Reviewed by The Compulsive Reader for TeensReadToo.com

Cadel, the scrawny, nerdy boy from EVIL GENIUS, is back in GENIUS SQUAD, a bit more grown up, a lot more responsible, and trapped in a foster home with a bully and without a computer.

He's miserable as he tries to bide his time until the slow-moving authorities can find out who he is and where he belongs. It is as he is waiting that the Genius Squad approaches him.

Devoted to bringing down one of Dr. Darkkon's operations, GenoME, the Genius Squad wants Cadel to help them. But Cadel is naturally suspicious and paranoid.

Can he really trust the Genius Squad, or is his hesitance to trust them warranted?

This book has even more action and quick thinking than the first! Each page builds up suspense that culminates into a surprise scenario that will leave you scrambling to catch up. Though it contains more computer and hacking references than its prequel, that doesn't deduct from its appeal.

This is one series that is sure to entrance even the most reluctant reader, especially with an ending that is wide open to accommodate another sequel, THE GENIUS WARS. ( )

This book is equal but opposite to its predecessor. In Evil Genius, it wasn't until I got all the way through the book that I truly enjoyed it (in retrospect) -- the act of reading it was fraught with frustrations as I wanted to smack even the main character; the sequel, on the other hand, was a rollicking joy ride of a read, but I'm not sure it held up as well once we got to the end. The end, in fact, is predictable and slightly cheesy. It's good cheese, but it is definitely cheese. Taken as a package, this is fun stuff -- but I am curious to know if there is a third and how it will affect the current balance.

It was a really great sequel to the first. It was captivating. The suspense was suspenseful. It was able to make you want to read more. I liked it. It had me captivated. I give it two thumbs up. It was easy to predict. AHS/JD

If you liked Evil Genius, you’re going to love the sequel, for Prosper English isn’t finished with Cadel yet. I really liked the computer hacking, and the description of it. The way it was worded made me want to get online and start trying to hack. Most sequels aren’t’ as good as the original, but this one wasn’t bad. I really liked how Cadel still acted like a teenager even though he’s a genius, for it makes it easier to relate to him and feel for him throughout the book. The one thing I disliked about the book is that Cadel wasn’t Prosper’s or Phineas’ child, but so guy’s of whom we never encountered until the end of this book. It degrades Cadel and makes him less of a genius to me because he’s not the son of one. AHS/SW

Opening Sentence: '…Cadel was in a very sour mood when he first met Detective Inspector
Saul Greeniaus…’

Cadel Piggott was first introduced to us in EVIL GENIUS where he loved to create havoc just for the fun of it. However, after the life changing experiences he went through at the Axis Institute with his father, Prosper English, he now just wants to be a good person.

Prosper is denying that he’s Cadel’s father. This means that Cadel has no father on record, and with a dead mother, no citizenship in any country. So he cannot leave Australia, even though the government will not recognize him. Cadel is a key witness to the evils that went on at the Axis Institute and to Prosper’s many other illegal activities. Even though Prosper is behind bars, Cadel knows that the barrier is nothing to another genius like himself and has seen the lengths to which Prosper will go. Cadel is not allowed to go to school so is desperately bored. The foster home he is in is run by well-meaning parents, but they are also foster two other children, including a violent bully.

Cadel is under the care of a lovely social worker named Fiona who tries to protect him in a new foster home. Then there is Detective Saul Greeniaus, who has been assigned to Cadel’s case but gradually becomes a good friend, rather than a nuisance.

When visiting his best friend Sonja one day, Cadel is approached by some adults who run the new Clearview House, a cover for Genius Squad, a group of gifted teens who will work to bring down GenonMe, a company linked to Prosper. They offer Sonja and Cadel $50,000 each and a home while they work on the computer hacking and coding with the other teens to find out what happens at GenonMe and who is behind it. The money and offer of living with Sonja are too good to pass up; the cash would buy Sonja good care well into the future. Sonja has cerebral palsy and will need medical care for all of her life. The problem is that they cannot tell Fiona or the detective. So Cadel begins a secret life again, unsure of his safety, but this time he seems to be working for good.

A well deserved winner of a Davitt Award in the Young Adult Category - 2009 - GENIUS SQUAD is a real page turner with real characters. There is a lot of computer jargon, wonderfully clever tricks, and a lot of subplots - which I temporarily lost track of occasionally. Overall it is an adventure that is packed full of action from beginning to the surprising twisty, turny end. ( )

Sequel to "Evil Genius". Good read about evil and boy trying to be good, but linking it to "Body Image" is a real stretch, although one of the main characters has cerebral palsy.