The Fixer

May 1, 2015
A girl from a ranch in Montana must quickly adjust to life in Washington, D.C., when her older sister puts their ailing grandfather into a facility. Sixteen-year-old Tess loves her life on the ranch and thinks she has successfully hidden, so far, her custodial grandfather's deterioration into dementia. Her sister, Ivy, however, isn't fooled and abruptly moves Tess to D.C., enrolling her in the exclusive Hardwicke School. Ivy is a high-power political consultant, with the president and first lady her major clients and a well-earned reputation for making the impossible happen, for covering up scandals, and for manipulating the press. When Tess inadvertently becomes embroiled in a major scandal, she can't leave things to Ivy because the events disrupt the lives of her new friends at school. When murder enters the picture, she tries to unravel the mystery of whodunit. Even though Ivy warns her to stay out of it, Tess and her new friends just can't stop themselves from conducting their own investigations, no matter how risky they become. Barnes paints a convincing behind-the-scenes picture of national politics, and the social scene in the Hardwicke School mirrors the power-play atmosphere. The plot struggles between politics and suspense, finally settling for the latter as the action picks up, but readers will find plenty to enjoy with the interesting characters, especially Tess, Ivy, and an underused ne'er-do-well, Asher. Intriguing despite its unevenness. (Thriller. 12-18)

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April 1, 2015

Gr 9 Up-Imagine Shonda Rimes's Scandal plunked into the middle of an elite private high school in Washington, DC. Now imagine the younger sister of an Olivia Pope-like character who possesses some fixerlike qualities herself and is quickly drawn into a political web of intrigue. Barnes packs all of that and more in this YA thriller. Tess comes to live with her much older sister, Ivy, after her grandfather unravels into the throes of dementia. Ivy is busy, strict, and extremely powerful-Tess doesn't know whether to be scared of her or love her, or both. After the teen becomes privy to some shocking information, she embarks on a life-changing cycle of events that draws her into the underbelly of DC political life, showing her that perhaps she is not unlike her sister, after all. Barnes is a master of mystery, and The Fixer is a great "fix" for teens not quite ready to tackle the adult themes of the similarly themed TV show. VERDICT Fans of "Pretty Little Liars" by Sara Shepard (Little, Brown) and the "Dead Is..." series (Houghton Harcourt) by Marlene Perez will enjoy Barnes's latest offering.-Amanda C. Buschmann, Atascocita Middle School, Humble, TX

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