Conspiracy 365: October

(Conspiracy 365: Book Ten)

by
Gabrielle Lord

Kane Miller, October 2010, 185 pp.
ISBN: 978-1-935279-59-4

Genre: Young Reader
Subgenres: Thriller
Reviewed: 10/8/2010

Reviewed by: Conan Tigard

Book Cover

Excerpt

25 October

Pacific Tower

11:55 am

I heard the elevator locking into position on this floor. I had to move fast!

I scampered through the foyer and past the elevator, just as it opened. I stood up and ran into the neighboring accountant's office, throwing myself down on a chair in their waiting room. I watched through the doorway as Rathbone stepped out of the elevator and into his office, but not before he threw a sideways glance my way.

"How may I help you?" asked a man in reception.

"Oh," I said. "Sorry. I think I'm on the wrong floor." With that, I got up and hurried to the elevator.

I couldn't believe it when the elevator was suddenly called down to the ground floor. I hit the down button, taking a sideways looks at Rathbone's office, wondering how long it would take him to notice the hidden drawer's position.

I jiggled with impatience, listening to the elevator doors opening downstairs and to the silence coming from Rathbone's office. I hoped this would continue a while longer.

Come one, come on, I muttered to the elevator through clenched teeth, hearing its doors close downstairs and the whining of its ascent to the first and second floors.

A sudden eruption of sound came from Rathbone & Associates. I heard loud shouting, and then suddenly Rathbone appeared behind the double glass doors, heading straight for me, one fist raised in the air and his face contorted with rage. The elevator doors opened, and I jumped in, punching the "close doors" button.

"You! Come back here, you little thug! You criminal!" he shouted.

The elevator doors started to close. Hurry, hurry! I begged them.

Rathbone stuck one foot in the door, and the elevator doors parted again. He pulled them open with his hands, leaped into the elevator and grabbed me around the throat. "What did you take?"

"Nothing!" I said, struggling to free myself as the elevator doors closed, and we started descending. "Get your hands off me!"

"We'll see about that!" he said, tightening his grip on me. "I'm marching you straight down to the police. You tried to blackmail me once, but that won't scare me again. This is the end of you. You'll be locked up, and they'll throw away the key. You'll be an old man by the time you get out! And do you know what? I'll be enjoying all the wonderful things that the Ormond Singularity brings me while you're rotting away in some maximum security prison. In fact, once I have my hands on it, I'll send you a postcard."

Rathbone was surprisingly strong, and although I struggled vigorously, he was able to keep a tight hold on me as the elevator doors opened onto the ground floor.

Synopsis

Callum "Cal" Ormond flees through the desert with two bounty hunters and their dog behind him. He makes his way back to the city and to Winter's apartment. Cal shows Winter and Boges the message, SDB 291245,  that Kelvin wrote on his ankle with a permanent marker. None of them know what it means.

Nelson Sharkey convince the kids that they need to find out what Sheldrake Rathbone, the lawyer, is up to. Rathbone is involved with the Ormond Singularity, but no one knows what the lawyer is really about. The kids decide to spy on Rathbone and end up catching him burying money in his backyard. After taking a couple of pictures, Cal and Winter flee the scene.

Cal calls Rathbone and blackmails him into giving him Piers Ormond's will for the pictures they took. Meeting in the Crookwood Cemetery, Rathbone hands over the will. When Cal and his friends review the will, they realize that it is hard to read because of all the legal jibber jabber.

Later, Cal runs into Repro and helps him move his stuff into his new home, in a cave. Repro spots the writing on Cal's ankle and tells him that the letters stands for "Safe Deposit Box" at Zürich Bank. They figure that the numbers are the pin numbers to get into the vault. Having already collected a fingerprint from Oriana de la Force, Boges creates a rubber sleeve that will slide over Winters finger so they can fool the scanner in the bank with a fake fingerprint.

Convinced that Oriana de la Force has the Ormond Jewel and the Ormond Riddle, Winter disguises herself to look like Oriana de la Force and Boges disguises himself to look like Sumo. They make their way into Zürich Bank and have the items when the real Oriana de la Force and Sumo enter the bank. Barely escaping from the bank without being seen, Cal is disappointed when they discover the the Jewel and Riddle are fakes. Cal figures that Sligo must have the real items.

Sligo is throwing a party and Cal convinces Winter they they must somehow find out the truth. Time is running out and Cal needs to solve the mystery of the Ormond Singularity in the next two months, or all will be lost.

Conspiracy 365: October is the tenth thrilling book of twelve in the Conspiracy 365 series written by Gabrielle Lord. This book is intended for young readers 10 and up.

Review

Conspiracy 365: October is another quickly-paced adventure novel starring Cal Ormond. This poor Australian boy is on the run from bad guys who want to steal away his inheritance. With the help of his two best friends, Winter and Boges, Cal only has three months to somehow figure out the mystery of the Ormond Singularity. To do this, he will have to make his way to Ireland. How in the world will a wanted criminal like himself be able to hop on a plane and fly halfway across the globe without being caught?

Just when I thought Cal would get the Ormond Riddle and Jewel back, he finds that he has retrieved fakes. Man, will nothing ever go right for him? Time is running out and I have no idea how Cal will get all this mess wrapped up in the next two books. I'll bet it is going to be one heck of a wild ride.

Gabrielle Lord has created a fantastic series in Conspiracy 365. From the moment I cracked open the first book in the series, I know that I was going to be in for a real treat. So far, I have not been disappointed. With a new book coming out every month, I constantly find myself thinking about Cal and his situation. Any series that makes the reader think about it all the time is one that makes it onto a Must Read list in my book.

Overall, Conspiracy 365: October is another great story that kept me sitting on the edge of my seat. I have nothing but praise for this series and look forward to the next book, Conspiracy 365: November. On one hand, I am excited that the series will finally come to a conclusion in two more books. On the other hand, I wish that this series would go on forever. I guess I can't always get what I want. Bummer . . .

I rated this book an 8½ out of 10.