New York Times bestselling sportswriter John Feinstein investigates a covert op at the Army-Navy football game in this exciting sports mystery.   The Black Knights of Army and the Midshipmen of Navy have met on the football field since 1890, and it’s a rivalry like no other, filled with tradition.   Teen sports reporters Stevie and Susan Carol have been busy at West Point and Annapolis, getting to know the players and coaches—and the Secret Service agents. Since the president will be attending the game, security will be tighter than tight. Weeks and months have been spent on training and planning and reporting to get them all to this moment. But when game day arrives, the refs aren’t the only ones crying foul. . . .   John Feinstein has been praised as “the best writer of sports books in America today” ( The Boston Globe ), and he proves it again in this fast-paced novel. Gr 6-9–Intrepid teen reporters Stevie Thomas and Susan Carol Anderson are once again granted extraordinary access to the behind-the-scenes action at a major sports event. In the course of pursuing their journalistic duties, they meet a number of real-life celebrities including journalist Bob Woodward, legendary basketball coaches Mike Krzyzewski and Bobby Knight, politico Ed Rendell, golfer Phil Mickelson, and sports commentator Tony Kornheiser. Even Barack Obama works the kids into his schedule. Since the “mystery” (involving corrupt officials at the Army/Navy game) is not introduced until page 225, there is plenty of room for background on the service academies' rivalry, as well as other seemingly random topics (a story line on Susan Carol's participation in a swim meet, for instance, is dropped into the middle of the narrative, and abruptly abandoned). Even aspiring sports journalists will find it difficult to stick with this meandering effort.–Richard Luzer, Fair Haven Union High School, VT. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. In their latest adventure, precocious 14-year-old reporters Stevie Thomas and Susan Carol Anderson get a chance to help major Washington newspapers cover the Army-Navy football game and stumble across an illegal gambling racket, perpetrated by the game’s officiating squad. Along the way, the cub reporters meet a number of actual famous people (Bob Woodward and Barack Obama, among others). Some of the dropped names of retired players and other old guys will have little resonance with young readers, and fans of the series will recognize that the mystery here isn’t as compelling as those in previous installments. Still, sports fans, especially college football followers, will enjoy the behind-the-scenes look at the famous game. Grades 6-9. --Todd Morning John Feinstein is the author of many bestselling books, including A Season on the Brink, A Good Walk Spoiled, and Living on the Black. His books for young readers, Last Shot, Vanishing Act, Cover-Up, and Change-Up offer a winning combination of sports, action, and intrigue, with Last Shot receiving the Edgar Allan Poe Award for best young adult mystery of the year. Mr. Feinstein began his career at the Washington Post, where he worked as both a political and sports reporter. He has also written for Sports Illustrated and the National Sports Daily. Mr. Feinstein is currently a commentator for National Public Radio; he writes columns for AOL Sports and Golf Digest and continues to contribute regularly to the Washington Post. John Feinstein lives in Potomac, Maryland, and Shelter Island, New York, and has two children.