From Publishers Weekly
This chilling novel focuses upon Stanley, a high school junior who attempts to cope with the confusion and chaos pervading his life. At home, his parents' marriage is breaking up; at school, he cannot concentrate; in both places, he feels anxious and uneasy. The only time the boy feels in control of his life is during the dangerous game he and his friend Jared play (breaking into houses and taking an item that proves they were there), pushing their courage and strength to the limit while daring fate to stop them. Gripping narration portrays the depth and darkness of Stanley's struggle; his uncontrollable desire to risk everything is both terrifying and enticing. Cadnum deftly captures the nuances of the relationships between his complex and intriguing characters. Eerie, suspense-laden prose powerfully depicts the frustrating, overwhelming and often painful process of traveling from youth toward adulthood. Ages 12-up.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From School Library Journal
Grade 9-12-- Stanley is a high-school student struggling to cope with estranged parents who inhabit the same house without ever communi cating with one another or with him. Stan is caught in the middle of their dissolving mar riage, as well as being drawn between the op posite poles represented by Sky, a potential girlfriend and a link to normalcy, and by Jared, a dangerous and unstable friend with a fasci nation for death and a penchant for self-de struction. For Sky, he attempts to return to the sports that were once important to him, hum bly befriends her Samoan family, and con fronts anything that threatens her. For Jared, he joins in a dangerous game of breaking and entering occupied houses for the thrill of fear that Jared needs to feel alive and, for a time, Stanley really can't tell which of these worlds will claim him first, or forever. This is a cryptic novel that offers a rapid series of scenes and descriptions and leaves readers to draw their own assessments of characters, conclusions, and moral judgments. The situations and events are harsh and often unpleasant, and there isn't much of the standard ``happily ever after'' variety to balance them, although the story ends on what appears to be a positive note. Some readers may be disturbed by this story, although mature teens may find it a more realistic reflection of a troubled world, in the manner of Robert Cormier, S. E. Hinton, and many adult writers. --Susan L. Rogers, Chestnut Hill Academy, PA
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.
