First time visiting BookBrowse? Get a free copy of our member's ezine today.

Book Summary and Reviews of Evil Genius by Catherine Jinks

Evil Genius by Catherine Jinks

Evil Genius

by Catherine Jinks

  • Readers' Rating:
  • Published:
  • May 2007, 496 pages
  • Rate this book

  • Buy This Book

About this book

Book Summary

Cadel Piggott has a genius IQ and a fascination with systems of all kinds. At seven, he was illegally hacking into computers. Now he’s fourteen and studying for his World Domination degree, taking classes like embezzlement, misinformation, forgery, and infiltration at the institute founded by criminal mastermind Dr. Phineas Darkkon. Although Cadel may be advanced beyond his years, at heart he’s a lonely kid. When he falls for the mysterious and brilliant Kay-Lee, he begins to question the moral implications of his studies for the first time. But is it too late to stop Dr. Darkkon from carrying out his evil plot?

An engrossing thriller with darkness and humor, freaks and geeks, Evil Genius explores the fine line between good and evil in a strange world of manipulations and subterfuge where nothing is as it seems.

Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $45 for 12 months or $15 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!

Reviews

Media Reviews

"Jinks has created an intricate, well-constructed and layered reality in this hefty novel, and as the complex deceptions that have shaped Cadel's life come to light, his emotional unraveling and awakening will likely engross readers." - Publishers Weekly

"Starred Review. Although some of the technical concerns of evil geniuses ... may stymie less-patient readers, most will press on, riveted by the chilling aspects of a child trapped in adult agendas that, iceberg-like, hide beneath the surface." - Booklist

"As an alternative thriller that shows the good side of evil, Jinks sets up a compelling world of lies, deceit, and betrayal that will have lovers of mystery or computer-based investigation on the edge as they devour this page-turner." - School Library Journal

"Carried along by much peeling back of layers of deception and repeated thickenings of plot, this hefty but engrossingly complex tale features a young super-brain being groomed for world domination." - Kirkus Reviews

This information about Evil Genius was first featured in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.

Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.

Reader Reviews

Write your own reviewwrite your own review

i.m.

Evil Genius (must read)
I loved this book for how intellectually captivating it was, the characters have personalities that stand out and while you can't understand all of their motives they're opinions are strong and it makes you acknowledged a part of the world that most of us ignore. They are all very mysterious, for example you never know exactly what Thaddeous is thinking he makes himself clearly unclear. He's unreadable and has no morals. As for Cadel you sympathize him and admire him for his smarts all the time throughout the chapters. I never wanted the book to end.

Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $45 for 12 months or $15 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!

Author Information

Catherine Jinks Author Biography

Catherine Jinks is the Australian author of more than thirty books for all ages. She has garnered many awards, including the Children's Book Council of Australia Book of the Year Award (three times), the Victorian Premier's Award, the Aurealis Award for Science Fiction, the Australian Ibby Award, and the Davitt Award for Crime Fiction. In 2014 A Very Unusual Pursuit won the Children's Book Council of Australia's Book of the Year Award for Younger Readers.

Catherine was born in Brisbane, Queensland, in 1963. She grew up in Papua New Guinea, where her father worked as a patrol officer. Her high-school years were spent in Sydney, NSW; in 2006, her alma mater, Ku-ring-gai High School, named its library after her.

From 1982 to 1986, Catherine studied at the University of Sydney, graduating with...

... Full Biography
Link to Catherine Jinks's Website

Other books by Catherine Jinks at BookBrowse
Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $45 for 12 months or $15 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!

More Recommendations

Readers Also Browsed . . .

more YA literary fiction...

Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $45 for 12 months or $15 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!

Top Picks

  • Book Jacket
    The Most
    by Jessica Anthony
    In November 1957, Kathleen and Virgil Beckett are living at Acropolis Place, an apartment complex in...
  • Book Jacket: Pink Slime
    Pink Slime
    by Fernanda Trias
    Unsurprisingly, the 21st century has been something of a boom time for environmental disaster in ...
  • Book Jacket: Becoming Earth
    Becoming Earth
    by Ferris Jabr
    The idea of Earth as one living, breathing organism is an age-old one, found in belief systems all ...
  • Book Jacket: Long Island Compromise
    Long Island Compromise
    by Taffy Brodesser-Akner
    Taffy Brodesser-Akner's second novel, Long Island Compromise, is centered around the Fletchers, a ...

BookBrowse Book Club

Book Jacket
The Story Collector
by Evie Woods
From the international bestselling author of The Lost Bookshop!

Members Recommend

  • Book Jacket

    We'll Prescribe You a Cat
    by Syou Ishida

    Discover the bestselling Japanese novel celebrating the healing power of cats.

Wordplay

Solve this clue:

K U with T J

and be entered to win..

Book Club Giveaway!
Win Before the Mango Ripens

Before the Mango Ripens by Afabwaje Kurian

Both epic and intimate, this debut announces a brilliant new talent for readers of Imbolo Mbue and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.

Enter

Your guide toexceptional          books

BookBrowse seeks out and recommends the best in contemporary fiction and nonfiction—books that not only engage and entertain but also deepen our understanding of ourselves and the world around us.