Game of Clones: The Clone Chronicles, #3, by M.E. Castle. Egmont USA (2014), $15.99, ISBN: 9781606842348
Recommended for ages 8-12
In M.E. Castle’s third installment of the Clone Chronicles, seventh grader Fisher Bas and his clone, Fisher-2, put aside their differences to team up and fight Three, the Fisher clone created by the evil Dr. X. Three’s gone rogue, with plans for world domination on his mind, and he’s on track to make it happen – will Dr. X make an appearance? Is the enemy of Fisher’s enemy a friend?
The book is a fast-moving action-adventure series that should appeal to both middle grade boys and girls. Fisher and Fisher-2 have allies in their classmates, Amanda and Veronica, both of whom serve as the boys’ crushes and as intelligent, strong females in the series. Fisher tends to be an overthinker, and Alex struggles to define his own personality despite being a Fisher clone. This struggle runs throughout the book, and mirrors many a tween’s burgeoning identity and personality clashes and crises; where Fisher-2 is a clone, a tween pushes back against being merely “the son” or “the daughter”. Three wreaks havoc in Fisher’s neighborhood and school, forcing him to think of creative solutions and seek help outside of his gadgets; he realizes the power of friendship and of reaching out to ask for help, and it makes him a better person.
Overall, it’s a fun book in a popular series that tweens will enjoy. Game of Clones is part of The Clone Chronicles series; the first two books are Popular Clone and Cloneward Bound.
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