Tragedy Girl

March 14, 2016
After a car crash takes the lives of her parents, Anne moves to the beach town of Hollis Island with her aunt and uncle for her senior year of high school. As she adjusts to being the new girl in school, Anne meets Blake, a student with a similar history: his girlfriend, Cara, drowned at a bonfire over the summer. What seems like a tie that would naturally bind Anne and Blake ends up leading her into an unsolved mystery. Fellow students repeatedly warn Anne about Blake, and even his brother looks apprehensive around him, but she goes out with him anyway. Just when things seem to be looking up, mysterious letters about Blake's best friend Jamie raise even more questions. Deriso (Thirty Sunsets) creates a tense, fast-moving plot, bolstered by a strong central and supporting cast and believable dialogue. Adeptly building anticipation in her psychological mystery, Deriso keeps readers guessing while eloquently describing grief and the effort it takes to move through it. Ages 12âup. Agent: Sara Crowe, Harvey Klinger.

February 1, 2016
Anne recently lost her parents in a car crash. Now she meets Blake, whose girlfriend recently died. Do their tragedies mean that the two are made for each other? Anne has moved in with her aunt and uncle and begins to attend a new high school, where Natalie warns her to stay away from Blake. Naturally, she meets Blake almost immediately, and he appears to be attracted to her. With some new friends she goes out with Blake and his friend Jamie, who was with Blake on the night his girlfriend, Cara, drowned. Blake seems great, and Anne feels an affinity--but he begins to behave erratically, suddenly becoming angry and then immediately justifying his actions. Meanwhile, one of Anne's new friends begins to receive anonymous notes warning her about Jamie. The girls blame Natalie for the notes, but Anne isn't so sure; she questions Blake closely about Cara's death. Unsatisfied with his answers, she decides to break it off. A surprise brings events to a head. Deriso builds up readers' suspicions of Blake effectively, but this remains mostly a psychological exploration of a girl coping with her own tragedy. The story uncovers the mystery with a nice buildup of clues, always keeping the focus on Anne. Deriso provides no ethnic or racial information of substance beyond hair and eye color, leaving readers to infer that Anne and her coterie are all white. A deftly plotted psychological mystery. (Mystery. 12-18)

COPYRIGHT(2016) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

March 1, 2016

Gr 8 Up-After the death of her parents in a car accident, Anne Welch decides that moving to her Aunt Meg and Uncle Mark's home near the beach in South Carolina for her senior year of high school will help her move on. Tired of the pitying looks and sympathetic questions, she gets off to a good start at Hollis Island High by making new friends and catching the eye of the school's cutest senior. She soon discovers that Blake has weathered his share of tragedy-his girlfriend drowned in the ocean a few months earlier. Blake seems perfect, but there are a few red flags that Anne cannot make herself ignore. When Anne's new friend starts dating Blake's best friend and anonymous notes in Anne's locker warn her to steer clear of him and Blake, she knows she needs to figure out what really happened to his old girlfriend. While fast moving and gripping, this title does not cover new ground and relies on plot machinations that most young adult readers have previously encountered. Anne and Blake are well-drawn characters but could've have been more developed. Story elements, such as Anne's relationship with her friends and the antagonist Natalie, suffered because of the novel's abbreviated length. Recommend to readers looking for a quick mystery to pass the time. VERDICT A strictly additional purchase for libraries with teens who enjoy a little romance with their suspense.-Morgan Brickey, Arlington Public Library, TX

Copyright 2016 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.