Agnostic-going-on-atheist Jason’s mother is a hypochondriac, his father is religious, and best friend Shin is a snail-collecting freak. Bored in his parent-mandated Catholic teen group, Jason creates Chutengodianism: the Church of the Ten-legged God, worshipers of the town water tower. Jason is Founder and Head Kahuna of his joke religion, Shin is First Keeper of the Sacred Text, and friends Dan and Magda are recruited as disciples. Amusing at first, their mini-cult goes sour when Jason invites thuggish Henry—who knows how to climb the water tower—to join the Chutengodians. Shin sulks, and Henry leads a dangerous midnight swim in the water tower that results in injury, police discovery, and punishment. Now Jason is grounded for life, Dan and Magda won’t speak to him, and Henry and his bullying cohorts have co-opted Chutengodianism and made it crass. Worse, Shin seems dangerously unhinged—is he taking Chutengodianism seriously? Jason’s explorations of faith, belief, and religion, told in a compelling and imaginative voice, will leave him a solitary, ostracized prophet. Thought-provoking and unique. (Fiction. YA)
Pub Date: June 1, 2004
ISBN: 0-689-86278-4
Page Count: 208
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2004
A dark and romantic thriller for those who love sexy suspense.
Ella Graham begins her senior year at North Davis High in a waking nightmare.
She’s trying to get by without best friend Hayley Miller, who died in a car accident last spring. Ella is besieged by not only grief but also guilt—she was the one driving drunk when their car hit a boulder above a rushing river, though she remembers nothing. Placed in a support group run by school psychologist Mr. Wilkens, Ella must confront fellow attendee Sawyer Hawkins—Hayley’s boyfriend, whom she’s sure blames her—as well as her growing feelings for him. As their relationship blooms, Ella’s guilt intensifies. When she helps Hayley’s mother with the painful task of cleaning out her late daughter’s bedroom, Ella discovers Hayley’s diary, and from its contents, she learns much more about her friend than she ever imagined. Harlow’s debut is full of angst, and readers will be enticed to tear through the novel, which contains surprising twists and quickens in pace toward the end. Ella’s grief and survivor’s guilt are palpable, permeating every page. Ella and Sawyer’s relationship is both fraught and steamy, and romance fans will enjoy the intrigue of their unfolding relationship; their alternating points of view provide glimpses into both their psyches. Ella’s mom is Filipina (her dad’s ethnicity is not mentioned); most other major characters read white.
A dark and romantic thriller for those who love sexy suspense. (resources) (Thriller. 14-18)Pub Date: May 28, 2024
ISBN: 9780593855720
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: March 23, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
This brutal, emotionally charged novel will grip readers and leave them brokenhearted
A minute-by-minute account of mass murder at a high school by a former student.
Four students from a range of different backgrounds at Alabama's Opportunity High, all of whom have a history with Tyler, the gunman, take turns telling this harrowing story in the first person. They include his sister, Autumn, and her clandestine girlfriend, Sylv, who have only each other for solace as the home lives of both are in upheaval. Tomás, Sylv's brother, recounts his and his friend Fareed's desperate efforts to help from outside the school's auditorium, where their fellow students and teachers are locked in with Tyler as he picks them off one by one. Finally, Claire, Tyler's ex-girlfriend, realistically agonizes over what to do when she and a few others outside running track realize that the gunshots they hear are coming from inside the school. Grounded in the present, the story makes effective use of flashbacks that lay bare the pain and deception that have led up to the day's horror. The language can occasionally feel a bit melodramatic, with lines like "we're fighting for hope and a thousand tomorrows," but this is a minor side note to this compelling story of terror, betrayal, and heroism.
This brutal, emotionally charged novel will grip readers and leave them brokenhearted . (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: Jan. 5, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-4926-2246-8
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Oct. 5, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2015
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