The Adventures of Alex Rider
Plot
Eagle Strike, by Anthony Horowitz, is a novel about a fourteen year old boy who is caught up in the repercussions of being a teenage spy. The novel begins with the character named Alex Rider, who is on a vacation in France with his friend Sabina but then finds out Yassen Gregorovich is there. Yassen, a assassin who killed Alex’s uncle in previous books in the series. Through the eye’s of Alex we as readers are taken into the life of a secret agent. A home in France is blown up by a terrorist attack on Sabina’s father, who is a journalist. Alex reacts to the attack and investigates Yassen while he is there and finds Damian Cray’s number in his phone. Alex assumes Cray is behind the attack and is up to something much larger. He tells MI6 about Cray but they do not believe him so Alex decides to take matters into his own hands and hunt him down on his own. The mystery behind what Cray is up too begins to unravel, when he finds out that Cray is making a video game console he follows him back to his house. There Cray and Yassen are talking about their plan. Alex finds out that Cray is planning to start a nuclear war by launching nuclear strikes on drug trafficking areas from the presidents Air Force One. Alex is captured by Cray and put into a real life video game simulation with real danger but manages to escape, keeping us as readers on the edge of our seat wanting to find out what will happen next. While escaping Alex managed to steal a flash drive that in a crucial piece to set off the missiles. Cray kidnaps Sabina in order to have Alex give back the flash drive. Finally Cray kills Yassen in attempt to kill alex and Alex kills Cray and stops the nuclear missiles from launching. Horowitz did a marvelous job making the reader feel like their in the book battling assassins with Alex Rider.
Characterization and Diction
Through the entire novel, Horowitz uses characters that are both good and evil. Alex Rider is a typical teenager, feeling like the world doesn’t listen to him because of his age. He has a far from normal life, secret missions and other spy work. Horowitz uses the word choice differently depending if the character is good or evil. “You’re right, Cray said. I don’t have to kill him. But I want to. It’s something I want to do very much.” The phrases said by the villains are typical things a villain would say. Alex talks to his caretaker Jack, mostly about his feelings and his opinion on the situation taking place. Jack is portrayed as the one person in Alex’s life that truly knows him and understands him. Horowitz goes in great detail to describe the many action scenes in this novel with effective details. “Sabina cried out in horror. Cray had aimed at Alex’s heart, and in the confined space of the cabin there was little chance he would miss. The force blew Alex off his feet and back in the cabin. He crashed on the ground and lay still.” Through the car chases and nuclear missiles being launched, Horowitz makes you feel like you are there. Through the novel you see Alex develop more as a person with making his own decisions and doing what he thinks is best and on his own. When MI6 doesn’t believe him he takes matters into his own hands to go out and stop Cray.
Point of View and Voice
Eagle Strike is told from a third person perspective, detail is told through the character Alex’s actions, feelings and dialogue. The story is told through what happens to Alex on his missions. The feeling Alex has, which the message of the story comes out, pursuing what he thinks the right thing to do. The way that Horowitz tells the story keeps a clear picture in the readers mind with what is happening through out all the action.
Setting
Alex Rider’s adventure takes him to numerous countries in Europe. Such as South France, Paris, and Amsterdam. Between the countries Alex goes back and fourth going France where he starts his journey, to MI6 in Paris and Amsterdam where Cray is located. Alex takes part in his mission in a modern era in the beginnings of the 2000’s. This setting is perfect for the action scenes with the gadgets alex uses, and the porches driven by the people that chase him.
Character Review
Horowitz creates the thill seeking character Alex Rider. This is mainly the only dynamic character in the novel. As the reader goes through the novel we start the learn the way Alex is feeling through seeing Yassen Gregorovich when he is on vacation in France to stopping Sir Damian Cray. The novels protagonist is Alex Rider, who is as many would call the hero in the story. The antagonist is Damian Cray, who throughout the story acts out the role of a villain trying to send the world into chaos with nuclear missiles. Alex’s caretaker, Jack, is the only real family Alex has in his life. Her part in the story is to simply be the person is Alex’s life who really cares about him. Gregorovich is the assassin in the story, who has been in the other Alex Rider series but has come back to play a part in Cray’s operation in the novel. Gregorovich is a assassin which we find out does have feelings, some would say he could be a round character, when he has multiple chances to kill Alex in the story but cannot and in the end of the novel we find out Gregorovich worked with Alex’s father.
Time and Sequence
Horowitz uses time basically going by normally in this novel, but seems to go by faster with the all the high-speed action scenes taking place. There is a few references to flashbacks from other novels in the series, with characters coming back into this story such as Yassen Gregorovich. When the novel ends it foreshadows what the next novel in the series will be about when Gregorovich is dying he tells Alex that he worked with his father which changes everything Alex knew about him being a spy and a “good guy”. The time shifts that happen in the story are mainly Alex going from country to country, in which he has to go from France to Paris and Amsterdam.
Theme
The main theme that arrises in the story is that you need to follow what you think is the right thing to do even though everyone else is telling you otherwise. Alex needs to convince everyone that the worlds most popular man is actually the villain in the story. Throughout the novel Alex is told that he isn’t right, he doesn’t know what he’s getting himself into, and he cannot get involved with Cray.
The phrase “you can do anything if you set your mind to it” is another major theme in this story. Alex is up against the worlds most successful and powerful man. He has to keep pursuing between all the obstacles that come his way. For example, the car chases, and disarming nuclear warheads on the presidents plane, Air Force One. Alex is only a 14 year boy, and he has to deal with many big problems.
Authors Purpose
Horowitz wrote this book to give the reader a vision of a different reality that most of us will never experience. The action packed, thrill seeking lifestyle that Alex has in his everyday life. Horowitz was born and raised in the United Kingdom and Great Britain, that is a main reason why the main character works for British Intelligence and the setting takes place mainly in european countries. His goal is to give us a look into a world that we normally would not experience and although the plot may seem a little far fetched, it only adds to the excitement. Horowitz is trying to entertain the reader and keep them on the edge of their seat.
Symbolism
Alex Rider and Damian Cray play as the main symbols in the story, they each represent good vs. evil. Alex is “The good guy” and Cray is the “Villain” that is trying to send the world into chaos. Horowitz uses these two symbols to advance the story by showing a ongoing struggle between the two. As the reader we know the story will not end till good defeats evil or evil succeeds. The flash drive in the story that has the nuclear missile launch codes on it is looked upon by the characters as a prize. This is the one thing that each character needs to succeed with what they are trying to accomplish. If Cray has this item then he can set off the nuclear missiles just like he planned. Alex is also trying to get ahold of this because he needs it to stop Cray, and save the world. Horowitz uses these types of symbols to keep the reader stuck in the suspense and thrill of the life of a teenage spy.
Conflict
There are three main conflicts in this novel. The first main man vs man conflict is Alex trying to stop Cray. Alex has one main goal that drives the story, and that is to stop Damian Cray’s operation to set off the nuclear missiles. The second not so easily recognized conflict is the conflict that Alex is having with himself. This is a internal conflict that the reader see’s in through Alex’s feeling throughout the novel. Alex isn’t sure if he’ll be able to stop Cray on his own and if he is even capable of such a large task. The third conflict, a man vs man conflict in this story is between Alex and Yassen Gregorovich, Alex has dealt with him before but now he is working for one of the most powerful men on the earth. Yassen was the person who had killed Alex’s uncle and forever changed him life, but at the end of the novel we find out that Yassen worked with Alex’s father. This is a ongoing struggle with Alex throughout the series, Yassen is one of the only links to Alex’s family history that he has. The conflicts that are shown in this novel are mostly man vs man external conflicts shown with action scenes.
Tone and Irony
Throughout the authors work, he seems to be setting up the the main character into scenes where problems will arise. This type of writing gives the novel a suspenseful tone, through the car chases, international drug trade, and nuclear missiles, the story is filled with action and thrill. A main ironic event in this story is that Yassen has been the person that Alex has always hated because he knows that Yassen was the assassin who killed his uncle. Alex uncle was the one person that was taking care of him but also training him secretly to be a spy. But when Yassen dies in the end of the story he tells Alex that he worked with him father, which now changes everything that Alex knew about his own father. Leading to more questions that Alex now has about his parents. Another ironic moment in this novel is that the worlds most well liked, successful and popular man is actually the one who is trying to set off nuclear missiles to destroy any countries that are involved in the international drug trade. This being the main problem in the story could a person so well liked also be the bad guy.
Relevance and Significant Quote
Alex is living the life of a teenage spy, he lives in a action packed and a life that is filled with suspense and thrill. As a individual that is well involved with extreme sports, I found myself connecting to the lifestyle Alex gets to live well. Even though I am not out on Air Force One disarming nuclear warheads, I live a faced paced thrill seeking lifestyle, with the snowboarding, skateboarding and pole vaulting. All individual adventure seeking sports.
One of my favorite quotes from this story is in the beginning when Alex is in France and he is first trying to figure out why Yassen Gregorovich is doing in the place where he is supposed to be on vacation and why his vacation home was just blown to pieces. This shows the life Alex lives in, filled with people who have no morals for human life and its just part of their job.
“Why did you do it?” Alex demaned. “You blew up the house. Why?”
The eyes flickered briefly. “Because I was paid.”
“Paid to kill me?”
“No, Alex.” For a moment Yassen sounded almost amused. “It had nothing to do with you.”
“Then who-”
But then it was too late (Horowitz 44).
This shows just another scene where Alex is almost killed, but its not much of a big deal to him because this is how he lives. Yassen seems to be totally unaffected by what he was trying to accomplish by killing other people, but it is not a big deal because it is just apart of his job. Alex is just living the life of a teenage spy, where the action never seems to have an end.
Works Cited
Horowitz, Anthony. Eagle Strike. New York: Penguin Group, 2003
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