Search - Evil Genius

This was an entertaining read but not quite what I expected. It comes across a little Harry Potterish and I think it might appeal to younger readers. The HIGH IQ character, Cadel while smart did not act all that ingenius to me in that he seemed rather naive and easily manipulated by the adults in his life.Then again...I suppose it's a common stereotype of genius that they have book-smarts but no common sense. Not necessarily a view I support.

Reviewed by The Compulsive Reader for TeensReadToo.com

Cadel Piggot has been visiting Dr. Thadeus Roth since he was seven years old and had been caught hacking into credit card company files. His adoptive parents, terrified of his intelligence and innocence, forbade him to touch computers and hauled him right off to the psychologist.

But it's not long before Thadeus is not only letting him use his computer, but is also facilitating a relationship between Cadel and Dr. Darkkon, an imprisoned criminal mastermind who claims to be Cadel's father.

As Cadel grows older, expanding his talents and often "testing" them, he finds himself at the Axis Institute, a school founded by his father where evil schemes and rule-breaking are encouraged (as long you don't get caught). But he also meets Kay-Lee. It's her friendship that opens his eyes to what's really happening, and makes him face the ultimate question: Has Cadel's whole life been just another one of his father's schemes?

A little slow towards the beginning, and sometimes a bit too fast when it comes to number theory and computer technology, this is ultimately a book that doesn't require a remarkable genius of any kind to understand.