Sniegoski, Tom. Sleeper code.

SNIEGOSKI, Tom. Sleeper code. (The Sleeper Conspiracy, Part 1.) 278p. 1-59514-052-2. Sleeper agenda. (The Sleeper Conspiracy, Part 2.) 308p. 1-59514-053-0. Penguin. c2006. $6.99 each. JS

In Sleeper Code, all Tom Lovett wants is to be a normal 16-year-old, but it's hard for someone to have an average life if there is always the possibility that he might fall asleep without warning and then stay asleep for days. Tom suffers from Quentin's narcolepsy, a rare and incapacitating version of the sleep disorder. The unpredictability of this illness has kept Tom from learning to drive, from attending a regular school, and from ever making any friends. He is isolated from everyone except for his parents and a long list of medical specialists. However, Tom does not realize exactly how far from "normal" he is. He is in fact the result of scientific experimentation sanctioned by the government. His narcolepsy has been manipulated to create an artificial personality named Tyler Garrett, a cold-blooded and skilled assassin. When Tom falls asleep during a narcoleptic attack, Tyler wakes up. When Tom learns the truth, he also learns that there is no one he can completely trust. He cannot even trust himself. Tom must allow Tyler's survival skill and fighting instincts to emerge in order to stay alive. But in allowing Tyler to come to the surface, he risks losing himself to the other personality.

The sequel, Sleeper Agenda, finds Tom working with Pandora, the agency that helped rescue him from his cold-blooded creator, Brandon Kavanagh. The agents of Pandora test him mentally and physically in order to ascertain his capabilities. Although Tom remembers and can utilize Tyler's combat training, he must struggle to make sure that Tyler's personality never takes over. During a supervised encounter with the woman who was posing as Tom's mother, something dangerous in triggered in him. Soon, Tom is no longer fighting only Kavanagh and the agents that cross his path, but he is also battling to regain control of himself. Although there is very little of literary merit in either of these two novels, they have incredibly engaging plots. The full-tilt action will attract the most reluctant of readers. Heather Campbell, YA Libn., Castle Rock, CO

J--Recommended for junior high school students. The contents are of particular interest to young adolescents and their teachers.

S--Recommended for senior high school students.