Kensy and Max : Full speed by Jacqueline Harvey

Penguin Random House Australia, 2020. ISBN: 9781760890025.
(Ages 8-10). Recommended. Kensy and Max, the super child spies, are back in the sixth book in this very popular series.  In this new book the twins find themselves on a mission to Zermatt in Switzerland after there is a strange gas leak in the Houses of Parliament during their school excursion.
When they arrive in Zermatt Kensy and Max are tasked with befriending Soren, the child of a very suspicious couple who are suspected of being involved in an arms smuggling ring.  But the mystery deepens for them when a secretive figure that was spotted in London turns up in Zermatt and seems to want to kill Max.  There is also the mystery of who is behind the hacks that are plaguing many large corporations around the world.  Along with the exciting, page-turning action in this book there is also a softer side which explores family relationships through the story behind Soren and his relationship with both his very self-absorbed parents and their kind housekeeper Sylvie.  Readers will enjoy the spy tools and special gadgets used by the twins and their family to give them the upper hand and solve the case.
These books can be read as a stand-alone book but some understanding of the characters that pop up is enhanced if they are read in order.  As with previous books the chapter titles are written in a special code, different in each book.  This book uses the Qwerty Code where the alphabet corresponds with the QWERTY keyboard and is explained in the back of the book. Themes: Spies, Twins, Siblings, Snow skiing, Mysteries.
Gabrielle Anderson