Traitor [Hardcover]

Andy McNab (Author), Robert Rigby (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 6, 2005

All his life Danny Watts has dreamed of becoming a soldier. But there’s a problem: The grandfather he's never met, army hero Fergus Watts, was a notorious traitor, and now family history is keeping Danny out of Officer's Training school. Danny is determined to track Fergus down. But how can he find a man trained to avoid capture, an expert at surveillance and covert operations?

And there are further complications. As Danny makes his first move, so does someone else—someone who has been watching Danny. Someone for whom Fergus Watts is a problem that needs to be solved permanently. In no time, Danny is on the run himself—has his search for Fergus made him a "problem," too?

Packed with authentic details from Andy McNab’s experience in British Special Ops, Traitor is the first book of an explosive, fast-paced YA series, perfect for fans of the Alex Rider Adventures.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 6-10–When Danny, an orphan who lives in a hostel in southeast London, is rejected by the Army due to the traitorous past of his grandfather, he vows to find the old man and make him suffer. His friend Elena is the computer genius who aids in his search. As Danny learns about Fergus Watts's exemplary service record and then his turn to the other side, he becomes more and more angry. Once he tracks Watts down, the real story about the man's past unfolds. Danny is followed, bullets start flying from an unknown source, the only person who can confirm Watts's story is murdered, and Fergus is captured. The conclusion confirms that a sequel is forthcoming. A glossary of military terms is included at the beginning, but some readers are still likely to feel overwhelmed at the lingo and will have to flip back and forth frequently as the contextual clues are not helpful. Though it takes a while to get involved in the plot, the authors do deliver hearty doses of adventure and suspense. The book has a Tom Clancyesque feeling for younger readers.–Emily Garrett, Naaman Forest High School, Garland, TX
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Gr. 10-12. Orphaned Londoner Danny Watts wants nothing to do with his estranged grandfather, a traitor who went MIA years ago, until the British military offers Danny a proposition: find his grandfather and he'll receive a scholarship. He thinks the offer is his only chance for a decent future, and with help from his best friend, Elena, he sets off to find his relative and the truth. What, and who, he finds endangers his life and his family. The well-crafted language includes a few coarse phrases ("You look like a right dickhead") as well as British idioms and military lingo, defined in a front-of-the-book glossary. With its brisk plot and unpredictable characters, this story of intrigue rises above many standard adventure stories. Roger Leslie
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 12 and up
  
• Hardcover: 265 pages
• Publisher: Putnam Juvenile (October 6, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0399244646
• ISBN-13: 978-0399244643
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,053,993 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Hero or Traitor?, February 11, 2006

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Traitor (Hardcover)

The book Traitor is by Andy McNab and Robert Rigby. Traitor is about a boy named Danny Watts living in Wiltshire, England who wants to join the army. Danny believes his application for a scholarship from the RCB (Regular Commissions Board) is turned down because his grandfather turned into a traitor. Fergus Watts, once an SAS hero turned against his country and befriended Columbian drug lords. Danny wants to go hunt down his grandfather for preventing him from entering the army, and for his betrayal. Members of MI5 (NOT MI6) are also after Fergus, and do not want Danny to know the truth. Danny's best friend, Elena, who is a semi-genius, helps Danny track down his grandfather. Let's not forget the cowardly but determined reporter, Eddie Moyes. All of these characters come together in the end in a clash that will test the trust of some, and strengthen the trust of others. Traitor is a lot of action and fast-paced events, as well as some humor and intrigue. I recommend this book for anyone who loves action books. I enjoyed this book thoroughly, because of the ways Danny and Fergus manage to escape from the MI5. Remember, you never know who you can trust.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A great book to read, December 3, 2007

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Traitor (Mass Market Paperback)

Do you like heart-stopping plot twisting books that are changing all the time? If you have answered yes then Traitor by Andy Mcnab and Robert Rigby might be the book for you. This book is the story of a seventeen-year-old boy named Danny Watts, who is training to be in the army. Danny is kept out of the army because of his grand father, Fergus Watts who is a supposed SAS traitor. Danny is an orphan living at an orphanage called foxcroft where his friend Elena helps him find his grandfather. This story is written from Danny's point of view and from Fergus's. This is probably one of the best non-fiction books that I have read in a long and Andy Mcnab and Robert Rigby's style of writing makes this book even more enjoyable. So if you are between the ages of 10 and 14 and like a good book with an unpredictable ending that is writing very well I highly suggest that you give this book a try.

1.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing, April 25, 2011

By 

James L Ashmore (Texas United States) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Traitor (Boy Soldier) (Kindle Edition)

This is another example of an author lending his name to a book that was entirely written by a third-tier writer. The plot was more boring than the dialogue. Don't waste your time with this one.