Strange, recurrent dreams and startling revelations follow the disappearance of a teenager's best friend in this well-knit debut. Three weeks after he drops out of sight, Mike reappears in Jeff's dreams, bloody and begging for help. Turning reluctantly for advice to Berry, a younger schoolmate with an interest in the paranormal, Jeff struggles to find the meaning of his dreams; in conversations with Mike's family, his priest, and a slightly unsavory mutual acquaintance named Jerry Kirby, he discovers facets of Mike—including a comfortable, deeply rooted religious faith—that are utterly new to him. Sykes introduces clues at just the right pace to build suspense, and in Jeff creates a protagonist who, while nursing inner wounds of his own, is capable of recognizing pain in others, and, sometimes, easing it. As he helps shepherd Mike's younger siblings through Halloween, the eventual discovery of Mike's body, the funeral, and sad preparations for Christmas, Jeff emerges as an appealingly sensitive, intelligent young man, sometimes awkward, always willing to shoulder responsibility. Unlike Michael Cadnum's Zero at the Bone (1996), this novel does not leave characters and readers hanging, never to know the truth of things: After Mike's body is found, in a melodramatic graveside scene, Kirby confesses to shooting him by accident. An above-average mystery, with a supernatural twist, a romantic subplot, and answers and forgiveness at the end. (Fiction. 12-15)
Pub Date: April 1, 1998
ISBN: 0-385-32337-9
Page Count: 197
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 1997
A somewhat entertaining, fast-paced journey that fizzles at the end.
A teenager runs away to Seattle, hoping to locate her missing sister.
Fifteen-year-old Eleanor idolizes her older sister, Sam, despite their being complete opposites: Sam is outgoing and wild, while socially awkward Eleanor is known as Little Miss Perfect, always doing the right and safe thing. After Sam runs away from home, the only communication she has with Eleanor are three postcards sent from Seattle. Eleanor decides to trace her 18-year-old sister’s footsteps, leaving her messages and hopping on a bus to find her. But when Sam doesn’t meet her at the bus depot, Eleanor, who has no real plan, has to learn how to survive on her own while searching the city for her sister. While the close bond between the girls is well depicted through flashbacks, the reveal of an important secret ultimately feels anticlimactic. A major plot point relies too heavily on chance and coincidence to be fully believable. While the color scheme, cityscapes, and background illustrations are atmospheric, the manga-inspired drawing style comes across as dated and flat. The depiction of the fabricated stories Eleanor tells is intriguing, as are the themes of friendship, living in the moment, and maintaining hope; unfortunately, none are thematically strong enough to resonate. The emotional impact of Eleanor’s experiences is diluted by her at times humorous narration. Eleanor and the main cast read as White.
A somewhat entertaining, fast-paced journey that fizzles at the end. (Graphic novel. 12-15)Pub Date: April 26, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-316-50023-4
Page Count: 280
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: April 12, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A deliciously disturbing, twisted tale.
Teens endure fallout from a game of Bloody Mary.
Everybody’s done it at some point: You look in the mirror and repeat the name Bloody Mary. Sometimes, the legend says, you’ll see your true love. Sometimes they say you’ll see the ghost’s face, and it means you will die young. But these four fourth grade friends—Grace, Calvin, Elena, and Steph—didn’t count on their little game’s still affecting them five years later. They were just having some spooky fun in Elena’s deceased grandmother’s room, after all. But now, even after all these years have passed, each of them still sees a shape behind them whenever they look in a mirror. But the frights really begin when a new girl arrives at school. Her name is Mary. The author effectively and slowly ratchets the tension and dread, crafting some cleverly frightening sequences that fans of the genre will love. Less effective is the characterization: As each chapter pivots perspectives, some readers may have to double back and sort out which of the troubled teens they’re following. As the scares pile up and the descent into madness moves forward, the characterization gets a bit crisper, but the first few chapters may pose a bit of a hurdle. The novel’s conclusion is satisfactory, but the real highlights here are the spooky sequences. The teens are all presumed White.
A deliciously disturbing, twisted tale. (Horror. 12-15)Pub Date: Sept. 7, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-338-67927-4
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: June 28, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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