Though not spectacular, this competent, swift novel would be welcome spring-break fare.
An undemanding YA thriller heavy on chaste teenage romance.
Ashley Devoe is a typical high school senior. She and her best friend, Brianne, have after-school jobs, swooning crushes and, in Ashley’s case, separated parents who can sometimes go overboard with the protectiveness. Ashley’s father, an undercover cop, has come off a tough stint busting a meth lab; while Ashley respects his work, she resents the distance it has created within her family. Plus, her dad’s friend Chase is spending too much time with her mom for Ashley’s taste. So when Trent, a new, desperately handsome addition to the senior class, takes an interest in Ashley, she relishes the opportunity to connect. Trent, however, is somewhat more mysterious than the other boys at school: Why won’t he open up more about his past, his family or where he lives? Why does he have Ashley’s father’s cellphone number? Why does he always seem to show up when least expected? And why on Earth does he have a gun in his car? At first, Ashley is too enamored to care; the scent of his cologne alone is romantically overwhelming. Trent’s mysterious qualities—and his reason for the gun—are illuminated after a late, rainy night at work when Ashley catches a ride with a fellow employee who turns out to have deep connection to her father. Author Veil (Psychomanteum, 2014, etc.) knows how to dial up the suspense: For about the first half of the book, the titular chance of rain slowly increases until both the literal and figurative thunderstorms arrive. After this initial climax, the short, final chapters are told from Ashley’s first-person perspective and from other characters’ third-person perspectives, which, though jarring at first, lend texture to Veil’s fairly run-of-the-mill thriller. Veil also captures the occasional inanity of teenage speech, and yet she never condescends to her young protagonists. Young adults will recognize the nuances of high school relationships, and the happy ending will satisfy those who enjoy neat resolutions.
Though not spectacular, this competent, swift novel would be welcome spring-break fare.Pub Date: March 18, 2014
ISBN: 978-1492225409
Page Count: 200
Publisher: CreateSpace
Review Posted Online: June 5, 2014
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A treat for mystery readers who enjoy being kept in suspense.
Everyone believes that Salil Singh killed his girlfriend, Andrea Bell, five years ago—except Pippa Fitz-Amobi.
Pip has known and liked Sal since childhood; he’d supported her when she was being bullied in middle school. For her senior capstone project, Pip researches the disappearance of former Fairview High student Andie, last seen on April 18, 2014, by her younger sister, Becca. The original investigation concluded with most of the evidence pointing to Sal, who was found dead in the woods, apparently by suicide. Andie’s body was never recovered, and Sal was assumed by most to be guilty of abduction and murder. Unable to ignore the gaps in the case, Pip sets out to prove Sal’s innocence, beginning with interviewing his younger brother, Ravi. With his help, Pip digs deeper, unveiling unsavory facts about Andie and the real reason Sal’s friends couldn’t provide him with an alibi. But someone is watching, and Pip may be in more danger than she realizes. Pip’s sleuthing is both impressive and accessible. Online articles about the case and interview transcripts are provided throughout, and Pip’s capstone logs offer insights into her thought processes as new evidence and suspects arise. Jackson’s debut is well-executed and surprises readers with a connective web of interesting characters and motives. Pip and Andie are white, and Sal is of Indian descent.
A treat for mystery readers who enjoy being kept in suspense. (Mystery. 14-18)Pub Date: Feb. 4, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-9848-9636-0
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: Oct. 27, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2019
A descriptive and atmospheric paranormal social thriller that could be a bit tighter.
After a Nigerian British girl goes off to an exclusive boarding school that seems to prey on less-privileged students, she discovers there might be some truth behind an urban legend.
Ife Adebola joins the Urban Achievers scholarship program at pricey, high-pressure Nithercott School, arriving shortly after a student called Leon mysteriously disappeared. Gossip says he’s a victim of the glowing-eyed Changing Man who targets the lonely, leaving them changed. Ife doesn’t believe in the myth, but amid the stresses of Nithercott’s competitive, privileged, majority-white environment, where she is constantly reminded of her state school background, she does miss her friends and family. When Malika, a fellow Black scholarship student, disappears and then returns, acting strangely devoid of personality, Ife worries the Changing Man is real—and that she’s next. Ife joins forces with classmate Bijal and Benny, Leon’s younger brother, to uncover the truth about who the Changing Man is and what he wants. Culminating in a detailed, gory, and extended climactic battle, this verbose thriller tempts readers with a nefarious mystery involving racial and class-based violence but never quite lives up to its potential and peters out thematically by its explosive finale. However, this debut offers highly visually evocative and eerie descriptions of characters and events and will appeal to fans of creature horror, social commentary, and dark academia.
A descriptive and atmospheric paranormal social thriller that could be a bit tighter. (Thriller. 14-18)Pub Date: Sept. 26, 2023
ISBN: 9781250868138
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: June 8, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
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