What is Beth McMullen reading?

Featured at Writers Read: Beth McMullen, author of Mrs. Smith’s Spy School for Girls.

Her entry begins:

I’ve been binging on middle grade action/adventure books with strong girl protagonists this summer. I think I’ve been influenced by the Wonder Woman movie! What an absolute delight to see a female superhero saving the day. A Dash of Dragon, a new release by Heidi Lang and Kati Bartkowski, fits right into my theme. Plus, a novel written by sisters just has to be...[read on]

About Mrs. Smith’s Spy School for Girls, from the publisher:

A girl discovers her boarding school is actually an elite spy-training program, and she must learn the skills of the trade in order to find her mother in this action-packed middle grade debut.

After a botched escape plan from her boarding school, Abigail is stunned to discover the school is actually a cover for an elite spy ring called The Center, along with being training grounds for future spies. Even more shocking? Abigail’s mother is a top agent for The Center and she has gone MIA, with valuable information that many people would like to have—at any cost. Along with a former nemesis and charming boy from her grade, Abigail goes through a crash course in Spy Training 101, often with hilarious—and sometimes painful—results. But Abigail realizes she might be a better spy-in-training than she thought—and the answers to her mother’s whereabouts are a lot closer than she thinks…A girl discovers her boarding school is actually an elite spy-training program, and she must learn the skills of the trade in order to find her mother in this action-packed middle grade debut. After a botched escape plan from her boarding school, Abigail is stunned to discover the school is actually a cover for an elite spy ring called The Center, along with being training grounds for future spies. Even more shocking? Abigail’s mother is a top agent for The Center and she has gone MIA, with valuable information that many people would like to have—at any cost. Along with a former nemesis and charming boy from her grade, Abigail goes through a crash course in Spy Training 101, often with hilarious—and sometimes painful—results. But Abigail realizes she might be a better spy-in-training than she thought—and the answers to her mother’s whereabouts are a lot closer than she thinks…

Visit Beth McMullen's website.

The Page 69 Test: Mrs. Smith’s Spy School for Girls.

My Book, The Movie: Mrs. Smith’s Spy School for Girls.

Writers Read: Beth McMullen.

--Marshal Zeringue