The 39 Clues: Book Six

“Come on. Let’s go kick some old lady butt!”

This early line from 11-year-old Dan Cahill to his sister, Amy, in the busy Sydney Airport drew us right into this next installment of The 39 Clues. As the Cahill kids continue their search for the next clue in a hunt designed by their deceased and beloved Grandmother, they met another older woman who was less than beloved. They had good reason for wanting to “kick her butt,” as it turns out, for this old lady happened to be Isabella Cabra, mother to the Cabra twins and the woman that would soon try to assassinate the Cahill kids. Twice.

This book takes the kids to Australia where they’re nearly fed to sharks and burned to death in a bungalow. Another family member whom they’d learned to trust in The Black Circle, Irena Spasky, ends up dying in her efforts to save the children, so this series is beginning to take a deadlier turn that we had anticipated—much like what happened in A Series of Unfortunate Events, as those books unfolded as well. Add to this the fact that the kids have reason to doubt their au pair, Nelly, and it’s kind of a downer book—but exciting.

The key historical figure in this book in Amelia Erhardt, though readers will learn very little true history about her here. Of course, I hope teachers and parents aren’t expecting their kids are reading history with this series, even though the books often dip into the past! The presence of historical figures and locations might help spark conversations, but they won’t help kids prepare for a Social Studies test.

This is the second book in the series written by Jude Watson, so again I’m back to imagining how this writing team managed to handle the flow of these publications while maintaining a very familiar Voice and consistent characterizations. It’s quite a feat, actually, seeing that this team of authors was pumping out a new book every 2-3 months!

I imagine they had regular meetings early on where they agreed upon the finer character details and mapped out the plot including: famous locations to visit, historical figures to “meet”, ingredients to chase, and terrors to endure. Perhaps one final team collected the manuscripts, edited them for continuity and feeling, and then prepared them for publication even before the first book, Maze of Bones, was released. The various authors definitely didn’t write these books in a vacuum, so although each book has a singular author named, I’m sure each installment was also a great team effort.

We enjoyed this Book 6 and look forward to Book 7: The Viper’s Nest set in South Africa. The main characters still don’t know which of the Cahill family branches they’re from, who their parents were, or what this clue hunt is all about, but each book gets us a step closer to the answers, so we’re happy to keep reading.

©2023 E.T.

Read More from The 39 Clues Series:

1. The Maze of Bones by Rick Riordan (2008)
2. One False Note by Gordon Korman (2008)
3. The Sword Thief by Peter Lerangis (2009)
4. Beyond the Grave by Jude Watson (2009)
5. The Black Circle by Patrick Carmen (2009)
6. In Too Deep by Jude Watson (2009)
7. The Viper’s Nest by Peter Lerangis (2010)
8. The Emperor’s Code by Gordan Korman (2010)
9. Storm Warning by Linda Sue Park (2010)
10. Into the Gauntlet by Margaret Peterson Haddix (2010)
11. Vespers Rising by Rick Riordan, Peter Lerangis, Gordan Korman, and Jude Watson (2011)