(ARC) YA Book Review: A Girl Named Digit by Annabelle Monaghan

Release Date: 5 June 2012

Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Books for Children
Format: ARC
Source: Around the World ARC Tours

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Goodreads description:

Farrah "Digit" Higgins may be going to MIT in the fall, but this L.A. high school genius has left her geek self behind in another school district so she can blend in with the popular crowd at Santa Monica High and actually enjoy her senior year. But when Farrah, the daughter of a UCLA math professor, unknowingly cracks a terrorist group's number sequence, her laid-back senior year gets a lot more interesting. Soon she is personally investigating the case, on the run from terrorists, and faking her own kidnapping-- all while trying to convince a young, hot FBI agent to take her seriously. So much for blending in . . .

My Thoughts...

Digit: She's Got Your Number is a fun contemporary mystery! When Digit moves to a new high school, she attempts to leave behind "Digit" and just be Farrah. That is until watching tv with her perfect friends, she notices odd numbers flasshing on the screen--numbers that lead her straight into a much bigger affair that she intended. As she gets swept up into the investigation, she has to let Digit take over to solve the case.

This book is just as much about Farrah learning to accept "Digit" as it is about solving a crime. As Farrah works with the FBI to solve the crime (and you know, save her life), she's forced to let her nerdy math-loving computer brain take over. As she does so, she find acceptance of that side of herself in more places than she would have imagined possible.  She's definitely the type of character whose voice I found likeable and relateable from the beginning.  She has the slightly snarky air about her personality that I tend to connect with.

John was an interesting character.  He comes across as condescending at points in the beginning but throughout the book I felt like he started to appreciate Digit more for who she was and what she could actually contribute to the case he was working.  It was painfully obvious from fairly early on that he had a thing for her and how could she possibly resist the first guy who really liked her in all her math nerdiness?  Their relationship developed a bit on the quick side of things, but I suppose high-intensity situations will do that to people. :)

The mystery itself is intriguing as the reader dives straight into the mysterious world of ecoterrorism and the FBI. I personally really enjoyed the proces of Farrah helping and hiding and discovering what it might be like to fully embrace her math genius. It was a quick-paced story that will appeal to readers who love mystery, crime dramas, contemporaries, and cute FBI agents. ;)