Review: Tracker Hacker by Jeff Adams

Title: Tracker Hacker

Series: Codename: Winger, Book One

Author: Jeff Adams

Length: 194 Pages

Category: Teen Fiction, Mystery/Suspense

At a Glance: All in all, an excellent read, and I can’t wait to get book two to see how the journey continues.

Reviewed By: Taz

Blurb: Theo Reese is just an average high school student with a passion for hockey and an uncanny talent when it comes to computers… at least on the surface.

What his teammates, fellow students, and even his boyfriend don’t realize is that Theo leads a double life. When he’s not putting up his facade of normal, Theo is working as an agent for Tactical Operational Support, where his technical genius is more than just a hobby. At sixteen he is responsible for helping agents in the field and keeping the TOS network secure.

It’s a secret he has to keep—from everyone.

But secrecy becomes even harder when a hacker compromises the system TOS uses to track its agents and Theo’s dad goes missing. Theo must find him and stop the hacker, which means leaving the comfort of his computer screen and venturing into a very real and very deadly world.

And if that’s not enough to deal with, all the secrecy is really putting a strain on Theo’s love life.

Review: Tracker Hacker by Jeff Adams is a fast paced story following Theo Reece, a sixteen-year-old tech whiz. He and his parents both work for an organization called Tactical Operations Support (TOS), his parents working as active operatives and Theo working behind the scenes helping out with the IT side of things. Along with his extraordinary talent in programming, he is also a talented hockey player and has an unbelievably understanding boyfriend. When he finds himself immersed in the middle of a field operation, he must rely solely on his gut and instinct, his choices making the difference between life and death…for himself and everyone he loves.

This was a fantastic read. From start to finish, the pace kept me going. The character development moves the story forward, but Mr. Adams doesn’t drag anything out. We quickly move into the action and with each passing scene, the tension rises like any good work of fiction should. Twists and turns amp the nail-biting as the climax builds and then explodes in a highly satisfying ending.

When I first picked this book to review, I was expecting to read a story about a teen in love. I kind of expected it might be a coming-of-age story dealing with a young gay man learning life lessons that would propel him toward adulthood. The romance aspect of this story was definitely a sideline, not the main plot. While I thoroughly enjoyed the book, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that to readers.

That said, the story was well worth every minute I spent reading. Mr. Adams does an excellent job of describing the technical aspects of IT work. It’s clear that Theo is no ordinary teen. He’s far more talented than some of the most highly trained adults in the field. Through all these technical descriptions, Mr. Adams has done a wonderful job of making sure the reader doesn’t get lost. I know nothing of programming, yet I was able to follow everything Theo did and was able to admire his actions throughout the story.

Another interesting twist was the family dynamic. Both his parents are TOS agents, and when Theo is interacting with them from a TOS perspective, he needs to follow protocol, calling them by code names and maintaining security. There are even things he works on that he can’t share with his parents, and they, as experts, understand and accept this. However, they all slide between TOS roles and family roles in endearing ways. I loved the moments when they had to switch between TOS and family.

All in all, an excellent read, and I can’t wait to get book two to see how the journey continues.

You can buy Tracker Hacker here:
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