Accomplice

Starred review from August 23, 2010
Corrigan delivers an addictive cautionary tale in this twisted unraveling of mean girl machinations. The surprisingly likable (if tragically duped) narrator, junior Finn Jacobs, acerbically reveals the inside story on how she and her best friend Chloe fake Chloe's disappearance, hiding her in Finn's grandmother's basement for 11 long days. "It started as a joke. A sick joke really, the kind that Chloe and I could only tell each other because anyone else would think we were terrible people." The goal of this deranged plot is to make both of them stand out in competitive college admissions; however, readers will suspect before Finn the extent of Chloe's ambitions. Tension mounts as Finn finds it easier to lie and simultaneously becomes isolated by her secrets, especially as the facade of her friendship with Chloe cracks. As Finn realizes the consequences of her role, Corrigan (Ordinary Ghosts) balances her guilt and remorse with realizations about the underlying power dynamic of the girls' relationship. This commentary on the fictions underlying celebrity culture and the cruelty and bravery of this memorable heroine are both haunting and provocative. Ages 12–up.

July 15, 2010
In the tradition of YA suspense master Gail Giles, Corrigan creates a tense, bare-bones thriller that both provides a nerve-wracking ride and reveals its central characters' greed, selfishness and capacity for evil. When the story opens, city-born golden girl Chloe Caffrey has disappeared, putting the New Jersey farm town of Colt River and, soon, national TV audiences into a panic. Only narrator Finn, Chloe's best friend, knows the truth: Chloe's disappearance is a hoax. In 11 days, Finn will "discover" Chloe in the woods, and the two girls hope the fame they achieve will secure them places at the nation's most selective colleges. Though college admission seems less than compelling as a motive for such a destructive scheme, the tension is real and unrelenting. Chloe's calculating indifference is a perfect, chillling foil to Finn's mounting distress as both girls' families react, guidance counselors and fellow students pry and a shy boy from school is taken into police custody as a suspect. A dark page-turner with a satisfying resolution. (Suspense. 12 & up)

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Starred review from October 1, 2010

Gr 8 Up-Looking for a way to differentiate themselves from all the other great students applying to prestigious universities, Finn and Chloe fake the latter's disappearance in order to attract attention. Chloe conceived this plan after following the media frenzy over an abducted teen's return to her family, sure that the now-famous Margaret Cook will be accepted to any college. Though plagued with doubts, Finn keeps a straight face while lying to everyone, occasionally sneaking out to check on Chloe, who is hiding in her vacationing grandmother's basement. Despite having discussed every extenuating circumstance imaginable, the girls are stunned when police arrest Chloe's friend Dean for her murder, a crime only they know he did not commit. They stage her return from her "kidnapping" with surprisingly few complications, but things are never the same between the two best friends. Describing events from Finn's first-person perspective, Corrigan paints a complex portrait both of a family in grief and the emotions involved in deception. She deftly captures the way one mistake can lead to others, snowballing into a situation that seems insurmountable. Unfortunately, the story's premise is a bit hard to swallow. With modern society offering so many other routes to becoming a celebrity, it's hard to believe the teens would take this one. Readers who can get past that will find this well-paced, mature, psychological tale is impossible to put down.-Jennifer Barnes, formerly at Homewood Library, IL

Copyright 2010 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

May 1, 2010
Grades 7-10 Desperate to improve their visibility to colleges, two girls hatch a scheme to make them stand out from the crowd. The plan is simple; its execution, less so. Chloe would take off on her horse, which would then return home without her, signaling her disappearance. Meanwhile, Finn, her best friend, would hide Chloe in a basement, see that she had food, and then discover Chloe as she stumbled out of the woods 11 days later. The girls had counted on the psychological challenges of Chloes loneliness and Finns lies. What they hadnt anticipated are the plans unexpected repercussions, which result in the destruction of another life and the compromising of their souls. Corrigan has crafted a complex, heart-wrenchingly plausible YA thriller. Peopled with multifaceted teen and adult characters, the story flows from secrets to lies, from a few harsh words to terrible accusations, and from supreme innocence to soul-sucking guilt. A fascinating character study of individuals and an entire town, this tension-filled story will entice readers with a single booktalk.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2010, American Library Association.)