Surface Tension

April 2, 2018
In this timely contemporary thriller, an act of domestic terrorism places an ordinary teenager in the crosshairs of the white nationalists who want to eliminate him as their sole witness, and the authorities who are convinced he was somehow involved. However, 17-year-old Jake Solley doesn’t even remember what happened; because of injuries sustained during the event, his memories are jumbled. All he wants is to resume life as usual, but a teenage girl is trying to kill him, and the FBI is shaking him down for information he doesn’t have. Jake’s only ally is his girlfriend Laurissa, but when she’s also placed in jeopardy, he has to take drastic measures to thwart the terrorists’ next attack and prove his innocence once and for all. Mullin (the Ashfall trilogy) tells much of the story from the viewpoint of Betsy, the teenage daughter of the terrorist’s leader and Jake’s would-be assassin, contributing an additional layer of narrative tension. Though Mullin’s premise is riveting and timely, the authorities stretch credibility with their ruthlessness and unwillingness to believe Jake. It’s a strong action story that touches lightly on topics of grave complexity, such as the Islamophobia that fuels the antagonists. Ages 12–up.

March 15, 2018
A white supremacist terrorist group targets a teenage witness.Avid cyclist Jake, a white teen from a working-class family, happens upon a plot by a white nationalist group, the Sons of Paine, that blows up an airplane. He escapes, but with a head injury that compromises his memory. Before he can recall that fateful day, Jake must dodge the terrorists' assassination attempts--luckily his wealthy, black girlfriend, Laurissa, is not only loyal, but a skilled action heroine. Their adorable romance has some friction rooted in their racial and socio-economic differences: Laurissa's mother isn't crazy about her children dating white people, and Jake sometimes needs racial realities pointed out to him. The story is narrated by Jake and Sons of Paine teen operative Betsy, who hangs out on white-supremacist web forums. The organization wishes to restore America to what they believe is its lost purity by triggering a war against Muslims; to this end, they commit their crimes dressed in Middle Eastern garb. The Sons of Paine infiltrate the FBI investigation in order to frame Jake, forcing him to rely on his wits to uncover the truth before it's too late. One FBI agent is Muslim. The book implicitly condemns Islamophobia but avoids directly engaging with why people harbor such beliefs or how to rehabilitate them.Entertaining as a popcorn action flick but politically superficial. (Thriller. 13-18)

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