She Said / She Saw

April 1, 2011

Gr 8 Up-This fast-paced mystery revolves around the fallout from a drug-related drive-by shooting through the story of two sisters: Tegan, the only survivor in the car, and Kelly, 10 months younger than her popular sister. The deaths of two popular high school students devastate the community, and it is up to Tegan to help bring the murderer(s) to justice. Although she is interrogated repeatedly by the police and representatives of the victims' families, she cannot provide details of the attack. Initially, most people claim to understand that she may be in some sort of traumatic shock; her inability to recall the assailant's identity leads to shunning by her peers, including her sister. Pressured by the intimidation, Tegan publishes an online video addressed to the killer, which ultimately makes her a target. Although the ending is highly dramatic, the events do not stretch beyond believability. Tegan's mental block is understandable and realistic. The infighting between the families of the two victims, both from different economic, ethnic, and social backgrounds, is tragic and believable. The dangers of buying illegal drugs are presented without overt moralization. Through alternating the narrative between the two sisters, McClintock unveils details about Tegan and the victims that surprise and change readers' initial attitudes about them. Several scenes, including one in which Tegan learns that her mother's job is in jeopardy and a flashback involving an enraged motorist, crackle with tension. A solid choice for reluctant readers.-Jennifer Schultz, Fauquier County Public Library, Warrenton, VA

Copyright 2011 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

February 15, 2011

McClintock, the author of the Ellis Award-winning Chloe & Levesque crime series for teen readers, returns with a slim and shocking stand-alone. Tegan and Kelly are nearly twins, born less than a year apart. They live with their single mom, inhabiting realities so starkly different they barely acknowledge one another's existence--until the unthinkable happens. Tegan's two best friends are shot dead at point-blank range right in front of her. As the investigation unfolds, Tegan's unable to contribute in any meaningful way, either having blocked out the memory of that night or having failed to pick up any details of it in the first place. She becomes the most widely reviled girl in school, and even Kelly isn't sure she trusts Tegan anymore. McClintock lays all the complexities and horror of adolescence bare. She has the two sisters trade turns narrating, with Kelly's narrative written as a screenplay and Tegan's composed as first-person journal entries. The brisk pace, solid character development and inventive structuring make for fast, page-turning reading, and at all wraps up with an unpredictable plot twist and ending. Mysterious and haunting, packed with hard truths about adolescence. (Mystery. 15 & up)

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