Book Reviews: United We Spy/A Gallagher Wedding

Untied We Spy
Author: Ally Carter
Series: Gallagher Girls #6
Genres: Mystery, Contemporary | Young Adult
Release Date: 5th September 2013
Publishers: Orchard Books
No. Pages: 303
Source: Purchased
Rating: 
Buy From: Amazon | Book Depository | Barnes and Noble | Waterstones

Cammie Morgan has lost her father and her memory, but in the heart-pounding conclusion to the best-selling Gallagher Girls series, she finds her greatest mission yet.

Cammie and her friends finally know why the terrorist organization called the Circle of Cavan has been hunting her. Now the spy girls and Zach must track down the Circle’s elite members to stop them before they implement a master plan that will change Cammie and her country forever.

The following review may contain spoilers concerning earlier books in the series.
If you have not read the previous installments, please proceed with caution.

The last few seconds before I picked up United We Spy I had a few thoughts flow through my mind: 'What if it's not going to wrap things up beautifully?', 'What if somebody I really like dies? and 'What if I end up disappointed with the ending?' These are of course the questions we all ask ourselves when we reach the final book in a series and for me personally, it was bigger than anything previously because I'd made my way through most of the series in a matter of weeks. I was petrified that there wouldn't be enough action or any more character development to be made or that someone I really had invested in would die and that there wouldn't be enough plot twists involved, but I was wrong. There wasn't a single moment when I read United We Spy where I didn't think this book was perfection.

The main difference between this book and the others is the reality involved. The girls get one very important and life changing speech given to them by Abby and it kick-starts a whole chain of events that involves Cammie, Bex, Liz and Macey and Zach, conducting and being involved in their own operations, risking their lives at every second for something that was always bigger and more involved than just with Cammie and I loved it. It was clear from a readers point of view that everything they did could be their last time; their last semester, their last Welcome Back Dinner, their last mission and their last night alive, their last big adventure to ever be written about and it tugged at me throughout reading it that there was going to be an ending and that this series was going to end, pretty understandable then that I was on edge the entire time. I also loved how this realisation changed the dynamics between friends and family and most of all between Cammie and Rachel. You could see how Cammie was using her grief to power her through the days while Rachel was using her grief to protect Cammie and as a mother/daughter relationship I haven't read one quite as powerful and like it in a long time, if ever. Rachel was never an absent parent in the way you might think in other young adult 'save the day' novels, and Cammie was always her first and foremost thought, much like she was for Cammie. Their believable relationship shone through for me in this installment and it's enough to make anyone feel a little too emotional.

There was much more action, much more plot and much more danger involved in this book, showcasing each of the girls and Zach's skills in the environment and highlighting more attention to the characters than they'd had previously. Macey's character went through a whirlwind in this series and finally came to a point in this series were she was appreciated for being herself and she had a hold of someone who had taken her heart, Preston. Don't get me wrong, I've read better romances, but these two were damn adorable. Liz really had a the spotlight in this installment, being more involved with the mission and the plot arch and twists and I seriously came to admire and put my faith in her as a character, she'd grown much stronger in her confidence, in her belief and she proved that you don't have to kick-ass to be good at what you do. Bex also really shined in this novel and the dynamics and relationship between her and Cammie was so perfect in this novel, I cannot fault it. The belief and honesty in Carter's scenes, proving the danger they were in and how Cammie and Bex overcame everything they'd been through in the last few years, and how they finally were able to stand in each others shoes was heartbreakingly beautiful. One thing United We Spy finally hit the spot on was Zach and Cammie. I was finally won over by their romance, their honesty and their commitment and how they complimented and bounced off each other and I realised that Josh in the first novel had been nothing but a dream or normal for myself and Cammie and Carter created such a depthness in Zach and Cammie's relationship that her and Josh never had and I genuinely fell in love with them falling in love. I could spend hours talking about Cammie in this review, but really, I just love the comparison of Cammie from I'd Tell You I Love You and United We Spy. By the end, she wasn't this young, fatherless girl who just wished and wanted to be normal and have a normal life, she was a woman who had learnt that the world is a cruel, dangerous place and that sometimes those you love leave you, those you trusted are the enemy and you don't always survive to tell the tale. Those scenes with Cammie and Amy really hit me deep down and Cammie's choices and decisions in those scenes had me with some leaky plumbing. If you want yourself some main character development, the series is perfect.

There's so much I wish I could tell you about United We Spy. I wish I could delve into how the plot twists threw me entirely and had me questioning everything and everyone, or how this novel highlighted that it's not just your experiences that change you and shape you for the future, but the people with you, and how there's nothing that stand between the connection that friends and family have, and as cheesy as it is, how love from the most unexpected of places and the most unexpected of people can shape your future. I wish I could fill this review will all my thoughts and feelings and highlight just how many times I swore out-loud to myself during some scenes, or how I choked up at Liz's absolutely, utterly beautiful and genuinely touching speech that ran through some of the experiences the girls went through and what kind of women they are today. I wish I could tell you everything about this novel but I can't, you have to experience every perfectly written page, not expect any of the twists and you have to feel yourself closing the door on this series by yourself. Carter pulled the rabbit out of the hat this time and I honestly don't think she could have written a more perfect final installment for my characters. This lady is a wizard and she made me cry..

A Gallagher Wedding
Author: Ally Carter
Series: Gallagher Girls #6.5
Genres: Mystery, Contemporary | Young Adult
Release Date: November 2013
Publishers: Orchard Books
No. Pages: 12
Source: Free
Rating: 

The Circle has been stopped. Catherine is dead. Cammie, her friends and her family have survived while Gallagher Academy may have fallen in there place. But if Cammie has learnt anything in the last few years, it's that some things can never be pulled apart.

Right now though, Gallagher Academy is the last thing on Cammie's mind. She's got a wedding to attend and a future to embrace. Nothing will ever be the same again..

The following review may contain spoilers concerning earlier books in the series.
If you have not read the previous installments, please proceed with caution.

There's very little to say on this little Gallagher Girls extra but I do think it's a wonderful edition to this series. Of course, for those who've read the series, who is actually getting married is pretty darn obvious but I still found it lovely to read. The Mother/Daughter moment between Rachel and Cammie in this extra was just beautiful and it really worked well with United We Spy and how much time they didn't spend together then and now, with Cammie working elsewhere and graduating. I also loved that Carter hadn't dismissed the fact that Rachel was remarrying, and marrying her husbands best friend and it was covered so wonderfully and oh, if I say beautiful one more time you might murder me, but it was just that. The touches with Macey organising, the Academy being rebuilt and even Zach being Joe's best man was just all too much for my little heart and I cried, hard and a lot. The little extra wasn't exactly the closure I needed because it ended just as open as United We Spy did, but there was something about the feel that made sure we were saying goodbye and that it was over for the readers, but it was only the beginning for Cammie, Rachel and Joe. It seems almost silly to rate a 12 page extra but I am, because much like the novel before it, it was perfect, highlighted the relationships perfectly and it was the wonderful goodbye to Cammie that I wanted. I'm going to miss this series and it's characters so much and I can't recommend this series any more. Read it, now.