TMI

September 30, 2013
Blount follows her debut novel, Send, with another tech-driven cautionary tale. Until recently, Meg and Bailey's similar circumstances have kept them tightly bound to one another. But now that they're 17, and the future beyond high school is looming uncertainly, their friendship is no longer as effortless or as integral to their lives. Meg consciously pulls away from Bailey and attempts to deny her attraction to Chase, who she believes will move on without her once he graduates. Meanwhile, Bailey flails, breaking up with her boyfriend, pursuing Ryder (a gamer she meets on Facebook), and obsessively searching for her father. Misunderstandings between the girls have a domino effect, leading to more hurt feelings, jealousy, and perceived betrayals, which are further obfuscated through cyberspace. Blount's chapters alternate between Meg and Bailey's perspectives, creating equally troubled and complex characters. Blount addresses the potential perils of online relationships and the sometimes-destructive power of social media without proselytizing. It's the threat of a cherished friendship's demise that will most likely sustain readers' interest. Ages 13âup. Agent: Evan Gregory, Ethan Ellenberg Literary Agency.

July 15, 2013
A conflict over a mysterious boy met on the Internet leads two best friends into a fight, both online and offline. The third-person narration alternates chapter by chapter between the two girls' points of view. Meg, a driven artist, constantly paints Chase Gallagher, the boy with whom she refuses to become involved lest he interfere with her plan to go to college and build a stable future. Bailey, whose choices of boyfriends Meg constantly judges, concocts a bizarre plan to spend time with Chase in hopes that Meg will become jealous and admit her true feelings. Meanwhile, Bailey meets a boy named Ryder West playing an online game, and tension builds between the two friends as Bailey hides her involvement with Ryder. She reasons that Meg will see the lack of pictures on his Facebook wall and his unwillingness to meet in person as causes for suspicion. As the conflict between the two girls escalates, it spreads into social media, culminating in Bailey's post of a humiliating incident from Meg's elementary school years. Amid the histrionics, there are a few poignant moments, but readers have to slog through overblown scheming, catfighting and a climax involving a bloodstained canvas to get there. Relentlessly melodramatic. (Fiction. 12-18)

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September 1, 2013

Gr 9 Up-Best friends can be quite different; Megan's idea of fun is wandering around an art museum, while Bailey would rather go shopping or work on her video game in development. Bailey is suffering the disappointments and regrets of a recent breakup with Simon, the guy who fed her obsession with video games. While playing Call of Duty, she flirts with Ryder, a fellow gamer whom she meets online. Her feelings for him quickly overshadow her friendship with Megan, to the point that she neglects to plan anything for her birthday. Ryder constantly makes excuses about his inability to speak with Bailey on the phone or in person. Blount has a good handle on teen culture, especially the importance of social media. Vivid descriptions of characters' physical characteristics, thoughts, and actions are kept in check without slowing down the narrative. The alarm shown by Bailey's friends over her relationship with Ryder and Bailey's defensiveness and dismissal of their concerns are realistically expressed. The impulsivity and rash decision-making common in the teenage years are honestly portrayed. Subplots involving dead and absent fathers abruptly turn this otherwise believable story of online fakery into melodrama. Recommended for collections in which problem novels or "ripped from the headlines" stories are popular.-Jennifer Schultz, Fauquier County Public Library, Warrenton, VA

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