The Boy Who Killed Grant Parker

One teen replaces another at the top of a small-town social pyramid. Luke Grayson moves from a private school in Washington, D.C., to spend his senior year of high school in a small town in eastern Tennessee with the Baptist preacher father he scarcely knows. Luke's intention is to survive nine months, then flee, but early on he attracts the enmity of local golden boy and star quarterback Grant Parker--but when Grant is injured, Luke becomes heir to his throne, finding himself with Grant's gang of bullies, Grant's former squeeze, and even homecoming king. The book's first problem is that Luke is a relentlessly unattractive protagonist: entirely amoral and contemptuous of every single person he encounters. The second problem is that all of the secondary characters are cardboard stereotypes deserving of Luke's contempt. His father and stepmother are Southern Baptist parodies, the mechanic who employs Luke (and gives him a Camaro) can't figure out how to enter a password on the shop's computers, and the town's adults flock to the high school's homecoming dance because it's so much fun. None of these details rings remotely true. Race is only partially assigned to a few girls, described as blonde; the default seems to be assumed to be white. A big disappointment for fans of Spears' other work; for a stellar exploration of the rural South, read Jeff Zentner's The Serpent King (2016) instead. (Fiction. 14-18) COPYRIGHT(1) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

September 1, 2016

Gr 8 Up-This fast-paced work features a grab bag of teen fiction stock characters. Luke recently moved from the big city to a new high school in small-town Tennessee. Grant Parker is the "big man on campus." Grant's girlfriend, a pretty cheerleader named Penny, and Delilah, a cynical but intriguing neighbor girl, are both drawn to Luke right away. A bevy of suspicious adults waste no time before pegging Luke, the son of a local Baptist pastor, as a troublemaking outsider. Following minimal buildup, Grant comes after Luke at the garage where he works. The protagonist dodges him, and Grant falls into the grease pit, becoming comatose. Things take a surprising turn when Luke, rather than being blamed for the accident, is hailed as a hero. The newcomer is offered Grant's seat at the jocks' table, his position as student council president, and, incredibly, sex with Penny. Predictably, our former outcast abuses his newfound power, angering Delilah and straining his relationships with the dorky kids who initially accepted him. After a drunken homecoming night revelation, Luke must face what he's become. Luke sees himself as a gentleman but slut-shames, dismisses, or sexually pressures both love interests. He ultimately ends up with the cooler and smarter of the two. It's hard to imagine a group of real teenagers responding to a classmate's maiming in such a uniformly unlikely fashion. Spears has created a true antihero who may appeal to readers looking for a particular brand of edginess. VERDICT The interest inherent in love triangles, high-stakes drama, and the familiar fish-out-of-water premise may outweigh the aspects of this book that are dated, sensationalistic, and implausible.-Miriam DesHarnais, Towson University, MD

Copyright 2016 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.