This week is all about YA books set in boarding schools. Only, I’ve added a twist and decided only the non-magical, non-supernatural titles will be included. I did this because I wanted to present a real, true look at boarding school. In fact, on Thursday the P10 members and guest members will be suggesting titles for your reading pleasure AND I’ve even found two actual teens who attend actual boarding schools to tell us what it’s really like.

Today, I’m talking about a series that isn’t magical or supernatural BUT it’s not your typical boarding school…though it appears this way to outsiders.

Gallagher Girls Series by Ally Carter—I’d Tell You I Love But Then I’d Have To Kill You (#1), Cross My Heart and Hope To Spy (#2), Don’t Judge a Girl By Her Cover (#3), Only The Good Spy Young (#4), Out of Sight Out of Time (#5)

Why I Love This Series: First off, they’re in boarding school! It’s called the Gallagher Academy and it sits in the town of Roseville, Virginia and to the outside eye, it’s an all-girls elite academy and the students are often viewed as rich snobs to the locals. In reality, the Gallagher academy is a school for spies-in-training run by the CIA. From the seventh grade on, these girls learn tons of Top Secret skills. The main character, Cammie Morgan is your typical 15 year old girl in so many ways. She’s the daughter of the school’s headmistress and that comes with its own challenges. Her and her friends, who are truly like sisters mostly due to the boarding school life, are skilled and smart but fail to understand boys and the ins and outs of growing up. I love the voice in these books, the humor, the mystery, the action, the emotion…it’s just pure fun and games.

Who Should Read This Series: Another great thing about the Gallagher Girl series is that I can totally recommend it for kids as young as 10 years old completely guilt free. Sometimes it’s hard to find YA books appropriate for those younger readers who are advanced in reading skill but still…young. AND on the flip side, there’s enough drama, excitement, and mystery for older readers and adults to enjoy. Each book seems to get a little bit darker and I like that aspect as well. The stakes are constantly being raised. But I’d have to say this is more on the girlie side (look at the covers) so boy readers are probably not picking up these books, but I could be wrong.