A taut thriller for thinkers who enjoy adventures of the mind.
A teen boy who excels at hiding must figure out the secrets of a seemingly perfect family.
An unnamed, never-described 16-year-old has been hiding all his life. He explains from the start, “Real hiding happens when everybody can see you, but they don’t notice you.” In this unconventional thriller, the teen tells readers directly all that he’s noticed lately. It’s been three months since his ex-girlfriend, Laura, broke up with him. He says, “I know you think I’m crazy,” perhaps even a stalker, but he felt compelled one night to observe her wealthy home (in which he was never allowed while they dated). When he sees a basement window left open, the teen seizes the opportunity to be closer to Laura. Once inside, though, he becomes trapped when the alarm system is turned on and discovers that Laura had been hiding her true self from him. Despite the danger, the teen makes it his mission to piece together the real Laura. Reminiscent of The Catcher in the Rye’s Holden Caulfield, the teen is an unreliable narrator whose thoughts often drift back to previous events of sexual awakening, a friend’s false identity, and his own feelings of not fitting in. Readers will often wonder if he is unwell—or the only voice of reason.
A taut thriller for thinkers who enjoy adventures of the mind. (Psychological thriller. 13-17)Pub Date: April 3, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-544-28477-7
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: Jan. 21, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
Vivid, gripping and believable from beginning to end—a strong debut.
Hallelujah thought that if she kept her head down, pastor’s son Luke, the popular boy she once crushed on, would stop bullying her and spreading humiliating lies about what happened between them.
Instead, her refusing to defend herself has allowed Luke’s lies to go unchallenged and estranged Hallie from her friends. Compounding her isolation, her naïve, deeply religious parents accept Luke’s account of her behavior and enroll her in a church-sponsored, spring-break camp in Tennessee’s Smoky Mountains, where Luke’s bullying continues. Mistrustful, immobilized by despair, Hallie avoids former close friend Jonah and rebuffs friendly overtures from a new girl, Rachel. When Rachel quits a contentious hike (no cellphones allowed) to return to camp, Hallie and Jonah join her. Inexperienced in the wilderness, they head in the wrong direction, then—in a heavy rain squall—lose the trail altogether. No one’s brought a flashlight; provisions are lunch leftovers, water and a can of soda. They move instead of staying put, fail to recognize poison ivy, freeze at night. The struggle to survive is terrifying but galvanizing, even cleansing. In calmer moments, they ponder life’s unanswerable questions, and faith (there are no atheists in foxholes) is proven a power in its own right. Readers will root for Hallie, a compelling original, to find faith in herself.
Vivid, gripping and believable from beginning to end—a strong debut. (Fiction. 13-16)Pub Date: Feb. 17, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-06-231726-1
Page Count: 320
Publisher: HarperTeen
Review Posted Online: Nov. 17, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2014
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A heartfelt, three-hankie exploration of a topic all too many teens must confront.
High school junior Erin Bailey’s whole life changes when her mother is diagnosed with late stage breast cancer.
In an even more unkind twist of fate, Erin finds out that she has inherited a BRCA gene mutation, which means she has a significant risk of contracting reproductive cancer herself. This discovery, along with the loss of her beloved daredevil father in a flying accident a few years before and a less-than-stellar social life, puts Erin at the top of the list of teens facing tough, real-life dilemmas. Help comes in the form of friendly advice she receives from a girl on the BRCA gene website who offers Erin sanctuary on a remote island in Florida. A newly fledged pilot, Erin heads for Florida, hoping to meet up with her new friend. Although what she discovers there will surprise both Erin and readers, she finds support as well, enabling her to weather the further storms of college applications, more teen drama and the inevitable decline of her mother. Although some might look askance at Erin’s unconventional decision to take the genetic test at such a young age, mature teens will appreciate this carefully researched and authentic exposé of a difficult subject. Erin’s first-person, present-tense narration isn’t flashy, but it does get readers effectively in her groove.
A heartfelt, three-hankie exploration of a topic all too many teens must confront. (Fiction. 14-16)Pub Date: March 3, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-61963-341-4
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Review Posted Online: Dec. 5, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2014
BOOK REVIEW
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