 2015.