Just a month after his previous adventure at an exclusive school in the French Alps, sixteen-year-old Alex Rider is attempting to return to a normal life in London. But this is a wish quickly forgotten as an M16 agent recruits him for a mission during a school soccer game.
He is soon over in the USA, and taking on the role of the son of two up-tight and by-the-book CIA officers.

Together, they must infiltrate the home of an ex-Russian army commander. Trouble is, his house is an island in Cuba and Americans aren't exactly welcome in that part of the world.

Armed with some outrageous and extremely useful gadgets disguised as toys, Rider must soon try to win the trust of the Russian on his own, but finds himself in a seemingly losing battle against the rich and powerful man.

Alex discovers the Russian's deadly plot to take over the world, but will a young boy be able to stop him?

A terrific book that will having you struggle to put it down as you dive into the world of international spies, crazy military men and truly gripping suspense.

I gave this book 5 stars, and it deserves 6, so read it now and find out why!


Amazing once again!   May 12, 2003
 4 out of 4 found this review helpful

I orginally bought this book off of amazon.co.uk.com because its a british book and it came out sooner in england. I was sooooo amazed at how anthony horowitz once again, captures so much action in one book! I absolutlely LOVE this series because its so enjoyable to read and also because it never gets boring! I'm a girl and although this book would probably seem more apealing to guys, i would HIGHLY suggest this book and the rest of its series to any girl out there! If you want to read this book i would recomend reading the first two first (stormbreaker, point blank/blanc)


Fabulous Spy   January 8, 2005
 4 out of 6 found this review helpful

Hi! I'm a twelve-year-old and have read "Skeleton Key". My class read it as a Literature circle book and I chose to review it for everyone to read. When you read "Skeleton Key" I would suggest being in a very quiet place where you can concentrate because it is very exciting.
First of all, this is the third book in a series called "The Alex Rider Adventures". Reading the third book first can really mess you up with the rest of the series. Read the first one and then go on with the rest of the series. The first book in the series is called "Stormbreaker". The rest of the books in the series are: "Point Blank", "Skeleton Key" and "Eagle Strike".
When you start reading "Skeleton Key" you might think that everything is just being thrown at you and it is kind of confusing. At the very beginning there is a flashback that will seem weird to you because it's not what you think it is. I made predictions with my Lit. Circle(Literature Circle)group. We found that one prediction had to be the true one- that the driver of the plane was Ian Rider, Alex Riders Uncle. After starting the first book- "Stormbreaker"- myself, I found out it wasn't his uncle. Which was really a surprise.
Now, back to the story. Alex rider is a fourteen-year-old boy who has lost his parents and his uncle. No one in his family is willing and ready to take care of him. His uncle had taken care of him for sometime. Alex's uncle was a spy. Ian Rider was Alex's guardian for a while, so the spy business had been passed down to him. The spy place took care of him and watched him. Alex doesn't want to be a spy and wishes he had never become one. The only problem was, He had no choice and he couldn't back down.
In this book there are two missions, the spy place-M16 has assigned him. The first was a fun job because he got front row seats in a tennis tournament. He was assigned to be a ball boy and find out what was going on there. He went there and found out something he never thought would be there. It was very strange and he didn't know who did it. Once he told M16 and the cops they found out who and why the person did this.
The second mission is the main part of the story. It is very important. Alex has to go to America on a spy mission for them. America's own two people- Belinda Troy and Glen Carver, go on the mission with Alex to Cayo Esqueleto, which means Skeleton Key. Alex and the two spies go to the Island as a family and stay there for two weeks. Something terrible happens to the spies twice. Alex finds out what's going on and saves the worlds from any harm.
I enjoyed this book so much, but I think if you are going to read it you should read "Stormbreaker" and "Point Blank" first. It will make "Skeleton Key" much clearer. I hope you enjoyed reading my review. You should really read "The Alex Rider Adventures". They are very enjoyable, breath taking, and suspenseful. So, sit back and relax while you read "Skeleton Key".



Skeleton Key   October 16, 2003
 3 out of 4 found this review helpful

Skeleton Key was a very good action or mystery book. Alex Rider a junior secret agent really made it like a young James Bond book. It provided excitement and non-stop action. It was in my opinion the best book out of the first two of this series of Alex Rider novels. This book was a good book and i would recomend it.