Customer Reviews

I'd Tell You I Love You, But Then I'd Have to Kill You [With Headphones] (Playaway Young Adult)

5 star:		(73)
4 star:		(40)
3 star:		(11)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Cammie Morgan is your typical student at the Gallagher Academy for Exceptional Young Women. She takes the same classes, and she has the same ambition: to become a spy. Under the guise of a school for rich geniuses, the Gallagher Academy is really a spy academy for exceptional young women. And exceptional they are. Martial arts black belts, fluency in fourteen languages, and expert hacking abilities are simply par for the course if you're a Gallagher Girl. Sophomore year is when the students start their first field work, in Covert Operations (CoveOps to those in the know) class. Cammie and her friends are thrilled that they're finally getting real experience. Then Cammie takes on a covert operation of her own. Out one night she meets a boy -- and falls for him. Unfortunately, he's an ordinary boy, and Cammie's no ordinary girl. Unable to tell him who she really is, she uses all her skills to track him and accidently-on-purpose bump into him. But is that enough? In a school where final exams involve being kidnapped, Cammie is about to get her most challenging assignment: transforming herself into a normal girl to date a normal boy. Quick-witted, clever, and poignant, this story is as interesting as any CoveOps assignment, with a cast of characters that makes it unforgettable.

Welcome to The Gallagher Academy for Exceptional Young Women, an all-girls school located just outside of Roseville, Virginia. Anyone looking at this elite private boarding school would see just what The Gallagher Academy wants you to see--a preppy school for privileged girls, complete with a guardhouse and stone wall to keep the curious away from their precious charges. And they'd be right, of course, and yet they would be so very, very wrong!

Because The Gallagher Academy isn't exactly what it appears to be. It's an elite school, that's for sure, and the only boys who grace its grounds are the male teachers. After that, though, the similarities between The Gallagher Academy and every other elite boarding school in the world ends. Instead of math and reading, English and horseback-riding, the girls who attend this school take courses in Covert Operations, Ancient Languages, Countries of the World, Culture and Assimilation, and Protection and Enforcement. The Gallagher Academy is, in a word, a school for spies.

Cammie Morgan is a second-generation Gallagher girl--her mother, who also attended the school, is now the headmistress. Her two best friends, Liz and Bex, are both super-smart, and the best spies-in-training she knows (except for Liz's lack of coordination, but that's another story). Cammie has spent most of her life inside the walls of The Gallagher Academy, and now that another semester is starting, complete with new CoveOps teacher, hunky Joe Solomon, she's really looking forward to the new school year.

But then things start to get a little out of control. Mr. Solomon seems to know all about Cammie's missing-and-presumed-dead father. She meets a boy in town, Josh, who finally sees her, really sees her, like no one else ever has. After all, she didn't get her nickname, "the chameleon," for nothing. But now Cammie is balancing on a dangerous ledge--knowing that no one outside of the gates of The Gallagher Academy can ever know who she truly is, and wanting nothing more than to spill all of her secrets to Josh.

As lies tangle with truths, as first love duels with obligation, Cammie will need to learn exactly what it means to be a spy, her mother's daughter, and a young girl falling in love.

I'D TELL YOU I LOVE YOU, BUT THEN I'D HAVE TO KILL YOU is a wonderful, laugh-out-loud, action-adventure extravaganza. Filled with plenty of cool gadgets, intriguing teachers, and heart-pounding first-love moments to keep the reader interested, you won't be able to put this book down once you start. A true winner, and I definitely can't wait for a sequel!

When my little sister handed me this book and told me to read it, I took one look at the cover and gave her a look that said, "you must be kidding me." I like YA literature and will even pick up the occasional "fluff" book, but this? This was too much and thus it sat on my nightstand for about a month before I gave it a chance. Surprisingly clever and enjoyable, this book is written from the perspective of Cammie Morgan, student at the Gallagher Academy for Exceptional Young Women (she also happens to be the headmistress's daughter). However, this is no ordinary school, it happens to be educating the next generation of super spies (think Mission: Impossible meets Harry Potter . . . with a female protagonist). As Cammie and her friends try to successfully navigate the new girl, challenging classes, and fourteen different languages, Cammie is thrown a curve ball that takes her out of her comfort zone when she gains a male admirer on the outside.

Carter has created a cast of likable characters and breathed new life into an overdone teen literary genre by giving it a new, high-tech twist. The plot is not complex, but it is compelling - admittedly I steamrolled through this book in two days. Moreover, I am always glad to see books on the shelves that contain intelligent, independent young women destined to be extraordinary in a world that seems to encourage mediocrity. The "Gallagher Academy created everything" from velcro to duct tape line gets a little old and repetitive, yes we get it you are a bunch of spy geniuses, but all in all it's a nice breezy read with a good premise. The next book in the series is currently sitting on my nightstand, but this time I can say with certainty it will not take me a whole month to dive in.

Okay, I was never expecting much from this book, especially after I saw that it had been optioned for a film by Disney. But I was hoping for some James Bond/Cody Banks/Spy Kids action.

This book is about Cammie Morgan, a student at the elite Gallagher Academy, which is essentially an all-girl school for spies. Cammie is a pretty normal student at Gallagher, besides the fact that her mother is the headmistress, and she has a reputation for being "the Chameleon." Cammie knows fourteen languages and how to kill a man with a piece of uncooked spaghetti, but when it comes to boys, she's clueless. However, some boy advice will come in handy when she starts up a secret relationship with a normal boy- who thinks she is just a normal girl.

This book was cute. Nothing more than that. It had some humor, not enough to make me laugh out loud, but enough to keep the mood light. That's the thing, I thought this book was TOO light. I never really bought in to any conflict. Don't you think in a book about spies, there should be some bad guys? Essentially, this book is about a girl who meets a boy. The spy stuff is just kind of tacked on. Cammie seemed more like a normal girl than a genius. But she did have a level head on her shoulders. But of course, all her friends wer super-model gorgeous while she is average looking. And she is the one with the boyfriend. Right. The characters and plot were all just a bit bland for me. Not much action to speak of. That was a tad disappointing. But there was some genuine guy advice, which readers will appreciate.

I don't know. It's cute, light, and I'm sure tweenage girls will eat it up. I won't read the sequels though unless they fall into my hands.

My mom, older sister and I all LOVED this book. It has action, suspense, humor, and romance. It is hard to put down, and will keep you laughing from cover to cover. It is very well written and the second book is just as good, if not better. I can't wait for the third book, "Don't Judge a Girl by Her Cover", to come out. It is being released on June 9th, and my mom called dibs on reading it first.
"I'd Tell You I Love You, But Then I'd Have to Kill You" is very well written, and also very clean. It is one of the most innocent teen books I have EVER read. Read it, read it, read it!!

I really struggled this season while shopping for a book to give as a gift to a 12-year old girl. A lot of books for the 9-12 crowd seemed geared toward the young end of the spectrum, but the books I looked at that are aimed at young adults seemed a little "too adult" for what I had in mind. This book was perfect. It is age appropriate, but more importantly it is just good fun. An elite boarding school full of young girls training to be spies? Genius.

This was Alias meets high school. Cameron Morgan is a Gallagher Girl. Translation, she's being trained to be a spy at her private school. She and her other soon-to-be-licensed-to-kill gal pals speak in multiple language, have been using roundhouse kicks for years, and absolutely don't know how to act around normal boys. To make it even worse, Cameron's mother is the principal of said school and so her problems are multiplied. Of course, Cameron meets a normal boy and can't tell him who she really is.

She finds herself on a tight balance, trying to date her hottie and do well in classes such as CoveOps, where she learns to trail people successfully on the DL. Her friends all call her the Chameleon for obvious reasons. What she really loves about her new boypal is that he seems to notice her, whereas usually she has been taught to blend in to the background.

There is a town vs. gown kind of rivalry going on, as well. The townie folk don't trust those Gallagher Girls. They are thought to be snooty and rich. While the Gallagher Girls are for the most part wealthy, they certainly aren't snooty, just can't reveal who they really are to most people. So Cammie has to pretend she is NOT a Gallagher Girl, causing her to tell lie after lie. You know she is going to be caught eventually, but you sympathize because this is her first boyfriend.

There are a lot of funny moments: the girls get ready dressed up for the CoveOps class (the teacher is really hot) only to find themselves facing the creepier paranoid chemistry teacher. I also laughed out loud as said boyfriend drove a forklift into a building while Cammie is performing a simulated heist. He thinks she is being kidnapped. I also enjoyed when they learn how to learn dirt on people through what is in someone's trash. Next thing you know, Cammie, Bex, and the other girls are looking through the boy's trash collecting notes and candy wrappers like they are evidence.

It is an enjoyable read for girls that are sick of the whole Clique or Gossip Girl scene. These are REAL girls with REAL problems (dead parents, how to tell if a boy likes you, choosing your friends over boys). It also had humor reminiscent of Kiki Strike. The girls are feeling bonded as they connect themselves to rappelling cables.

This is a smart, well written book. Not a lot of gratuitous malice. Even the details are well researched and interesting. I don't know why this book hasn't been picked up as a television show yet. Daughters from about 7 to 15 will enjoy this book and if mothers want to know what's being read, they can enjoy it too, it's that interesting.

I have been searching for a spy related book in over three months now and I already have a line up but I chose to read this one first. A school training to be an international espionage does sound interesting. An all girls school definitely appealing. I do not exactly have high hopes but I still got disappointed. It was a little bland and predictable. Cammie knows how to say "I'd tell you I love you, but then I have to kill you" in fourteen different language, can disable a nuclear weapon, hack to into the CIA, NSA or any other government agency local or international, and can take out a group of obnoxious men if she has to but like any other Gallagher girls, she is clueless when it comes to boys. It was cute and annoying at the same time, I understand how her character is portrayed and I like how she is still aware that she is not an ordinary girl nor had suddenly crave to be one. I think what puts me off a little bit is the lack of action and intrigue. The secondary characters also needs to have more spunk. But I do love the ending and I am willing to continue reading the series. I hope it gets better.

The story has been told many times before; boy and girl meet, one of them lies to the other about themselves, the other finds out, it ends in crying. "I don't know who you really are!" The idea is not new, but the details are. Cammie is your average spy-in-training, if such a thing exists. She meets Josh and can't tell him about who she is and what she does, so she does what any sensible girl would do, she lies. ~sigh~ don't these people read?!?! You ALWAYS get found out!

Overall, the writing was on the juvenile side, however, I feel that is the target audience. It is directed at young teens and preteens. The topic of two sub-genre's in the Young Adult genre has been more and more frequent. This would be one of those books that would be on the younger level. Don't mistake this for me not liking the book, I really did. It was a good change from vampires! It was a good, fun, clean read, but it might not meet the expectations of someone looking for something a bit more edgy.

I read that Disney has bought the rights to this movie for projected release in 2012. I think it would be a very cute movie. I can see my daughter LOVING it. The next books in the series are, Cross My Heart and Hope to Spy and Don't Judge a Girl by Her Cover.

~Jenn