Friday, June 22, 2012

"Spy Mom"

Beth McMullen graduated from Boston University with a degree in English Literature and received an MLS from Long Island University. After landing a gig with Reader’s Digest, she eventually realized she’d rather write books than condense them.

She applied the Page 69 Test to her new book, Spy Mom, and reported the following:
This is a little complicated for Spy Mom because Spy Mom is actually two books in one. It contains last years Original Sin and the sequel To Sin Again in one neat package called Spy Mom.

So page 69 is really page 368 in this 2-for-1 edition.

This page finds Sally trying to hack into The Agency’s network to uncover information about a terrorist organization called Righteous Liberty and a man named Richard Yoder.

Her son Theo, who’s five years old, would rather she play with him and keeps bugging her to hurry up and do whatever it is she’s doing so they can get on with it. He sits on her lap, plays with her hair, messes with the computer, anything to get her attention.

Meanwhile, Sally realizes her computer skills are not so great and she’s going to have to figure out another way into the network if she is going to get the information she needs. In the old days, when she was an active agent, she had resources. Now, she’s on her own.

It’s complicated.

I like this page because so much of these books are focused on how a person can be a parent and something else at the same time and this is illustrated nicely here. Something as simple as hacking into a secret government agency’s network is mad that much more difficult when you throw a kid into the mix.

Make organic applesauce. Play Legos. Save the world. Meet Sally Sin, everybody!
Learn more about the book and author at Beth McMullen's website and Facebook page.

The Page 69 Test: Original Sin.

Writers Read: Beth McMullen (July 2011).

--Marshal Zeringue