Bond cleverly reimagines star reporter Lois Lane as a teenager today. She is a savvy, confident military brat whose family's frequent moves have kept her from establishing any real friendships, except for an online friend known only as Smallville Guy. Superman fans will delight in the nicely detailed ties to the man of steel, while enjoying Bond's focus on the fearless reporter. At East Metropolis High, Lois arrives for her first day of school to find a clearly brilliant student begging the snarky principal for protection from a gaming club known as the Warheads. Also on hand is the speaker for today's assembly: Perry White, editor at the Daily Planet, there to recruit teen reporters. Once these elements have been set up, it's pretty clear what steps will lead to the happy ending, but to Bond's credit, the dry wit of the narrative and the satisfyingly coy online romance between Lois Lane and Smallville Guy make each of those steps delightful.

Gr 7-10 Sixteen-year-old Lois Lane, daughter of decorated army general Sam Lane, has promised that this move to a new city, Metropolis, will be differenther goals are to stay out of trouble and make friends. Unfortunately, trouble seems to be her middle name and she easily finds it at her new school when she overhears a conversation between a student and Principal Butler regarding incidents of bullying. Lois, unhappy with the principal's response to the situation, vows to investigate, and a chance meeting with editor Perry White of the Daily Planet allows her the perfect opportunity. She discovers that the bullies, the Warheads, are gamers and part of a research project. With the help of secretive SmallvilleGuy, Lois's online "friend," and her peers, she eventually infiltrates the research lab. This somewhat plausible tale of bullying, mind-control, and gaming, with a hint of alien activity, steadily builds, but regrettably comes to an unimpressive conclusion. Students inclined to make things right in the world may relate to the protagonist, and will most likely be willing to overlook any flaws. VERDICT A Superman prequel that doesn't quite get its feet off the ground. Susan Harris, Ridgeway High School, TN

After witnessing a fellow student get the brush off from the principal on submitting a complaint about bullying, Lois decides to help the victimized girl. She stumbles into a job with the Daily Planet as a journalist for an online teen magazine and uses her position to get to the bottom of the problem, to expose who is truly responsible for the bullying and why the principal is protecting them. Things become complicated and involve gaming, psychological coercion, and a rogue tech company, as well as the smarmy principal.Bond has created a contemporary teenaged Lois Lane who communicates online with a guy whose chat room moniker is "Smallville Guy." Anyone with any knowledge of the Superman story will know who that is. Lois and Smallville Guy have formed a firm friendship, although Lois has more than just friendly feelings for him. This is story with a strong female protagonist. Lois is smart and gutsy. She tries to go it alonethinking she is protecting her newfound friendsbut eventually realizes that it is better to trust your friends. The plot is well paced; the reader is immediately pulled into the story and taken for an enjoyable ride. A bit of romance, plenty of adventure, and intrigue add up to a tale that will engage most teen readers. Although the main story is resolved, enough threads are left hanging to indicate further Lois Lane stories are to come. Debbie Wenk.