The Killer in Me

Starred review from May 9, 2016
A teen tracks a serial killer in Harrison’s terrific debut thriller. Sleep hasn’t been kind to 17-year-old Nina Barrows, and she has taken to using pills to avoid it as much as possible. There’s a killer on the loose who calls himself the Thief in the Night, and Nina has insight into his next moves—her dreams give her a direct line into his life. Calling on Warren Witter, the friend who is hooking her up with her pills, she plans to stop the killer before he strikes again, but his identity remains elusive. Under the guise of meeting her birth mother for the first time, Nina and Warren set out on a road trip from Vermont to New Mexico that will lead them straight to the killer. Harrison expertly shapes a sharp, tense narrative, told alternately in Nina and Warren’s points of view, as Nina confronts terrifying personal truths and must fight for everything she holds dear. Taut storytelling and believable characters make this a standout mystery, with paranormal notes adding another layer of complexity. Ages 14–up. Agent: Jessica Sinsheimer, Sarah Jane Freymann Literary.

May 1, 2016
Nina's not a killer, but she dreams of one every night.Vermonter Nina Barrows, 17, was adopted by her single, lesbian, lawyer mother before Nina turned 1. Each night for as long as the black-haired, pale-skinned teen can remember, she's experienced life from the perspective of "the boy," including his memories of the "Bad Days," when his father committed suicide. Since she realized these visions were not the norm, Nina has told no one what she's seen, especially when the boy started hurting animals and graduated to killing people. She deals with it by trying not to sleep. When her plot to stop his next murder before it happens is discovered by her former best friend, strong, smart, handsome, white Warren, she enlists his help. Things go wrong in just such a way that neither is sure Nina's visions are 100 percent true. Tracking the probable killer to the New Mexico desert, they plan a trip to visit Nina's birth mother, part Navajo, who also lives out west. They hope to prove Nina's dreams and expose a serial killer...but Nina learns shocking secrets about her past when she gets too close. Nina and Warren share narrative duties in Harrison's debut, a tame, unsurprising parapsychological thriller. Neither voice is distinct, and twists are either telegraphed too early or just not twisty enough to increase interest.An additional purchase even where killer thrillers are king. (Thriller. 14-18)

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June 1, 2016

Gr 9 Up-Seventeen-year-old Vermont native Nina has intimate knowledge of a serial killer living in New Mexico. She knows his methods of selecting and disposing of victims, the steps he takes to make sure he will never be caught, and the name he chose for himself: the Thief. Nina finally has an opportunity to do something with her knowledge, so she turns to her former best friend Warren, but unwilling to tell him how she knows of the Thief, Nina lies. Although Warren is skeptical of her story and concerned for her mental well-being, his longtime crush on Nina compels him to help, and the teens set out to track the killer. But when she finally meets the Thief, he seems anything but the homicidal sociopath the protagonist has described. Could she have been wrong? What if there is no Thief? Is there a way to truly find out? Flowing and expressive prose paints a clear picture of Nina and Warren as they follow the Thief, wavering between certainty and doubt, both with regard to the killer and each other. The teens are smart, self-aware, believable characters, and a budding romance between the two adds another layer to the work without detracting from the story line. Nina's secret and multiple plot twists will keep readers guessing until the end. VERDICT A must-read debut for fans of fast-paced, eerie psychological thrillers who won't mind reading late into the night.-Maggie Mason Smith, Clemson University, SC

Copyright 2016 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

June 1, 2016
Grades 9-12 Nina Barrows' visions began at age four. Seconds after shutting her eyes, she woke in the body of a 10-year-old boy. Innocuous at first, these dream visits to the boy, Dylan, worsen over the years: Dylan's vanished father, failed suicide attempt, and gritty stint in Iraq leave himand Ninairreparably altered. Now a high-school junior, Nina avoids sleep, as Dylan, who Nina dubs the Thief, has taken to nightly murdersand his victims are anything but imaginary. With skeptical childhood best friend Warren along for the ride, Nina, determined to find and stop the Thief, embarks on a cross-country road trip, until an emotional encounter with the night boy himself reveals a seemingly impossible connection to Nina. Quickly, she must choose: Her visions? Or the man before her? Alternating between fierce, conflicted Nina and protective, cautious Warren, the narrative simmers with tender secrets, mystifying memories, and supernatural connections. While the debut thriller's twists and turns will draw readers in, it is the novel's palpable heart that guarantees they won't let go.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)