A dark story filled with unexpected twists and turns and featuring a strong young protagonist.
A YA thriller tells the story of a teenager’s struggle to overcome trauma and her desire to embark on a new life.
Sunday Foster is a quiet, bookish 16-year old who has a boyfriend named Jack and a crush on Tyler, an older co-worker at the courthouse where she has a part-time job. Her sometimes-abusive parents, whom she thinks of only as “HE” and “SHE,” mostly ignore her; her brother died shortly before she was born. She has a plan to get into a good college, live with her boyfriend, and move on with her life, but her plans change after Tyler sexually assaults her. Afterward, she fears that she’s pregnant, and she enlists her shy, frequently bullied neighbor, Amir, to help her carry out a new plan of “pseudocide”: faking her death, adopting an entirely new identity, and leaving everything behind her. She plans to enact the scheme the week after the big school trip, but then a catastrophe occurs that speeds up her timeline. Under her new name, she makes her way to Las Vegas and finds out that a person she thought was her friend may have a dark side. Throughout this novel, Smith presents her protagonist with empathy; Sunday makes mistakes that are relatable and realistic, and her struggles as she finds her way in Vegas effectively get across how dangerous and difficult it can be to go it alone when one is young. Although the novel tackles such heavy issues as gun violence and sexual assault, the author treats the topics with the gravitas that they deserve, showing respect for her audience. This tense tale will keep readers on edge until its surprising finale.
A dark story filled with unexpected twists and turns and featuring a strong young protagonist.Pub Date: June 30, 2021
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: -
Publisher: Books With Soul
Review Posted Online: May 18, 2021
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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 lukewarm thriller.
In England, a group of teenagers tries to stay alive when a long weekend in an abandoned castle goes wrong.
When Bessie and her friends decide to join a party their classmate Allegra is throwing in her family’s abandoned castle before it’s converted into apartments, they think the biggest issues they’ll face are making it there before a big storm hits and keeping their plans secret from their parents and teachers. Once they arrive at the castle, however, Bessie and best friend Kashvi discover menacing graffiti and evidence that someone has been staying in the cellar. They also learn that protestors from the nearby village are angry about the development plans for the castle—one of them even argues that it would be better to burn it down. A handful of classmates manage to get there before the storm gets too severe. But when the teens wake up the next day to discover one of their own dead, and the storm makes it impossible for them to leave, they quickly realize that they’re in danger. But is the killer one of the members of the Facebook protestors’ group…or one of their own? Despite the book’s intriguing setup, the prose is dominated by repetitive conversations that convey little substance. Still, readers may still find themselves propelled forward by a need to discover the identity of the murderer. The central cast is racially diverse.
A lukewarm thriller. (Thriller. 14-18)Pub Date: Dec. 3, 2024
ISBN: 9780593704080
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: Sept. 14, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2024
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