Alex Rider is a teenage spy whose parents were killed in mysterious circumstances. He is called upon to join the secret service and travels around the world having various adventures and saving the world. These stories are high octane and particularly suitable for boys aged 8+ who are looking for texts that use ambitious vocabulary whilst, at the same time, have age appropriate content and language. Do be warned though, there are lots of these books and they are the Pringles of the book world- once a child starts reading them, they seem unable to stop!